Is the Left missing an opportunity to make the right look bad?

[JamesA1102]

Last night President Obama was very generous in his statements about former President Bush. Many on the left felt he shouldn't have made those statements while many on the right say the President didn't give Bush enough credit.

I think there is opportunity here to make the right wing look bad and unreasonable to people in the middle who decide elections. One complaint I've heard from moderates is that they are tired of all the partisan bickering and see both sides as equally unreasonable. If the left says up, the right automatically says down and vice versa.

Most people in the middle would agree that President Obama was very gracious to President Bush last night. Thus, the left should be quiet and let the right be ones to complain about it. Thus, they will be seen as the unreasonable ones and lose credibility with the middle.

[Enrique]

1. are people on the left saying Obama shouldn't have said good things about Bush?

if so, then I disagree. I don't think it did any harm. But I'm not sure it's true that he's getting that criticism. I know that when Nancy Pelosi occasionally said something generous toward Bush she was skewered mercilessly here at DU, but it's not the same with Obama. Obama gets a pass on a lot of things like that.

[Cronus Protagonist]

2. We should be QUIET to make the right look bad???

FUCK THAT!!

We need to shout it from the fucking rooftops, over and over and over until the election is over, then we should keep on making as much noise as possible until the next election!

[Vincardog]

4. should keep on making as much noise as possible until Hell freezes over then we should stand on

the ICE and shout it some more

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

6. Thank God we have a winning strategy....

:eyes:

[pscot]

13. It's called leadership

:P

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

14. No, it's actually called "Throwing a Hissy"

Who am I supposed to be screaming at? And how does screaming at people change their behavior.

I've been screamed at plenty of times in my life, and my reaction has typically been to think something along the lines of, "What an asswipe."

So I really don't see how being in a perpetual snit is going to win many votes.

[JamesA1102]

19. On certain issues yes, but on this one, no.

If you just keep shouting over every little thing, soon people just start tuning you out and you lose all credibilty.

[JamesA1102]

15. Not saying be quiet.

And there are plenty of issues from extending unemployment benefits to Bush's tax cuts for the rich in which the left can make great arguments.

I'm saying don't make this an issue because in the end it will alienate many in the middle and they won't listen to the good arguments on the real issues that the left can make.

[zipplewrath]

3. It won't work

ceding the stage to the right isn't a way to get ones point across. And it only allows them to lie more.

[JamesA1102]

16. Not saying ceding the stage.

I'm saying that the left be reasonable and gracious on this one.

[zipplewrath]

17. By what

Agreeing with Bush that he fought the "good war"?
I mean, I understand the concept of "if you don't have anything good to say". But I can't say anything about Bush that would be "positive and gracious" that wasn't a lie.

[JamesA1102]

20. He never said Bush fought a good war.

See that's where the left loses credibilty. I'm just saying be gracious and let the right look bad by their complaining. Then we can focus on the real issues that people care about and since we have good arguments for them we can convince people. But if we get into a pissing contest with the right over every little thing, people with just stop listening.

[zipplewrath]

28. I know he didn't

I'm asking what YOU think "the left" should have said to be "gracious". I can't think of anything to say about Bush that could be considered "gracious". As such, it would leave the stage to the right, which I consider a very bad strategy.

[JamesA1102]

29. Exactly leave the stage to the right

on this one issue where they can make themselves look petty and foolish while we can talk about real issues.

[AndyA]

5. Wrong, wrong, wrong a thousand times wrong!

That's the PROBLEM with the left: they don't say enough! People think the right is correct because no one on the left bothers to call bullshit. The response should be: we were lied to to start this war. It's been a horrible drain on our economy, as we had to BORROW MONEY FROM FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS TO PAY FOR IT, INCREASING THE DEFICIT.

Our military and its families have suffered greatly for these wars.

Experts have always suggested the solution to issues in the Middle East is POLITICAL, not a military one.

The Dems are about to give everything WE WORKED SO HARD TO GIVE THEM IN 2006 and 2008 back to the GOP. Silence is NOT AN OPTION. Every last one of them needs to be out there screaming about the filibustering GOP, reminding Americans who brought us to this point and who has fought hard to keep us where we are.

Silence is too subdued for anyone to notice, it will just reinforce to most that the GOP is correct in what they say, because no one is saying otherwise.

[JamesA1102]

18. I'm saying pick our battles

It doesn't have to be my way or the highway on every little thing. Let the right waste their time doing that. Then the left can spend their making arguments about jobs and the economy.

It's called being strategic.

[Cronus Protagonist]

22. + ten grand!

From the OP: "the left should be quiet and let the right be ones to complain".

However, in politics, the ONLY thing one should be quiet about is one's own peccadilloes. That's a maxim that's been true since the birth of civilization. A politician needs to tell us why he's right, why they're wrong, and what he'll do for us in the future. Our politicians generally fail at that, with a few notable exceptions... even when we have good news to report!

[JamesA1102]

26. On this topic.

There are plenty of other issues that the left can make good arguments about. This isn't one of them.

And when you cherry pick a quote out of context you're playing the same intellectually dishonest game that FAUX news does and that make you no better than them.

[FrenchieCat]

7. The Left missing an opportunity is our MO.

God Forbid we should have a strategy so that the Right loses......
them and their media. But no, we would rather pile-on the President,
like that will gain us anything other than massive losses in November.
Guess we can't get to used to losing, and we miss it already.

[prolesunited]

8. Yup

Gotta have an enemy and apparently, it's whoever is in power. As if we would be sooooo much better if the GOP was back in power. And for those who say there's no difference, I'll bookmark it to remind you when we invade IRAN under a GOP president and Congress.

[prolesunited]

9. Yup

Gotta have an enemy and apparently, it's whoever is in power. As if we would be sooooo much better if the GOP was back in power. And for those who say there's no difference, I'll bookmark it to remind you when we invade IRAN under a GOP president and Congress.

[Sherman A1]

11. Yup!

you nailed it.

[JoePhilly]

23. +1000

[impik]

10. It's more important for the left to make Obama look bad

[EC]

12. You are right in this instance

there are issues we should shout loud and clear about...


But not this one...most people in the middle - the so called independents - do not believe Bush lied us into war...they really believe it was just one big mistake...Remember these are the same people who voted for him in 04...so this is not a winner to be shouting about, this one would make us look extreme and irrational...

[JamesA1102]

21. Thanks nt

[rucky]

24. How would the left criticising Obama be a turn off to moderates?

Wouldn't that just make Obama look more like the moderate he is?

[JamesA1102]

25. Because it won't be seen as criticizing President Obama

it will be seen as going after Bush. Then it becomes another left vs. right shouting match and everyone else tunes out.

[besdayz]

27. a

giving bush credit is like getting raped in prison every night and then when you get out you go back and visit your rapist cellmate