Politico: Obama to Seize on Bolder Strategy; stronger selling and less care about winning GOP votes

[TeamJordan23]

Hardened Obama plans new fights

Emboldened by his victory on the stimulus package — but chastened by the pothole-pocked road that got him there — -President Barack Obama and his aides are plunging ahead on a large and expensive agenda that virtually assures 2009 will be marked by intense partisan battles about the size and role of government.

White House aides say they have concluded that Obama too frequently lost control of the debate and his own image during the stimulus battle. By this reckoning, the story became too much about failed efforts at bipartisanship and Washington deal-making, and not enough about the president’s public salesmanship.

For Obama’s next act, the program is the same as he has been planning for months: New Deal-style plans to rescue struggling homeowners and rewrite regulations on the financial markets, plus a budget proposal that lays the groundwork for sweeping health care reform.

But the strategy to promote these items is getting an emergency overhaul. Obama plans to travel more and campaign more in an effort to pressure lawmakers with public support, rather than worrying about whether he can win over Republican votes in Congress. Officials suggested that the new, more partisan tone Obama embraced last week in his speech before House Democrats at their retreat and continued at his news conference Monday was what he should have been doing all along.

Meeting with reporters Thursday night, White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said that there were times during the stimulus debate when “I don’t think we were sharp about the benefits” of the legislation, letting Washington process dominate the message.

Reflecting as “somebody who has been in this town,” he observed that “there’s an insatiable appetite for the notion of bipartisanship here and we allowed that to get ahead of ourselves.”

But Emanuel said that they recognized they had overdone their initial outreach to Republicans and had offered "a sharp message for the last week."

For now, the hard-charging chief of staff added, “He has an open hand, but he has a very firm handshake.”

Translation: Yes, the president will continue to do obligatory outreach to the GOP, but he’s not going to be burned again by an out-of-power and toothless minority for the sake of appearances.

Continue reading: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0209/18827.html

[tekisui]

1. WooHOo!!!

I think this was his strategy all along. Expose the pukes for the obstructionist-party-firsters they are, and then leave them irrelevant with egg on their face.

Let's get some work done.

[Cha]

29. Win

Win.

[roguevalley]

36. whimper. this is such good news. I just got a robo call about passing

the stim and pounded Lisa Murkowski over it. She could be unemployed too if she keeps acting like a repug twit. :) I felt soooo much better. I pound on her about once a month. You should do it. Its good for the soul.

[WeDidIt]

2. Rope-a-Dope

Obama laid back on the ropes and let the GOP throw everything they had at him.

Now, they're exhausted and a rested Obama is coming out swinging.

Idiots should have realized what Obama was doing while they were coiling up the thousands of feet of rope he was giving them...

[wroberts189]

20. hehe ...yep nt

[Cha]

28. I'm glad so many get it here

on DU..but, there's some who think it was a waste of time to reach out to the repods..I say it was brilliant and natural 'cause he would like them to be different than vile, robotic, pod people..but, that ain't gonna happen in his life time.

[Adelante]

3. Okay!!

:thumbsup:

[Cha]

30. Ohhh, I like

your new name, Adelante!

[Clio the Leo]

4. "an out-of-power and toothless minority"

lol, well put.

[ej510]

10. Thank God!!!!!

[Enrique]

14. yep, that's the republicans

[debbierlus]

5. As long as he learns from it - and at least now he can say he tried

But, Republicans won't work with him.

I have been saying this from day 1. Many of us have...

Obama might want to start listening to progressives. He wouldn't be in the White House without us.

[WeDidIt]

7. Yeah, but he had to PROVE they wouldn't work with him

Now they look like the evil bastards they really are. And Obama comes out smelling like a rose.

[Egnever]

18. Exactly! He played them like a fiddle

I have no doubt he will continue to make them look like fools going forward all the while offering his outstretched hand.

He is a brilliant politician.

[Lugnut]

11. Yep.

Now that's he proven to the voting public that Republicks are determined to be obstructionists he can carry on.

[Egnever]

17. He wouldnt be in the white house without a lot of people.

he doesn't owe you anything in particular you need to get over that idea.

He won this fight masterfully and in the process increased his own support and lessened the repukes. The idea that he somehow failed here is fantasty.

[Cha]

31. You know? It's not about you..we

didn't elect you..Obama knows what he's doing.

[bluestateguy]

6. Obama should adopt the Bush standard of bipartisanship

Bush essentially said this to the Democrats: "If you will completely sell out your principles and agree with me and my policies, yeah, I'll cooperate with you and help you do that."

[Fire1]

8. That's all we have been saying. Thank you, Thank you!

[high density]

9. With tax cuts and war spending behind them, Republicans have retreated to the libertarian position

They don't want the government to do anything but provide a war machine.

[Metta]

12. It's all fairy tale-ing until it's on the table. Do that thing and let us see.

:hi:

[wroberts189]

22. He will do that thing ... just wait.:) nt

[Arugula Latte]

13. He learns quickly.

He tried to take the high road, but the GOP is a nest of scum-sucking vermin. They don't understand cooperation or the concept of "the good of the country." All they understand is appeasing their corporate overlords and helping the uber rich get richer.

[wroberts189]

23. Or perhaps he already knew :) nt

[Cha]

32. Of course, he did..

It's Obama strategy that won the primary and the general on and now he's set about to win what they need to get done for our Country and for the People.

[rhiannon55]

15. We finally have a president who learns from his mistakes

I can hardly believe it!

[wroberts189]

24. How can you really know it was a mistake my blog friend? HAHA nt

[rhiannon55]

35. You're right. He is so smart that he probably knew exactly how it would all turn out...

...but when he DOES make a mistake, he's willing to admit it and change what he's doing. He's pretty amazing--and the repukes don't know how to take him at all. I love it.

[Cha]

33. What mistake?

Gotta look at the big pic and know Obama.

[Egnever]

16. what changed?

thats what he has been doing all along.

I have no doubt he will continue to call them as he see's them till the end of his 8 years. His weapon is honesty and the willingness to be honest with the american people and speak to them. This man is fully aware of the power of the bully pulpit and he will use it like a scalpel to decimate the republican games.

One would think after two years of watching this guy more of you would recognize his strategy by now. The idea that they will be doing something new is laughable.

[wroberts189]

21. You are very correct ..nothing changed.

It was the plan all along :)

[wroberts189]

19. Many here knew this beforehand ... He played them for fools. knr

He said lets work together ..they said go f yourself.

The public puked with outrage at the pubs in the latest polls..


Now they will beg to work with him.


And now he has the upper hand.

[AlinPA]

25. Republicans are operating with the closed fist that he mentioned in his inaugural address.

[FrenchieCat]

26. Who funds and runs the Politico? by Glenn Greenwald.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/05/04/politico_funding/


Like Stinky the Clown stated elsewhere here at DU, "POLITICO IS A STEALTH RIGHT WING SUBVERSIVE ORGANIZATION FAR WORSE THAN FOX NEWS"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5044943

[Bullet1987]

27. Obama is already tired of their games and grandstanding and it's barely

been a month. These guys aren't even acting like they want bipartisanship.

[wyldwolf]

34. Yes, let Rahm be Rahm