Anyone else feel like maybe you did drink the koolaid?

[KansasVoter]

I was so excited. And so pumped for Washington to be turned on its ear.

I was ready for "No More Typical Washington Politics"

I pictured Obama roaming the halls of congress kicking ass.

I pictured Democratic senators scared to oppose him.

I thought Rahm would kick ass and take names.

And now when I say this shit here, people say

"That is not how Washington works"
"He has to work within the system"
"Blah, Blah, Blah"

How disappointing. 1000% better than McCain but not the Obama I pictured.

Maybe I was Naive.

[Captain Hilts]

1. I worked with too many campaigns to drink anyone's koolaid. nt

[KittyWampus]

11. what about martinis?

:)

[Captain Hilts]

15. I wish. Campaigns give me heartburn! You'll have to drink for me! Cheers!

[iconocrastic]

49. OP: You mean you let a politician's words affect how you see reality?

[iconocrastic]

51. Bait and switch is the only possible outcome in that case.

"We're going to fundamentally transform America." Right. Using Chicago tactics.

[FirstLight]

55. perhaps some of us DID

perhaps the reality we have been living with for the past decade or so has been so screwed up that we were HOPEFUL and WANTED to see that diferent reality was even POSSIBLE!

It has not been all roses for many of us these past few years, and the Great Orations and ideals and promises of CHANGE that we were fed (and not JUST by Obama & Biden, but by the Dems at large) were what motivated us to get out the vote and TRY once more after thinking it was all over and we were as good as goners...

so ya, i drank it ...and the hangover sux

[Captain Hilts]

56. Most people do. We all do it sometimes. nt

[YOY]

2. Being optomistic isn't supposed to be a bad thing.

But being jaded and cynical seems to be the realistic thing anymore.

[Captain Hilts]

16. Hi YOY, I'm a sucker for optimism. Did you go to the inauguration? I did.

[YOY]

26. Sat on my back porch and listened. I had to work but did so remotely.

I could hear the crowd from where I live. I heard the "Hey Hey...Goodbye" when I saw Marine 1 taking Zippy away and gave him the bird.

Felt good.

[eleny]

3. No, for me it's the issues not the person(s)

[Captain Hilts]

17. I try to remove the person's name from the policy, etc. whenever I can. nt

[secondwind]

4. NO!

[ShortnFiery]

5. Well, the difference is that MAYBE we're not torturing prisoners and will hesistate

before we allow Israel to bomb Iran.

Other than the above, I don't think our situation is MUCH BETTER than we would have endured with McCain/Palin ... save for the bravado and bragging rights. :(

[lumberjack_jeff]

12. Gunga galunga.

Well, at least we have that going for us.

[ShortnFiery]

23. Yeah, those commie gophers are now history Buddy!

:evilgrin: :P

[OKNancy]

6. I will get in so much trouble for this

but the experience thing just might be showing a little.

He still has time to turn it around though.

[iconocrastic]

52. Weird that you think you might get in trouble here for speaking the truth.

hmmmm, I wonder what might be the cause of that.

[last1standing]

68. He does have time to turn it around, the question is does he want to?

Also, its Damned good to see you around, Nancy. I miss reading your posts. :hi:

[Cant trust em]

7. Maybe I did, but I'm really thirsty.

Maybe things aren't different, and maybe that they're not going to change for a long time.

Does that mean we shouldn't try to change? How much could things have been different if someone else were in his shoes?

[nichomachus]

8. I never drank the Kool-Aid

I expected very little from Mr. Obama -- and, sadly, I've been disappointed even in that.

What a failure.

[jefferson_dem]

9. Didn't you post this same "concern thread" about six months ago?

:shrug:

[iconocrastic]

70. It was hypothetical then and subject to debate. It's undeniable reality now.

Not that they always know the future, but when some people see a train heading into a wall they know better than to go into denial.

[lumberjack_jeff]

10. My expectations were extremely modest...

... and I was extremely uncomfortable with the prevailing "fate destiny and providence" mindset. I felt then that people were projecting themselves onto a blank slate. They liked him, so they expected him to do things they liked.

