The Republicans have check mated Obama

[Quixote1818]

This tax deal is going to cause the deficit to stay out of control. Obama will get all the blame (which is EXACTLY what the Republicans are up to) when several trillion is added to the debt he will then lose the center. The base will stay home in pretty strong numbers and it will be a blow out. The new Republican president will then use his Republican congress to start chopping Social Security and all kinds of other programs that are good for middle and lower income folks.

His only hope is that the economy turns around enough to increase revenue at a strong enough pace that we begin to grow ourselves out of debt and enough moderate Republicans can join with Democrats to make major cuts in Military spending. I really don't see the economy zinging along in two years so I think it's pretty clear Obama is going to have a very rough time of it come election time.

It's looking like our General just lost the war for the Middle Class. This was the Battle Gettysburg and we lost it without a fight.

[AndyTiedye]

1. The Republicans Started the Game With a Few Extra Queens

like the Supreme Court (which enabled unlimited corporate and foreign contributions for the Repigs) and the media (all Repiglickin' all the time).

[MNBrewer]

3. They're more like Bishops

[nxylas]

32. Republicans like to pretend to be bishops

But they're usually discovered to be queens sooner or later.

[NorthCarolina]

42. Well, Lyndsey Graham and Mitch McConnell

are more like Queens I think.

[aquart]

9. NO. They did not START there.

What they did was carefully examine the downfall of Nixon (free press, liberal courts) and make damn sure it couldn't happen again. They started years ago AND WE LET THEM.

Every time one of our idiots let a radical right wing judge go through so that the President could have his nominees, we made this happen.

When we didn't speak up when Bush let Murdoch buy his citizenship SOLELY TO GAIN OWNERSHIP OF OUR MEDIA, we made this happen.

When we allowed media consolidation in small markets, we made this happen.

They did NOT start where they are now.

[WCGreen]

18. Exactly.....

The battle for the media was faught and won in the early nineties...

[AndyTiedye]

40. What You Mean "We"?

*We* could not filibuster Bush**'s wingnut judicial nominations because *we* did not have the votes to do so.

While the Repiglickins have iron party discipline and always vote the party line in lockstep,
some of the "we" aren't really with us very much of the time. In fact, they are only "we"
in the sense that they claim to be Democrats (when it is politically expedient to do so).

They call themselves "blue dogs", and like dogs they go running to their (Repiglickin) masters whenever they whistle.

The only way *we* have a paper majority in the Senate today is by counting the "blue dogs" as Democrats,
even though they vote with the Repiglickins every time it really matters and will likely switch parties
if 2012 goes badly for us.

[pgodbold]

35. A FEW extra queens!? Honey they've got queens in every closet in DC! ROFL nt

[WinkyDink]

41. Leave Mitch McConnell alone!!!!

[aquart]

2. And you all told me he was bright.

[kentuck]

28. Sometimes we are all so gullible...

We will believe whatever we want to hear...

[bobbolink]

37. It was a national rohrshock test. Those of us who tried to say anything about it were shouted down.

[AndyTiedye]

43. Perhaps I am Not So Disappointed Because I Wasn't Expecting So Much

[bobbolink]

36. A person can be bright and be a sellout.

[Davis_X_Machina]

4. If I were a piece and a pawn down..

...against competent opposition, I'd expect to get checkmated, barring a blunder by the other player.

The Republicans aren't incompetent, and the Democrats aren't united.

[Poboy]

5. Dry powder!

[RaleighNCDUer]

6. He checkmated himself.

If he had pushed congress to address these issues a year ago, while we still had solid majorities in both houses, and had worked those houses to keep those majorities in line, we would not be where we are today.

We KNEW this was coming. We KNEW the tax cuts were expiring, we've known for ten years - and we couldn't come up with a strategy to counter it?

[Quixote1818]

8. Thats actually a better title. I agree. nt

[nashville_brook]

12. +1

[RZM]

7. I don't think that killing the economy was their goal

Though no doubt they did press full speed ahead and played hardball because if that does happen, Obama probably will get most of the blame. But don't forget that most of these Republicans REALLY BELIEVE that the tax cuts are the best way to stimulate the economy. If things don't get better it won't just be open season on Democrats, but on incumbents of all stripes (including in primaries). They know that if the economy doesn't get better they might be out on their asses as well -- they might be replaced by other Republicans, but that's little consolation to them on an individual level.

The base will not stay home in 2012 either. Turnout will be high as high as it usually is in Presidential elections. Pounding into people's heads what President Huckabee/Romney/Palin would do will even get some DUers to the polls! :)

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

10. He was doomed when he first took office and he is being

blamed for the result of bush's policies, pure and simple.

