I really want Obama to find the right direction.

[JDPriestly]

I believe that he can.

I have wondered whether maybe he wasn't a bit scared to be president. Maybe he tried to find more experienced people to guide him and chose the wrong ones. I suspect that is the problem.

His policies don't fit his experience or his personality. As he emphasized at his inauguration, he was a community organizer in a rather low-income community. But his policies have not helped the kinds of communities to which he dedicated a part of his life. That's puzzling to me and indicates to me that his policies may not be his own.

I agree that he is in a really bad situation. But if he would approach his role more like that of a community organizer, and think more about the problems of all those people who are depressed and losing their jobs, their small businesses and their homes, he would find some better policies.

I posted this in a response to another excellent post and decided I wanted to post it separately.

I welcome your comments and maybe suggestions about what approach you think a community organizer would take to creating policy in this very difficult situation.

[Grand Taurean]

1. I agree

that he has to find the right direction, or else we are all screwed.

[CoffeeCat]

2. I'm wondering how much power a President has any more...

Like you, I see a big disparity between Obama's current policies and what he said he would do during the campaign.

It's like he's a different person.

I have been left wondering...Did Obama mean what he said during the campaign, or not?

And has our government been swallowed up by a Fascist, corporatist faction that controls everything from behind
the scenes, and has more power than the President?

Is Obama dealing with a cabal, the likes of which we can't even comprehend?

I don't know. I just know that campaign Obama and President Obama are like two different people.

[laughingliberal]

5. I wonder about all that all the time

Sometimes it worries me that all the pushing in the world makes it harder for a man who wants to do the correct thing but whose hands are tied. Silly, maybe, but I think about it. And if that's all true the only end to this will, someday, be violent revolution and it is not at all clear that would workd.

[gleaner]

12. The simplest explanation is often the best ...

explanation. He was a different man. He projected himself as the man he knew the country wanted to elect. He lied. The president has considerable power and he started with a big fat mandate to use it, but he did not. He is doing exactly what he wants to do. He is following his own mind and his own direction. It is not the direction he led us, deliberate led us, to believe that he would follow, but it is the one he wants.

You are posting about elaborate cabal theories and a powerless president fantasy after seeing what George Bush did and got away with for eight years and which Obama is enabling him to get away with now and for the foreseeable future. Where did that power go? Did it simply disappear? Of course not. It still exists and it is still being abused.

Obama has officially and in a court of law underwritten, consented to and blessed torture, extraordinary renditions, denial of Habeas Corpus which is a constitutional guarantee. He has given his blessing to holding prisoners in secret for indefinite periods of time without charging them or bringing them to justice in a US court of law. The only "justice" he plans for them is murky secret tribunal which no one will ever witness. Sound familiar? That was George Bush's fondest wish. He appointed George Bush to the Haiti relief effort. Doesn't everyone want a war criminal helping the people he hates most? People who are poor and people of color. The same people he helped to die during hurricane Katrina. Obama ignores this and courts Republicans every chance he gets. He told the Senate not to pass a health care reform bill until the new conservative Senator is seated, giving away yet another piece of his Democratic mandate which he has thrown right back in our faces at every turn.

If you believe that he is either a saint or some childlike savant who can be led around by the nose you are living in a dreamworld. If that is what you want, that is fine for you, but at this point I don't care whether he makes it or not. I hope he is a one term president and that we can find another Democratic candidate who cares enough about his base, us, to make this country a place where we can afford to live again, to find a job again, stop these senseless wars of occupation which Obama keeps expanding, and start gathering revenue from those who can afford it best. The wealthy corporations and individuals whom Obama is intent upon protecting. It would also be a great relief to once again be bound by the Geneva Conventions, to have the constitution fully in force and not to be known around the world as a nation of torturers. That one fact should trump all others. How does anyone live with a leader who sanctions torture and refuses to prosecute, even befriends those who instigated it in the first place.

There is a concept in Eastern philosophies. It is roughly this. Life is nothing but a dream. Everything that lives and moves and forms a part of the universe is a figment of the sleeping vision of the dreamer. It leaves the concept with the question; who is the dreamer and who is the dream? People who buy into fantasy Obama are definitely dreaming but is it my nightmare or yours?

