How Obama's Long Game Will Outsmart His Critics

[Rinata]

What a great article I just read by Andrew Sullivan. It's the best one about President Obama that I have seen in a long time. A sample:

A president in the last year of his first term will always get attacked mercilessly by his partisan opponents, and also, often, by the feistier members of his base. And when unemployment is at remarkably high levels, and with the national debt setting records, the criticism will—and should be—even fiercer. But this time, with this president, something different has happened. It’s not that I don’t understand the critiques of Barack Obama from the enraged right and the demoralized left. It’s that I don’t even recognize their description of Obama’s first term in any way. The attacks from both the right and the left on the man and his policies aren’t out of bounds. They’re simply—empirically—wrong.

The article is four pages long. I hope you will all read it.

Andrew Sullivan: How Obama's Long Game Will Outsmart His Critics - The Daily Beast

 

[EriktheRed]

The job collapse bottomed out at the beginning of 2010, as the stimulus took effect. Since then, the U.S. has added 2.4 million jobs. That’s not enough, but it’s far better than what Romney would have you believe, and more than the net jobs created under the entire Bush administration. In 2011 alone, 1.9 million private-sector jobs were created, while a net 280,000 government jobs were lost. Overall government employment has declined 2.6 percent over the past 3 years. (That compares with a drop of 2.2 percent during the early years of the Reagan administration.) To listen to current Republican rhetoric about Obama’s big-government socialist ways, you would imagine that the reverse was true. It isn’t.

 

[Warrior102]

What a great article I just read by Andrew Sullivan.

Who??

 

[Stephanie]

LOL, still trying to convince that Majority that disapprove of the Obama how wonderful he has been, and we all are really better off today than when the took office..you see folks. it's all just a figment of our imaginations if we feel we AREN'T..

 

[Rinata]

LOL, still trying to convince that Majority that disapprove of the Obama how wonderful he has been, and we all are really better off today than when the took office..you see folks. it's all just a figment of our imaginations if we feel we AREN'T..

They are FACTS, you poor, ignorant, broad. I know, being a low information voter, that you don't hear too many of those on Fox News.

 

[Billy000]

What a great article I just read by Andrew Sullivan. It's the best one about President Obama that I have seen in a long time. A sample:

A president in the last year of his first term will always get attacked mercilessly by his partisan opponents, and also, often, by the feistier members of his base. And when unemployment is at remarkably high levels, and with the national debt setting records, the criticism will—and should be—even fiercer. But this time, with this president, something different has happened. It’s not that I don’t understand the critiques of Barack Obama from the enraged right and the demoralized left. It’s that I don’t even recognize their description of Obama’s first term in any way. The attacks from both the right and the left on the man and his policies aren’t out of bounds. They’re simply—empirically—wrong.

The article is four pages long. I hope you will all read it.

Andrew Sullivan: How Obama's Long Game Will Outsmart His Critics - The Daily Beast

Fantastic article. Thanks.

 

[Claudette]

His long game looks like it ain't based on his sucky record.

Class warfare seems to be the way he's gonna go. Of course IMO thats the only way he can go especially when a pretty big percentage of Americans think the country is headed in the WRONG direction.

 

[driveby]

Vacationing in Hawaii instead of submitting his budget on time (again) is a very smart move...

 

[Mac1958]

Funny thing is, Obama doesn't have to outsmart his critics. He just has to point at the GOP field.

What a crappy choice in November.

.

 

[Stephanie]

LOL, still trying to convince that Majority that disapprove of the Obama how wonderful he has been, and we all are really better off today than when the took office..you see folks. it's all just a figment of our imaginations if we feel we AREN'T..

They are FACTS, you poor, ignorant, broad. I know, being a low information voter, that you don't hear too many of those on Fox News.

LOL, FACTS...
you don't have to have little Andrew try and convince me...it's that majority who sees the Obama as a FAILURE.
And you accuse me of low information and then post some opinion piece by Andrew Sullivan and gush all over it..

 

[mudwhistle]

What a great article I just read by Andrew Sullivan. It's the best one about President Obama that I have seen in a long time. A sample:

A president in the last year of his first term will always get attacked mercilessly by his partisan opponents, and also, often, by the feistier members of his base. And when unemployment is at remarkably high levels, and with the national debt setting records, the criticism will—and should be—even fiercer. But this time, with this president, something different has happened. It’s not that I don’t understand the critiques of Barack Obama from the enraged right and the demoralized left. It’s that I don’t even recognize their description of Obama’s first term in any way. The attacks from both the right and the left on the man and his policies aren’t out of bounds. They’re simply—empirically—wrong.

The article is four pages long. I hope you will all read it.

