Video - MSNBC's Chris Matthews on Obama: Smells Like Clinton, Waddles Like Cleveland

[rhombus]

MSNBC talk show host Chris Matthews had Robert Gibbs, the White House Press Secretary, on his show today. Here's what Matthews asked:

"It seems like this President has had to go to a lot of fundraisers lately, he's played alot of golf lately, he's hung around with Geithner and Summers and the Paulson crowd, the whole New York rich guy scene.

He's beginning to look like a Clinton, he looks like a typical Democrats now, hanging out, playing golf, going to rich people's parties, bringing people into the White House to go bowling, this whole thing begins to smell like the Clinton era, what happened to the change we can believe in?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJfC3c_iWhg



I happen to agree with Matthews. The cast of characters around Obama, particularly on the economic side - Summers, Geithner, Bernanke, Rahm, Messina, troubles me to some extent. Where are the progressive voices who are personally close to the president?

[Cha]

1. Yeah, while conveeeeniently

forgetting all that Pres Obama has accomplished so far.

Critics are a dime a dozen.

[PhD]

12. Please enlighten us of all these accomplishments

The only thing I can think of that he's done is the stimulus bill, which doesn't seem to be working anyway.

Oh, and he eliminated NSPS, which is going to ruin my job.

[NYC Liberal]

15. Here you go:

Links here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=8730317

Quote

Appointed a Special Envoy for Middle East peace

Order the closing of Guantanamo Bay

Prohibit use of torture

Obama Orders Secret Prisons and Detention Camps Closed

Obama Sets Bold New Principles for U.S. Energy, Climate Policies

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act

Omnibus Public Lands Management Act

Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act of 2009

Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 or FERA (PDF)

Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009

Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 (Kerry-Lugar includes funding for Obama's global poverty initiative)

Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009

End of 22-Year Discriminatory Travel Ban

Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act

Stopping Conflict-related Sexual Violence Against Women and Children

The UN, Women & Girls

New policy steps towards Cuba

Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia

Strategy to address the international nuclear threat

For the Media: "30+ Reasons Obama deserves the Nobel Peace Prize"

Russia on Nobel Peace Prize: Obama thawing 'second cold war'

World Reaction to Obama Winning the Nobel

Turkey, Armenia sign historic accord

Why the Stimulus Worked

Green jobs for real people: The story behind the recovery numbers

Obama's Plan: Financial Regulatory Reform: A New Foundation (PDF)

Requiring Strong Supervision And Appropriate Regulation Of All Financial Firms (pdf)

Strengthening Regulation Of Core Markets And Market Infrastructure (pdf)

Strengthening Consumer Protection (pdf)

Providing The Government With Tools To Effectively Manage Failing Institutions (pdf)

Improving International Regulatory Standards And Cooperation (pdf)


House Panel Moves Derivatives Toward Obama’s Proposal

FACTBOX: Major U.S. financial regulation reform proposals

Obama says Senate bill on tax havens would stop abuses

Statement by President Barack Obama on House and Senate Introducing Legislation to Crack Down on Overseas Tax Havens

Obama to chair historic U.N. council nuclear meeting

[vaberella]

17. You know, there are a lot of masquerading Repubs on this board. n/t

[PhD]

19. I see a lot of things he said he was going to do

that he hasn't actually done... (closing Guantanamo being the most obvious)

Then you proceed to list a series of photo ops:
End of 22-Year Discriminatory Travel Ban
New policy steps towards Cuba
Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act
The UN, Women & Girls
Obama to chair historic U.N. council nuclear meeting

vague initiatives or "plans" with no substance:
Obama Sets Bold New Principles for U.S. Energy
Strategy to address the international nuclear threat
Obama's Plan: Financial Regulatory Reform: A New Foundation
Statement by President Barack Obama on House and Senate Introducing Legislation to Crack Down on Overseas Tax Havens

things Obama doubtfully had anything to do with:
Turkey, Armenia sign historic accord
Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act
Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act
Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act