[sabrina 1]

17. I agree with you. Even though I supported him in the

election, I was very worried about many of the positions he took, eg, on the FISA bill. What is now becoming a pattern with him, he had given a magnificent speech on the issue of spying on the American people. Then, he turned around and voted to protect those who broke the law from any consequences. That sparked huge controversy on Democratic boards with what has now become familiar, the party loyalists basically trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

But, there was no one else in the race I could support and even though there were more issues with him that were disturbing, the driving force that kept people, despite their skepticism, supporting him was the Bush administration. He benefited from the worst administration ever and got a pass on things he should not have and would not have otherwise.

I now think he was a very ambitious person. I don't think we know the whole story of how he seemingly came out of nowhere, ending up in the Senate for a short time and then on to the WH.

He dropped friends, or people who thought he was their friend, as soon as he thought they might not benefit him politically. That is never a good sign.

It is clear now that he is not a progressive Democrat and is not likely to change. His comments about Reagan, which he tried to backtrack on, were exactly how he felt. I'm even beginning to wonder if he is a Democrat at all. He doesn't seem to have a single, progressive idea that he is willing to fight for.

I think it's best to just accept him for who he is and concentrate on Congress so that his DLC/Republican Lite agenda will be challenged at every turn. He doesn't like progressives, he's made that clear. I don't know what more people need to see to realize that he wasn't kidding when he said Reagan was the president he most admired.

Yesterday I was upset that Brown won. Now I'm wondering if it was not a good thing. He may be useful to the progressive agenda and he has only two years. I'm beginning to see his win as a blessing in disguise if it stops this horrible Health Insurance Reform. Once he serves that purpose, we can work to get a good Democrat to run against him in 2012.

It's time for us to start playing chess. Those Democrats in Mass who voted for Brown may be smarter than we think. Sometimes you have to sacrifice a few pieces before you make your final winning move. Coakley would have rubber stamped the DLC agenda. With Brown we won't be disappointed, and he may do what we could not do, stop this bill from passing.

[gleaner]

18. Thank you for your response ...

I don't disagree with anything you wrote, but I want to clarify a bit for myself. I voted for Obama because of the fine persona he presented. The working man's hero, but there was also the bony shade of John McCain and I knew how that would be. I had just endured eight years of it. It was a mixture of hope and the old lesser of two evils. There is nothing I can do about him being president. He was elected legally and will have at least one term, but I cannot and will not support his agenda. I will be actively seeking a Democratic contender in the 2012 primary who will hopefully offer a viable alternative. It felt nice for the five minutes or so that Obama seemed to be who he held himself out to be to have voted for someone for a change, but maybe the lesser of two evils is all we ever get. I do accept who he is, and I have since the first six months or so he was in office. His handwriting was all over the wall in big letters and it was nothing I wanted to read.

I don't blame the people of Massachusetts for voting down Coakley. The anger and frustration they felt leaped right out of the polls. They were lashing out the only way they knew how at an administration who had played with their basic wants and need and then capriciously denied them. I doubt that they will ever forgive Obama. And that was their way of saying so. It was also a warning to the Congressional Democrats who are playing Obama's game, because it is never just one person pushing an agenda, it is many. So I wouldn't call them stupid at all. They want to be heard and that is a very basic part of human nature. I don't like Brown. He is like a very greasy steak full of gristle. You're going to choke on it sooner or later. I don't think he and his new constituents are going to have a very long relationship.

Anyway, you wrote a kind response to me. Now when I go swimming out to my trashcans tomorrow in the cold SoCal rain, at least I will have had the pleasure of reading it.

[crispini]

19. Nobody practical will primary Obama.

You can take that to the bank. Sorry, but that's just the way it is.

[JDPriestly]

23. So we will get a fighter who is impractical.

The Democrats thought Brown's attempt to win Ted Kennedy's seat was impractical. But these are strange times. Strange things happen.

If we run a Dennis Kucinich or a Howard Dean, the press will see a story. Besides we are the folks who stand on corners and talk to voters and walk door to door. We actually know how to campaign one-on-one. That is the most effective form of campaigning.

You stop at houses that are listed as having Democratic voters on the voting rolls and you say, for example:

"Hello, I am your neighbor over on _____ street. I'm supporting _____ in the election on ____ and I am asking you to consider supporting him too. Have you decided who you are going to vote for yet?"
Response might be: Yes, some other candidate? Oh, that's interesting. What do you like about that candidate?"