Andrew Sullivan: How Obama's Long Game Will Outsmart His Critics - The Daily Beast

The attacks aren't wrong. Obama has been living the high-life. He and his wife act like we owe them the kind of life they're living right now. During a time that Obama himself says is the worst economy since the Great Depression, he and Michelle chose not to penny-pinch but to spend lavishly at every opportunity.

That is only one complaint one can have of his presidency.

Another is that he refused to tackle the tough issues and instead take care of his base and his rich friends before he even attempted to fix the economy, and he refuses to allow the Keystone project to move forward even if it will provide thousands of great paying jobs to Americans.

 

[LoneLaugher]

Feelings? That's funny.

 

[LoneLaugher]

Yeah, Obama should do like past Presidents and move into a double-wide in Chatanooga.

 

[mudwhistle]

LOL, still trying to convince that Majority that disapprove of the Obama how wonderful he has been, and we all are really better off today than when the took office..you see folks. it's all just a figment of our imaginations if we feel we AREN'T..

They are FACTS, you poor, ignorant, broad. I know, being a low information voter, that you don't hear too many of those on Fox News.

Insulting opposition to your views isn't going to help prove your case.

 

[Oldstyle]

The job collapse bottomed out at the beginning of 2010, as the stimulus took effect. Since then, the U.S. has added 2.4 million jobs. That’s not enough, but it’s far better than what Romney would have you believe, and more than the net jobs created under the entire Bush administration. In 2011 alone, 1.9 million private-sector jobs were created, while a net 280,000 government jobs were lost. Overall government employment has declined 2.6 percent over the past 3 years. (That compares with a drop of 2.2 percent during the early years of the Reagan administration.) To listen to current Republican rhetoric about Obama’s big-government socialist ways, you would imagine that the reverse was true. It isn’t.

The difference between the Reagan "early years" and the Obama "early years" is that in his first two years, Dutch Reagan did the hard work of tackling the stagflation that he inherited from Jimmy Carter by having the Fed tighten up the money supply...an action that made unemployment rise. Once he had inflation under control, Reagan cut taxes and the economy took off...leading to the longest period of continuous economic growth in our nation's history. In contrast, Barack Obama has had the Fed keep printing money like crazy to try and stimulate the economy and kept interest rates as close to zero as possible. There is no economic boom waiting around the corner for Mr. Obama because he hasn't laid the groundwork for that to happen. Sorry, Erik...but your guy doesn't understand economics and brought in a team of economists that were equally clueless.

 

[peach174]

2nd page talks about Obama not raising taxes.
Obama did raise taxes.
The very first thing he did was raise taxes on cigarettes, in Feb. 2009,by .62 cents.
It targeted the poor and middle class.

 

[Stephanie]

2nd page talks about Obama not raising taxes.
Obama did raise taxes.
The very first thing he did was raise taxes on cigarettes, in Feb. 2009,by .62 cents.
It targeted the poor and middle class.

progressives have no problems lying..and you are correct...He raised taxes on those who could least afford them. but he cares for the poor and middle class, don't ya know

Andrew Sullivan is a joke..

 

[California Girl]

LOL, still trying to convince that Majority that disapprove of the Obama how wonderful he has been, and we all are really better off today than when the took office..you see folks. it's all just a figment of our imaginations if we feel we AREN'T..

They are FACTS, you poor, ignorant, broad. I know, being a low information voter, that you don't hear too many of those on Fox News.

Insulting opposition to your views isn't going to help prove your case.

To an unthinking idiot, it is a good article. It re-enforces every half truth, and downright lie that the left believes are 'facts'.

 

[mudwhistle]

2nd page talks about Obama not raising taxes.
Obama did raise taxes.
The very first thing he did was raise taxes on cigarettes, in Feb. 2009,by .62 cents.
It targeted the poor and middle class.

progressives have no problems lying..and you are correct...He raised taxes on those who could least afford them. but he cares for the poor and middle class, don't ya know

Andrew Sullivan is a joke..

Andrew looks like a queer.

Wonder why homosexuals love Obama so much???

 

[Harry Dresden]

The job collapse bottomed out at the beginning of 2010, as the stimulus took effect. Since then, the U.S. has added 2.4 million jobs. That’s not enough, but it’s far better than what Romney would have you believe, and more than the net jobs created under the entire Bush administration. In 2011 alone, 1.9 million private-sector jobs were created, while a net 280,000 government jobs were lost. Overall government employment has declined 2.6 percent over the past 3 years. (That compares with a drop of 2.2 percent during the early years of the Reagan administration.) To listen to current Republican rhetoric about Obama’s big-government socialist ways, you would imagine that the reverse was true. It isn’t.

about half of those Govt jobs were from the Post Office.....and Obama had nothing to do with that....