things that are obviously nothing more than favorable press coverage:
30+ Reasons Obama deserves the Nobel Peace Prize
World Reaction to Obama Winning the Nobel
Why the Stimulus Worked
Green jobs for real people: The story behind the recovery numbers

things that are all the same:
Requiring Strong Supervision And Appropriate Regulation Of All Financial Firms
Strengthening Regulation Of Core Markets And Market Infrastructure
Strengthening Consumer Protection
Providing The Government With Tools To Effectively Manage Failing Institutions
Improving International Regulatory Standards And Cooperation
Major U.S. financial regulation reform proposals

and I have no idea what this is supposed to refer to:
House Panel Moves Derivatives Toward Obama’s Proposal

---

All I'm saying is I'm extremely disappointed in how little he's managed to accomplish. Clinton had far more substantive legislation enacted this far into his presidency, with smaller majorities in Congress to boot.

[vaberella]

18. There's a thread on this page, that's been here for days which list accompolistments.

Your ability to ignore things that have been discussed continously on this board is amazing.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8730317

[MadBadger]

2. That actually wasnt what Tweety was goiing for at all.

He wasnt criticizing the lack of a progressive voice, but instead what Obama chooses to do with his time. He was basically calling him a elitist in the mold of Bill Clinton

[Armstead]

9. In his Tweetyesque way he was actually making a substantive criticism

Tweety was also, in his own convoluted way, criticizing him on that deeper level too. In Tweety talk, "hanging out" with the likes of Summers also refers to Obama's reliance on the same advisors Clinton had, and the direction Obama seems to be taking, which is a reprise of the Clinton/DLC ties to Big Bidness and Wall St.

[Thrill]

3. Its nice to mention Summers and Geitner. But you never mention Bernstein and Romer?

[rhombus]

4. Bernstein works for Biden

Did you read the New Yorker profile piece on Summers? The man controls the economic team as he's done every where he's gone to. When Bernstein and Romer were advocating for a much bigger economic stimulus package, Summers, who is the President's top economic advisor, shot down the idea. The sad thing is that he didn't even tell Obama that Romer and Bernstein recommended a larger stimulus.

[Thrill]

5. Bernstein is in all the economic briefings.

And him and Romer are in charge of the job creation policies.

[rhombus]

6. But Summers has the President's ear

Big difference. Summers gets to brief the president every morning on economic issues. This is his role. The problem is Summers has never been an advocate of the middle class. Look at his record. He's more in tune with Wall Street than Main Street. During the transition process, he told Obama to forget about health care reform until his second term in office.

[Cha]

7. And, PO is the boss and

he does what he wants.

[rhombus]

8. Summers has even pushed Volcker aside

Volcker, Krugman, Stiglitz, FDIC chair Sheila Blair have all been advocating breaking up the big banks through reintroduction of the Glass-Steagall Act. Even Greenspan supports this. Sumemrs and Geithner are against this.

[amandabeech]

11. Don't forget James Galbraith and Elizabeth Warren. n/t

[Drunken Irishman]

10. Oh that horrible Clinton era.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

13. The good old days when there was a surplus

[impik]

14. So now he can't play Golf in the weekends?

Amazing.

[Cha]

20. That's right..no golfing for

Obama.

[polichick]

16. "Where are the progressive voices who are personally close to the president?"

Good question. Nobody comes to mind.

[Tarheel_Dem]

21. This has to be the most photographed president ever. I wonder what

Tweety does with his weekends? This president can't hide out in the WH for fear that the paparazzi are gonna snap his picture. The presidency is a 24/7 job, but is this president never supposed to have downtime? The criticisms are unbelievable. Does the president only hang out with rich guys? I don't think so.

[Jennicut]

22. How uppity of Obama to play golf! Utter nonsense.

[WI_DEM]

23. Hey Tweety should have seen some of the people FDR and JFK hung out with.

[phleshdef]

24. Who is the racist POS that added the Cleveland part in? Him or you?