(Listen attentively, and don't get angry. You will learn a lot. You might change your mind. You will learn a lot about people and their problems. And at the very least, you can use what you learn in talking to undecided voters later.)

Then when the person has really finished pouring his/her soul out, you smile without scorn or malice or frustration and say, "Thanks. Interesting."

Don't argue. You are wasting your breath. If you feel angry, take a deep breath. One voter is not a whole election.

Then you say. "I have some information here about the candidate I'm supporting, ________. I hope you will read it and compare his views with those of ______. It was nice meeting you, and I hope I'll see you around the neighborhood sometime. It's so good to live in a society where we can have different opinions and still be good neighbors."

You smile genuinely because you are really happy to have met a neighbor and learned how that person thinks. Then you leave and go to the next house or you greet the next person if you are tabling.

This is really easy. If you get upset easily, remember you are not there to persuade people. You are just there to let them know how you feel and show respect for their opinions and ideas no matter how stupid you think they are.

Make friends. You can only change minds if people trust you. You do not need to fool anyone. You should not lie or fight with anyone not even verbally. Just demonstrate your commitment to the free market for ideas.

[crispini]

32. Thank you for taking the time to write that

I've done my share of blockwalking but it's always good to learn from others experiences. Also I always appreciate my fellow activists.

I think it's too early to decide whether or not to primary Obama but it is always an option.

However I and many people don't have much appetite for a campaign that is bound to lose. The candidate would have to be exceptional and clear on their reasons for doing so. I will not waste my time on nuts like McKinney or Nader. I doubt Dean would run. So I don't know who might do this.

[bobbolink]

33. Yup, he is good at speechifying.

Beyond that, especially for us poor folk, its sameold/sameold.

:cry:

[blm]

25. I believe he felt swamped by what he DIDN'T know and allowed 'WH experienced' Clintonites to hold

sway. That set up a lurch further right than he intended.

[Radical Activist]

3. He did approach it like a community organizer.

Did you go to the Organizing for America meetings after the election? He presented good plans and got them through the House. Now he's up against the brick wall of the US Senate and cowardly Senate Democrats.
As a community organizer I'm asking myself what I can do to get through to the Senate.

[JDPriestly]

24. What to do to get through to the Senate.

I think we should begin by circulating petitions for a constitutional amendment that states that corporations are not persons for purposes of the Constitution or any law of the United States or under any treaty or agreement of the United States. That will change the whole political scene and give people who are not wealthy a little more power.

[Mind_your_head]

4. Perhaps you meant to say, "I want Obama to find the 'correct' direction"

He's already yielded waaaaaaaay far to the 'right' (wing). That's why all of us 'proles' who pay the bulk of the taxes and get next-to-nothing in return are "upset"/ain't gonna take it any more.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proles

[JDPriestly]

7. Yes, Mind_your_head, I meant "correct."

[undeterred]

6. He is very intelligent and he has a moral center.

We haven't seen someone with a real moral center in the Presidency since Jimmy Carter.

But he is not acting in accord with it. He has overemphasized bipartisanship to the peril of his presidency and the welfare of the country. It hangs around his neck like a millstone. He needs to bring his actions into accord with his values... if he can... if its not too late.

[JDPriestly]

8. Agreed, undettered. He needs to have more confidence.

He has tried to please too much. That is his weakness -- wanting to be liked.

[Mind_your_head]

10. Sadly, it IS too late.....

and any alternative is even worse.

We're screwed.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

9. I thought of this Sunday when he spoke

at the church service. That he was returning to gain some strength and perspective.

That being said, if there was ever a time to just say "what the hell, I'm gonna go for
it," now is the time. As Ed Rendell said today, "go down fighting for what you believe in."
How I wish Rendell could sit down with Obama and have a nice little chat. Bring him
out of the bubble he's in and offer some insight. What is Michelle telling him? She's
his greatest advocate, but also, I get the impression she doesn't let him get to removed
from reality.

Obama can salvage his administration from going down in flames, but he's going to need help
and that help is not coming from the people he's chosen to surround himself with.

Very thoughtful post. Thank you for posting it.

[sandnsea]

11. All the poor people I know have been helped

Increased education aid, increased food stamps, increased unemployment benefits, weatherization for housing, money for teachers, SCHIP increase, green jobs programs.

If people like you would talk about this help, then the voters would remember it's there. As long as you and the media say nothing is done, people will believe the programs Obama talked about in the $700 billion stimulus never happened.