Obama has failed to achieve even my modest expectations.

[depakid]

13. Nope- I simply hoped that in some respects, the leadership had learned

from its long period of near (or at times complete) irrelevance.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

14. So in other words, you were picturing this remake of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y63Hb_vwreY

[KansasVoter]

28. I'll admit, maybe Gullible!

[Gregorian]

18. No. I voted for Kucinich in the primaries.

Whether or not he could have enacted his ideas is another subject.

Actually, I did expect major change. But after Pelosi took impeachment off the table, I knew we were screwed.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

19. No, I did my research and knew he wasn't some sort of liberal icon.

I support him more than many here, but I don't understand people who expected Kucinich-like actions from someone who ran as a relative moderate.

[Hansel]

53. +1

[Codeine]

20. No, but I know how politics works.

And so far I think he's done well with the shitpile he was handed.

[nevergiveup]

21. Obama inherited a disastrous situation.

I thought he would crash and burn within 6 months. Being president is the toughest job in the world and presidents learn as they go. As much as I hated the result in Mass on Tuesday I think it will kick Obama up a notch. I think he has what it takes but like all of us he needs an occasional wake-up call. I am feeling more optimistic tonight then I have for a long long time.

[lumberjack_jeff]

25. I don't feel that he's made a conscientious effort to much of anything.

Except comity and bipartisanship, I suppose.

[Grand Taurean]

22. Most of the netroots did drink the kool-aid and

were vile towards anyone who did not, such as myself.
I am proud to say (as a Hillary supporter) I drink no kool-aid. Politics is big business and I expected no one to wave a wand and make things happen.
It takes hard work and connections to get things done.

[jesus_of_suburbia]

32. "and were vile towards anyone who did not"

Yes.

[Grand Taurean]

37. Hi!

Fellow Hillary supporter!
:hug:

[jesus_of_suburbia]

71. Hi!

*hugs back*


:hug:

[lumberjack_jeff]

40. An academy award for understatement. n/t

[SaveOurDemocracy]

69. Ain't THAT the truth!

It was BRUTAL.

[old mark]

24. Obama is a really great politician - a super salesman. I voted for him in the primary and the GE,

and now I am wondering what Kucinich is doing in 2012.

I did now think Obama would be the answer to all our problems, but I did not think he would be a closet republican, either.

mark

[kenny blankenship]

27. Hillary was the corporatist Devil-I-Knew and didn't want anything to do with. As for Obama

I viewed it as a case to apply Pascal's Wager. There were only 2 choices; one held no attractions, the other was a "Great Perhaps". So I drank the Koolaid and hoped for the best.

[Captain Hilts]

58. They were different only in temperament. That's about it. I got fried for saying so. nt

[Nite Owl]

29. Not really

but I also thought he would be much better than he has been. I was thrilled at the Inauguration but once those cabinet names started coming out and he picked Warren for the blessing I could see a lot of trouble ahead. This whole health care bill and the way he really didn't handle it and how the banks and corps kept getting their way totally ruined any hope. Even now he is saying he needs to talk to the people more. That isn't what is needed as much as listening more to real people not the bubble around him.

[CreekDog]

30. The past 48 hours, it's been crossing my mind

often.

and it's not one event that precipitated it, rather, a year of them that I am looking at differently realizing that not only did the White House not plan for losing a single Senator on HCR, but that they almost seem ambivalent about a product they had as their 1st priority for almost 9 months now.

so yeah, I think I may have drank some BYU Sparkle Punch.

[soleft]

31. After Clinton was elected in 92 I fell into a major depression

Not as much this time.

[Solomon]

33. Contrary to what everybody is saying, my expectations

concerning Obama have been exceeded in every way. I didn't think he was going to get elected. He ran a brilliant campaign. I didn't think he would get a chance to actually be "president." I thought that the racists and the closet racists would do everything in their conceivable power to thwart his presidency.

In the beginning, all I heard was "he's moving too fast, doing too much". Having helped to stave off a world depression, and brought America closer than it's ever been to doing something about Healthcare is amazing to me and has exceeded my expectatios about what he was going to be able to do. Now all I hear is he hasn't done anything.

