Obama advisers conclude efforts at bipartisanship were misguided

[cal04]

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/02/13/obama-advisers-conclude-efforts-at-bipartisanship-were-misguided/

Earlier today, ThinkProgress highlighted “Obama’s wasted efforts at bipartisanship.” Reporting on the same subject, The New York Times’ Peter Baker writes that Obama advisers concluded that they mistakenly “allowed the measure of bipartisanship to be defined as winning Republican votes rather than bringing civility to the debate.” Center for American Progress President and CEO John Podesta said the problem was “wishful thinking“:

“I’m not sure I would describe it as naïve, but wishful thinking,” said John D. Podesta, a former White House chief of staff who ran Mr. Obama’s transition and still informally advises his team.

The White House will be able to “pick off” individual Republicans on individual issues, Mr. Podesta predicted, but will not be able to change the calculation made by the opposition party to be in opposition.

“What would make it change?” Mr. Podesta asked, referring to the Republican determination to challenge Mr. Obama. “If you’re going to do this at the moment of greatest need, at the height of his popularity, what sort of thing would get you to change?”

“Yes, we’ve learned some lessons from this,” said Obama adviser David Axelrod. “But primarily we’re happy with the way it turned out.”



links
Obama’s Wasted Efforts At Bipartisanship
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/02/13/obamas-bipartisanship/

Bipartisanship Isn’t So Easy, Obama Discovers
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/14/us/politics/14obama.html?_r=1&hp

[MrPerson]

1. Well, duh?????

[Cirque du So-What]

2. Ya think??!!!eleventy1111

At least Obama can say he tried, but that the asscarrots across the aisle are too recalcitrant for civilized discourse. If I never hear the word 'bipartisan' again - or see members of our party attempting what amounts to so much happy horseshit - it'll be too soon!

[Larkspur]

3. Sounds like the Obama fanatics are eating crow right now

It's nice that the Obama Admin admits mistakes. Putting bipartisansip over sound policy was a losing strategy with the Republicans today. Hope that Obama has learned his lesson and is tougher negotiating with Repukes in the future.

[The Hope Mobile]

7. I think the republicans are the ones that will end up losing for this.

The more they look like stubborn jackasses the less likely they'll have a seat to come back to. IMHO

[Miss Chybil]

8. I'm not eating crow.

And neither is anybody else. All they (we) have to say from here on out is, "We tried to be nice to Republicans..."

[Larkspur]

14. Nice guys finish last

and that is where Obama was heading until he wisely changed course.

[Cha]

13. Too bad you're salivating

over it but nobody's eating crow. What a stupid thing to say.

[Larkspur]

16. I'm laughing at the Obama fanatics

They are not much different than the Bushies, who also could not admit when their leader was wrong.

[RushIsRot]

23. Don't negotiate with the S.O.B.s! Just walk over them. We've got

the votes, don't we?

[TheWraith]

25. Only the Obama hypercritics believe that the admin didn't see this coming.

Once again: anyone who thinks that Obama LOST OUT somehow in this is either still paranoid from years with the Bush admin, or simply not paying any attention to what's actually happening.

Obama gave the Republicans the choice of standing with the base and alienating the rest of America, or being bipartisan and angering the base. Guess which they chose.

[Historic NY]

4. Really...he has the mandate...fire up the bulldozer & get threw the roadblock.

[notadmblnd]

5. They tried toplay nice with the bastids, and it didn't work.

Now get out there and run over their asses.

[lurky]

6. I think this is good in 2 ways.

1. They were able to recognize a flawed strategy and correct course.

2. They gave the R's a legitimate opportunity to cooperate and the R's publicly spit in their faces. The GOP has shown very publicly that it puts nasty partisan politics above everything else, even during a time of national crisis. In the future, when they whine about being left out of the policy-making process, nobody will take them seriously. Obama is now free to ignore them.

[The Hope Mobile]

10. And they are free to lose their seats. Not some good thinkin' goin' on there.

[lurky]

18. Yeah, people like Boehner. He's from Ohio, for F's sake.

They have some of the worst job losses and foreclosure problems in the country. I don't think people will be happy that he fought against the economic stimulus.