[undeterred]

13. Well, I've become one of the poor people.

Due to Obama there is an extra $25 per week and an extra 13 weeks of unemployment benefits - thats what I got from the stimulus. But its about to run out. I've been unemployed for 8 months with no end in sight, like millions of other people. Many of America's unemployed have had no income for much longer.

When I run out of unemployment comp - including the extension - in February I will have no income at all and will finally be eligible for food stamps. Try paying the rent and putting gas in the car with that. Try looking for a job when you no longer have phone or internet. Try finding a decent job when you're homeless or even when you've been out of work for a year. Try cheering for Obama when you've lost everything.

For all the noise about housing, Obama has done absolutely nothing for renters, who are much more vulnerable than home buyers. I have not found a single job to apply for that was created by the stimulus. I'm just trying to survive here, like millions of other people. And the money that went to bail out the banksters and the huge giveaway to Big Health Care - that was the survival money for millions of us that he flushed away to pay back people who gave him contributions. They don't need it to survive. Some of us do.

[sandnsea]

20. Your unemployment kept you above food stamp level?

And you're bitching?? I know people whose jobs don't keep them above food stamp level. Honestly, the things people will bitch about. The WPA didn't put EVERYBODY back to work you know. Unemployment was still at 15% and stayed there through most of the 30s. When Republicans blow up the economy, they blow it up good. And you blame Obama? I just don't get it. I bet you wouldn't want any of the green retraining programs either, they probably pay around $14 hr, and that wouldn't be near enough for you. Somebody around here calls that a "near volunteer" wage. You too?

[undeterred]

21. Yeah, you really DON'T GET IT.

You have no idea how much or how little money I have worked for. But like a typical wingnut moron you've decided you have the right to judge me. Maybe you need to walk a mile in someone else's shoes in order to "GET IT". How about trading places with me in 4 weeks when all I have to live on is food stamps? No, you'd rather pass judgment on total strangers on a messageboard. You should be ashamed of yourself.

[sandnsea]

22. lol, you think I've never lived on food stamps?

I should boohoo because someone has to live on food stamps? My daughter and her 2 kids live on food stamps. She is working about 5 hrs a week at 2 different jobs, and unemployment told her she didn't qualify because she has 2 jobs. My son was unemployed for 10 months and finally got a minimum wage job and is thrilled.

And you have the balls to say I don't get it?? Oh I get it alright. And so do my kids. They both know who to thank for the extra benefits they've gotten and who to blame for the blown up economy.

[undeterred]

27. I don't have balls.

I just spent five hours volunteering at a shelter. I don't judge people who are struggling. I don't find it necessary to measure each persons financial circumstances and make a public determination of how much right they have to complain relative to another person- like you do. That's the stinkin' thinkin' of right wingers.

And I never drank the Obama KoolAid so I don't feel compelled to defend his relatively inadequate response to the economy in the face of so much evidence to the contrary. And yes, I think you are very selfish and totally clueless.

[butterfly77]

29. Email the whitehouse about this..

[Mind_your_head]

14. Hahaha.....

"all the poor people I know have been helped"

:rofl:

you can't POSSIBLY be serious?!?!

[JDPriestly]

26. Voters do not want help in the form of just handing out more of the

taxpayers' money. They want help in the form of regulating overbearing businesses and bringing jobs back.

Charity is important, but it will not improve the economy in the long run. Trust busting a la Teddy Roosevelt would greatly improve our economy.

We all support the increased aid to the poor, but the nation's ability to provide that aid depends on maintaining a strong middle class which is the tax base. Remember, payroll and income taxes are a huge party of the government's revenues that make all these wonderful programs for the very poor possible.

[democracy1st]

15. only problem is the direction they chose were Bushlike misstakes! Not sure

about his judgement right now.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

16. This was posted on another thread, but it also belongs here.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/world_news_america/8471606.stm

[JDPriestly]

28. Wow, EmaraldCityGirl, that was just wonderful. Thanks, That lifted

my spirits.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

30. We aim to please.

:D

[donheld]

31. He cannot and will not get the right direction if

he doesn't stop listening to the crappy advice he's received over the last year.

[LWolf]

34. Obama thinks "right" is the "right" direction.

If you don't like the direction he's going, you weren't paying attention.

I want Obama to experience some fundamental personal change we can believe in, and start a cross-country marathon heading left until he can at least find the mythical "center."