LOL It really is laughable to me. The whole perception thing. The racists started out in the very beginning telling everybody that would listen, that they hope "he fails." That was the agenda that was set. So everything he tries to do, an overt very conscious attempt is made to fight it. Block it. Doesn't matter what it is. He can't be allowed to "win". Then the same people (and others) turn around and say "what has he done?"

Twilight Zone stuff if you ask me. But go right ahead. Have at it.

[liberalmuse]

35. Jesus, thank you! That's the best thing I've read on DU in a long time.

I could kiss you. It's hard to find someone who feels like I do.

[Solomon]

38. I know. It's crazy ain't it?

One thing that us Americans are good at. When we can get good cover to be racist, (like electing a black president - can't say we're racist 'cause we did that, right) we let it all hang out, and that's what's been going on from the get go.

But there's a lot of cover by virtue of the fact that a majority of Americans voted for a black thereby "proving" that it's not a racial thing. You hear it a thousand times a day every day, from the left and the right, "race got nothing to do with it".

The reality is that's all it is. I'm just really stunned at how well he has dealt with it.

[tledford]

54. 'race got nothing to do with that.'

And anyone who says that is a liar. And anyone who says that and BELIEVES it is a liar and an idiot.

[CitizenLeft]

39. agree with you completely.

:thumbsup:

He can't win no matter what he does.

[ShortnFiery]

59. Then Please?

Pass the bong ... I want to have some of what you're smoking.

Seriously, I'm completely disappointed in The Obama Administration ... bordering on depression.

So ... don't hog the bong, pass it on over? :silly:

[liberalmuse]

34. No. I still support Obama...

But I'm not drinking Kool Aid, as some would like to say. President Obama has not done anything to warrant the shit I'm reading from both the left and the right. I guess our other Democratic Presidents got more than one fucking year before their base started making like rats and jumping ship. Under Clinton, it took a few years before the economy started turning around and he didn't even get as far with HC reform. I don't know - I just don't get it. I sort of wonder if it really is because he's black, because you can BET a mediocre white guy would get more slack. Shit, Bush II got more slack. I'm so disgusted. Dems are fucked because they whine and jump ship before it even gets a chance to set sail. Christ, it sucks.

[treestar]

67. + 1 zillion!

I can't believe they are giving up already. Read this board and you'd think Cheney was President.

[FrenchieCat]

36. You keep up this war against this President,

Meanwhile, I'll be fighting the war against Corporations
taking over our entire political process.

If you think this is about Obama,
sorry, it's about survival at this point.

So you keep shooting that man down,
cause his replacement is just waiting in the wings,
and it ain't gonna be pretty, or nice, or thoughtful,
or give you any fucking hope eva!

[Top Cat]

43. You are on point Frenchie...

[Cha]

61. The op only

wants to show everyone how clever he thinks he is with his latest flamebait.. It shows me that he's a big part of the problem.

[tekisui]

41. Maybe I did.

I volunteered a good deal for the campaign. I approached looking at policies and personality. In the Primary I supported him because he was likable and I knew he could get votes. He was electable, and I wanted more than anything to keep repukes out of power. I went with who I thought was the winner. I had reservations about some policies issues, but nothing to keep me away having no viable alternative.

In the General election, I got very excited. I thought the change would be great. But, I remained cautious. I encouraged, pressured even, everyone I knew to vote for him and why. In private, with my wife, I related that I really didn't know how it would be, but I knew it was critical to keep mcPOW out. I listened to Thom Hartmann talk about him being a Rorschach Test. None of us knew exactly what we were getting. We projected because he spoke to everyone.

On election night, I partied. I yelled in the street, cried in public and got drunk as a skunk. That was what all the work was for.

His first month was impressive. He acted swiftly to undo a great deal of dubya's mess. I think he continued to try to be everything to everyone. Or at least, too much to too many. He has refused to be controversial. He has stayed out of the fight, above the fray. He has tried to remain likable.

