Howard Zinn on Obama's 1st Year:

[amborin]

snip

...... I wasn't terribly disappointed because I didn't expect that much. I expected him to be a traditional Democratic president. On foreign policy, that's hardly any different from a Republican--as nationalist, expansionist, imperial and warlike. So in that sense, there's no expectation and no disappointment. On domestic policy, traditionally Democratic presidents are more reformist, closer to the labor movement, more willing to pass legislation on behalf of ordinary people--and that's been true of Obama. But Democratic reforms have also been limited, cautious. Obama's no exception. On healthcare, for example, he starts out with a compromise, and when you start out with a compromise, you end with a compromise of a compromise, which is where we are now.

I thought that in the area of constitutional rights he would be better than he has been. That's the greatest disappointment, because Obama went to Harvard Law School and is presumably dedicated to constitutional rights. But he becomes president, and he's not making any significant step away from Bush policies. Sure, he keeps talking about closing Guantánamo, but he still treats the prisoners there as "suspected terrorists." They have not been tried and have not been found guilty. So when Obama proposes taking people out of Guantánamo and putting them into other prisons, he's not advancing the cause of constitutional rights very far. And then he's gone into court arguing for preventive detention, and he's continued the policy of sending suspects to countries where they very well may be tortured.

I think people are dazzled by Obama's rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to be a mediocre president--which means, in our time, a dangerous president--unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction.


http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/01/21-7

[elocs]

1. Kind of sad to have a new Democratic president and to have such low expectations for him.

It's sad to think of a president with such potential would end up being mediocre.

Just sad.

[Cleita]

2. I have to agree with him about being dazzled by rhetoric.

When I saw that he could mesmerize listeners with his speeches I felt uncomfortable about his abilities to be President. Remember another President, with a gift for speechmaking, was one of our worst Presidents of recent times, Ronald Reagan. I hoped that I was wrong about Obama and still hope that I'm wrong, but that hope gets dimmer every day.

[xchrom]

3. Mediocre indeed. Nt