[Davis_X_Machina]

11. He should have resigned the day after his inauguration.

Power corrupts, and the less time you spend wielding it, the less corrupt you are.

The next Democratic nominee needs to step down as soon as he or she is nominated.

That'll put an end to 'politics as usual'.

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

15. No, the message should have the drum beat of the party

speaking clearly with one voice, that seems to be the only tactic that works with the American people. Bush was wrong, Bush was wrong, Bush was wrong.

[Davis_X_Machina]

19. Ben Nelson's voice leading the univocal chorus...

...backed up by the stylish harmonies of Ike Skelton, Heath Shuler, and Walter Minnick, no doubt.

[cornermouse]

13. He's being blamed for the result of Bush's policies and his

own failure to cancel them and put democratic policies into place. That's why he'll be blamed.

[Davis_X_Machina]

14. Historians will point to his failure...

...to declare a national emergency and rule by decree, just like Roosevelt, as his greatest failure.

[Poboy]

17. YES. I mean, most of us(the entire country) half EXPECTED him to.

He had all the popular will to do just about anything, and he chose to cut and run.

[Davis_X_Machina]

20. Silly me...

...thinking that a place called DemocraticUnderground would have any respect for, you know, democracy.

Goes to show you...

[RaleighNCDUer]

21. Roosevelt declared a national emergency and took it on himself

to rule by decree?

When did THAT happen? Have you been reading Texas history books again?

[Davis_X_Machina]

24. FDR with his brilliant gift for politics looked into the future..

...and realized that Obama's failure to do precisely that seventy-some years later would make DU very, very sad some day.

So he just up and did it. Of course, elections were restored eventually -- I think it was in '36 -- and Congress was allowed to reassemble when he declared that the crisis was over....

And this established the very precedent that Obama has failed to follow. Which is why he's dead to me now.

Gutless wonder.

[RaleighNCDUer]

27. Time to qut.

You need to sober up before going to work tomorrow.

[laughingliberal]

16. +1 nt

[JVS]

22. There is no fucking way to grow the economy fast enough to make up for these tax cuts.

[Davis_X_Machina]

25. Did I miss the post...

...where Herbert Hoover became a Democratic president post-mortem?

[Ohio Joe]

23. or...

"This tax deal is going to cause the deficit to stay out of control. Obama will get all the blame (which is EXACTLY what the Republicans are up to) when several trillion is added to the debt he will then lose the center. The base will stay home in pretty strong numbers and it will be a blow out. The new Republican president will then use his Republican congress to start chopping Social Security and all kinds of other programs that are good for middle and lower income folks."

We can all look past the repugs scam in blaming bush shit and repug obstructionism on President Obama and vote the repugs out of office.

[obxhead]

26. Obama played himself into the position to be mated. nt

[DemocratAholic]

29. exactly what they did with the bank bail outs

George W. Bush's final present to Democrats before he left office...leave Democrats no other choice but to support the bank bailouts otherwise risk collapse of our economy. Then, 2 years later...blame Democrats for the bail outs and the deficit it created. This deal with the Republicans is going to blow a hole in the deficit. Who do you think Republicans are going to attribute that to in 2012? That is the very reason why I am so flabbergasted by this deal. Is Obama really that naive that he can't see what this is going to lead to, and the fact it is political suicide for the Democratic Party? In fact, Republicans are already doing that!! They are talking about how this deal makes the deficit bigger, but making it seem like it is the "Democrat" part of the bill that makes it bigger. They've been playing this same game for years!

[asdjrocky]

30. No, wrong.

There was never, ever a real game. You guys have to get around the illusion of politics and it being the right against the left.

It was a play, not a game.

[bobbolink]

38. Not a play -- Street Theater.

But don't worry.. the joker leaves rich.

[Orsino]

31. Big Money has checkmated US...

...through the middlemen you mentioned.

Just don't credit the GOP with "strategy." That they are willing to lie bigger and sell their entire souls doesn't make them smarter.

[Odin2005]

33. Obama checkmated himself.

[Scurrilous]

34. Game over man.

:yoiks:

[RetroLounge]

39. In all 3 dimensions, yes

sad

RL

[w4rma]

44. He's toast. 1 termer. His poll numbers will *really* drop in 13 months when UI runs out.

And the Republican President will expand the Obama tax cuts for the wealthy with Obama standing right next to him helping to promote the bill.

[Scurrilous]

46. Bookmarked!

:P

[Initech]

45. The repukes have been out of control the last two years. They're all over the board.