In other words, he wasn't the same leader he was on the campaign trail. When he escalated the war in Afghanistan for the second time, and accelerated the use of drone attacks in Pakistan, he started losing me. When he wasn't forceful and didn't lead or take tough stands on Health care, he lost me some more. Allowing Kennedy's seat to fall to the repukes, when it was the ONLY election in the country pissed me off.

I still like President Obama. I will vote for him over any puke. I don't know, though, if I can bring myself to make the calls and knock on the doors. We'll see. Three years is an eternity in politics.

[politicasista]

42. No Kool-Aid, but understanding that Obama

is a professional politician. Still supporting him, though don't agree with everything he says or does, I would still vote for him again in 2012.

[DCBob]

44. No koolaid but you are naive..

Obama never promised anything like what you were expecting.

[NatBurner]

82. basically

[Bluenorthwest]

45. No kool aid here

To me his campaign was cynical, bigoted, contradictory, and filled with contempt for detail and common decency. He pandered hard to the most prejudiced religious hate groups using preachers of extreme invective against minorities their religion say God hates. This is not what good people do, what honest people do.

[Blue_In_AK]

46. I never did drink the Koolaid

and some people here really scolded me for it, too.

[FirstLight]

47. yep

and i also think that I am coming.down.hard.man...

I thought things were gonna be way different a year into this...and was even one of those people saying "give him a chance" six months in... but now?


very dissillusioned. and feeling abandoned.

no jobs for you!
no recovery for you!
no healthcare for you!
no peace for you!
no fisa repeal for you!
no dadt repeal for you!
...th list goes on doesn't it?

no HOPE for YOU!

Bastards, they are all Bastards.

[Solomon]

48. And your name is FirstLight?

Wow.

[FirstLight]

50. what's THAT supposed to mean?

...and ALL of us have the perogative to be pissed and upset right now, at ALL of them, for MANY reasons

so don't EVEN start with me, at the rate I am going today I may have to throw my tequila bottle at you!

:argh:

[Fire1]

62. Don't bother. Snark is common around here. n/t

[mountainvue]

57. I never drank the koolaid. But I voted for them

because it seemed like the only logical thing to do. Maybe I'll just go ahead and vote Green in 2012.

[Peacetrain]

60. Heck No..

[LWolf]

63. No, but I thought plenty of others did.

I was never more than appalled by Obama. While I recognized his eloquence and ability to push emotional buttons and make vague, unspecified "change" appeal to all who assumed that he was talking about positive, left-ward change, I watched his actions and listened to the policies he promoted and knew he was not the change I wanted to see.

[boppers]

64. Washington: Not a children's playground.

Kicking ass? Sacred Senators? He's POTUS, not some Hollywood action hero.

[dflprincess]

65. I'm sure Rahm is kicking ass

(or trying to) he's just not kicking the asses he should be kicking.

[treestar]

66. No way did I ever expect that much

I am happy we are back to using diplomacy, will wind out of Iraq, no torture policy, an attempt to deal with those in Gitmo on legal terms and most of all respect for our system. Obama showed that when he didn't want to ram something through until Brown was seated. He respected the voters of MA and their right to have that Senator - that shows a deep respect of our system and how it should work. That's what Bushco lacked and tried to subvert. They'd have rammed something through in the meantime.

[elana i am]

72. maybe you did

i don't really know what to tell you.

i never saw any of the things you describe, but i'm very pragmatic and i don't believe in david vs. goliath fairytales.

i had low expectations and consequently i'm quite pleased with obama's performance to date. he's done better than i ever thought for considering the current political environment and considering his centerist leanings.

i'm really at a loss as to why so many liberal/progressive folks, whom i previously considered very reasonable and pragmatic, completely lost their shit.

[robo50]

73. Yes, I feel screwed, like you

I wanted a leader, not a nice guy!

[Dream Detector 2010]

74. Yepper.

Pomegranate flavored, tasty.

[juajen]

75. I do not drink that drink. NT

[TexasObserver]

76. Remember that big purple ring around your mouth Grape Koolaid gave us?

That big "O" around my mouth is a sign I did drink the koolaid in 2008, and I glugged it down thirstily. I wanted to believe in HOPE and CHANGE and a new way of doing things.