[Hubert H. Hubert]

9. someone has to post it

[bluestateguy]

11. Al Franken will be arriving in a couple of weeks, and then we only need 1 more Senate vote

The House requires 218 votes to pass bills. We've got 256. No problem.

The "pickoff" strategy in the Senate. Once we get Franken in there, we just need one blue state Republican per bill. Depending on the issue there are many prospects: Lugar, the two girls from Maine, Voinovich, Specter, or Grassley. Again, every issue is different, but Obama ran well in all of these states and getting one of them to vote for cloture (not for the bill, but for cloture) should be do-able.

[liberalla]

30. I'm hoping that one of those Senators may switch their party to Ind.

The more rigid the Republicans become, the more they harangue those Senators who are willing to work with President Obama from time to time, the more clearly they see that today's Republican party is not one they want to be a member of!

I hope, I hope, I hope... }(

[leftofthedial]

12. doh!

won't say "I told you so."

Doh!

[LakeSamish706]

15. You know, the hardest thing to do is going from being equal to .....

going to rising in the establishment (been there and done that). President Obama's dilemma is no different than any of us that have gone from being a worker to being a boss. He is going to have to get thru this in his own way and I'm sure he will make mistakes in doing so. I am guessing that there is a reason that one doesn't move from the Senate to President (or Vice President or Secretary of State and we have had three of our Senators do this). I worked in a hotel for many years (same one) and moved up thru the ranks... It was very tough, cause I was resented for being able to make those moves...

[RagAss]

17. Cool...just don't let it happen again....banish the GOP to the Capitol basement !

[and-justice-for-all]

27. Repukes belong under the stairs..nt

[NeedleCast]

19. I think it worked out perfectly

If I were Obama, I'd tell the Repubs "Well, we tried to reach out to you and go the bi-partisan route. Since you're not interested, we'll just spend the next four years cramming through everything we want. If you don't like it, get bent!"

[Lugnut]

24. That's why I don't think it was a mistake.

From the beginning of the effort I thought it was a clever approach. Pres Obama certainly knew with whom he was dealing. I think he knew exactly what the result would be.

[Hissyspit]

20. Cenk Uygur's commentary on this here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x271566

[cal04]

22. thanks for the link Hissyspit

I agree with him.

[girl gone mad]

21. We. told. you. so. n/t

[Two Americas]

28. of course

But now we are wrong, because we were right.

We say: "This moving to the right bipartisan stuff won't work."

They say: "We have to move to the right to get things done. It is a center right country! Kucinich lost! You are tearing down Our President and have a hidden agenda! You lefties are lunatics and are wrong!"

The moving to the right bipartisan stuff fails miserably, and the politicians abandon it.

They say: "See! You were wrong! Our President knows what he is doing, and we were right to 'support' him! You were wrong for 'tearing him down!'"

[and-justice-for-all]

26. I appaulaud their efforts, but I new it was a lost cause from the start..

but hey, He tried and that is what matters. He looks good for attempting and repukes look even more fascist and uncompromising then ever, I would not call Obama's efforts 'wasted'.

Now, I hope Obama/Dems steam rolls those fuckers and leave to to pout in the the corner because they cant have their way anymore. Boo fucking hoo I say, it is their mess that has to be cleaned up and a mess that they STILL deny and would claim that 'the fundamentals of the economy are strong'.

FUCK'EM I SAY! THOSE WORTHLESS LYING BAGS OF SHIT REPUKES!!

[liberalla]

29. It's short sided to declare the efforts misguided and wasted.

IMO, President Obama is reaching out for the benefit (and support) of the public. We are observing his efforts and the lack of same from the Republicans. The Repukes look more and more rigid, radical and ridiculous. The pukes are painting themselves in a corner. He's thinking way ahead and not just for this round.

I like this post by damonm. Here's and excerpt:

"This is chess, people, and Obama's playing well enough to put Vishwanathan Anand (current World Chess Champ) to shame. Every time he reaches out, the Rethugs MUST retreat into an unreasonable position or risk being seen as weak by their shrinking base. He has them in a bind of their own making, where every move they make weakens them further with the larger electorate. If this continues, the Democrats will have a deathgrip on the Government for YEARS. Or to be more musical about it, Obama's playing the GOP like Jimi Hendrix on a Fender Stratocaster."