[TheKentuckian]

77. Yup, I never thought Rome would be built in a day but I was hoping to start the long work

while utterly destroying the RepubliKlans but we played fucking footsie for a year and coddled big money and now we are in some seriously deep shit.

[SanchoPanza]

78. Other people aren't responsible for the fantasies you concoct.

And I mean that in the most polite way I can.

Call it a function of poor political history or civics education, because few people seem to grasp this, but the influence of a President over Congress, even with members of their own party, falls into very few areas.

1) The bully pulpit. This is not as huge as people make it out to be. Issues have to be clear cut and easy for people to understand, so this doesn't lend itself very well to complex stuff like health care reform (starting with the premise that we have fifty different health care systems in the United States, with varying levels of effectiveness), financial regulation, the economy, etc. Obama could use this, and has used it, for simple things like getting bailout money back or attacking organizations opposed to his policies (insurance companies, as an example), but it does very little in convincing actual elected officials unless they start getting inundated with calls from their constituents.

2) Bullying legislators. This hardly ever works. Without something like the Line Item Veto, the President has very little power to follow through on threats. As a result it really only works on members of their own party who need lots of outside help during campaign season. Senators are less vulnerable, since they generally have a state-wide fundraising and endorsement base to work with. Freshmen congressmen in difficult districts are the most vulnerable, and if you follow the nuts and bolts of congress you'll find that most of the freshmen in the caucus are in lockstep with either the President of the Speaker. People whose base of support is almost entirely local (Lieberman, Bayh, Nelson, Baucus, Conrad, Stupak, etc) are nigh-immune, and they're the ones that are problems for the caucus.

3) Negotiating. This will offend purists of the "my way or the highway" variety, as it involves cutting deals with people that your instincts tell you to punch in the face, but it works. Every major legislative accomplishment in American history was designed by committee and improved/expanded over the proceeding years. All the programs that fall under the Social Security Act (SS, Medicare, Medicaid) being the most pristine examples.

Considering things like HCR, in the past, have always passed or failed because of congressional negotiations (FDR and Truman couldn't get it through committees, Johnson struck major deals with various chairmen to get Medicare, Ted Kennedy passed on Nixon's final offer, etc), you simply have to negotiate. Given the state-by-state disparities in how health insurance is regulated, every delegation is going to want some things and be utterly opposed to others. Midwest delegations want Medicare reimbursement rates modified so they don't get the shaft (which they do, and this is a big reason by support for a PO tied to Medicare rates died). Northeast delegations want to make sure that cost controls are indexed to regional prices. The South wants more Medicaid payments to the states. Etc, etc, etc. And this doesn't even account for general Republican obstructionism and local special interests.

There are things you should feel completely at ease for feeling disappointed with Obama. Prosecuting torture, for instance, falls completely within the purview of the Department of Justice. But on most things the government is more than the White House.

[GoCubsGo]

80. Thank you. You sum it up well.

It sounds to me like there are a whole bunch of people who want President Obama to be "Dictator Obama." I can understand that. They had a dictator for the past eight years, and they apparently forget what our real government is like, dysfunctional as it may be.

[Lilyeye]

79. And to think....

I used to roll my eyes and say how lame republicans were when they would snark that Dems saw Obama as the next messiah. For the first time ever I can actually say the republicans were right.

[Dawgs]

81. NO! How the fuck were we supposed to realize that he would be different than the candidate?

:shrug:

[Hell Hath No Fury]

83. I drank the Kool-Aid with Clinton --

that cured me once and for all of ever doing that again.

I knew we had, at best, a 50-50 shot O would turn out to be the person he campaigned as.

The pick of Geinter, Rahm, Summers, and Kaine quickly showed "hope" had gone bust. :(

[Orsino]

84. Hope is not Kool-Aid.

Hoping for what we so desperately need is not Kool-Aid.

Being disappointed...not Kool-Aid.

Not realizing that the whole thing was always a long shot...maybe Kool-Aid.