David Brooks is depressed: "I'm a sap."

[jefferson_dem]

:nopity:

Obama Rejects Obamaism
By DAVID BROOKS

I’m a sap, a specific kind of sap. I’m an Obama Sap.

<SNIP>

This wasn’t a speech to get something done. This was the sort of speech that sounded better when Ted Kennedy was delivering it. The result is that we will get neither short-term stimulus nor long-term debt reduction anytime soon, and I’m a sap for thinking it was possible.

Yes, I’m a sap. I believed Obama when he said he wanted to move beyond the stale ideological debates that have paralyzed this country. I always believe that Obama is on the verge of breaking out of the conventional categories and embracing one of the many bipartisan reform packages that are floating around.

But remember, I’m a sap. The White House has clearly decided that in a town of intransigent Republicans and mean ideologues, it has to be mean and intransigent too. The president was stung by the liberal charge that he was outmaneuvered during the debt-ceiling fight. So the White House has moved away from the Reasonable Man approach or the centrist Clinton approach.

It has gone back, as an appreciative Ezra Klein of The Washington Post conceded, to politics as usual. The president is sounding like the Al Gore for President campaign, but without the earth tones. Tax increases for the rich! Protect entitlements! People versus the powerful! I was hoping the president would give a cynical nation something unconventional, but, as you know, I’m a sap.

<SNIP>

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/opinion/brooks-obama-rejects-obamaism.html?_r=1&src=tp

[trumad]

1. Ahhhh poor BoBo

as long as Obama plays a sap...all is OK... but the minute he stops, it's politics as usual.

Fuck David Brooks.

[Cosmocat]

2. Sadly, unconventional

is the common sense approach of ticking back the disastrous tax policies that have done nothing for the economy and exploded our debt.

CONVENTIONAL DC wisdom is doing more of the same.

Not sure what his point is outside of a backhanded way of republican moaning about the pushback on their tax cutting screed.

[Ian David]

3. David Brooks gets it all wrong on Obama's tax plan

David Brooks gets it all wrong on Obama's tax plan

The New York Times' David Brooks it out with a column this morning that perfectly captures a fundamental misperception about what President Obama is trying to achieve with his new emphasis on tax fairness.

Brooks begins by correctly noting that the jobs package the president introduced a few weeks ago and the $1.5 trillion deficit plan he unveiled Monday represent one big "campaign marker." This is almost inarguably true: The White House has clearly -- and, in my view, correctly -- concluded that congressional Republicans are so thoroughly invested in stalling his agenda and humiliating him that they will even oppose policies they have long supported if Obama embraces them. So, because this obstructionism essentially makes significant economic improvement between now and the 2012 election impossible, Obama is trying now to convince swing voters -- who tend to instinctively blame the incumbent president when economic anxiety is high -- that the real obstacle to progress is the opposition party.

But this is not how Brooks explains Obama's calculation. Instead, he concludes that the president's Monday speech, in which he demanded that a deficit reduction plan include both cuts to Medicare and more tax revenue from wealthy Americans, was aimed only at his own party's base:

In his remarks Monday the president didn’t try to win Republicans to even some parts of his measures. He repeated the populist cries that fire up liberals but are designed to enrage moderates and conservatives

More:
http://www.salon.com/news/politics/barack_obama/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2011/09/20/deficit_taxes_obama

[zipplewrath]

19. Triangulation

"The White House has clearly -- and, in my view, correctly -- concluded that congressional Republicans are so thoroughly invested in stalling his agenda and humiliating him that they will even oppose policies they have long supported if Obama embraces them. So, because this obstructionism essentially makes significant economic improvement between now and the 2012 election impossible, Obama is trying now to convince swing voters -- who tend to instinctively blame the incumbent president when economic anxiety is high -- that the real obstacle to progress is the opposition party."

A strategy better known as "triangulation".

[GoCubsGo]

4. You're a sap, alright, Mr. Brooks.

But, President Obama has nothing to do with it. What schmuck.

The President bends over backwards for nearly 3 years to work with the rethugs, and it's HIS fault they refuse reciprocate? Who could blame him for giving up? I mean, other than Brooks?

[tanyev]

5. Yes, you are a sap, David.

But not for the reasons you think.

[Hoosier Daddy]

22. Exactly

Ya took the words right off of my keyboard.

[dkf]

6. He hit it on the head. That speech was Obama giving up on fixing this economy.

Those cheering him on probably don't even realize it or maybe they had given up already. I hadn't earlier, but yesterday it was staring me in the face.

If talking about taxing the rich is all you want in life then you can rightly celebrate. If you need a job you've just been f'ed.

We are so screwed.

[Logical]

8. Remember this is the GDP where obama can do no wrong!

[BklnDem75]

10. Instead of GD where Obama can do no right?

:eyes:

[CakeGrrl]

21. +1000

[jefferson_dem]

11. So you agree with Brooks...

Obama should have steadfastly continued fruitless efforts to find "compromise" with the extreme, intransigent Republican teabaggers?

[BklnDem75]

14. Stance is meaningless when there's a good Obama rant to defend

[BeyondGeography]

7. Obama was having irrelevant conversations with himself

Brooks felt validated, because as a self-styled "reasonable" Republican, that's the story of his life.

[Enrique]

9. i love when propagandists play the innocent baby

Brooks's job is to spin public opinion. He's been caught making stuff "observations" in his books to support his thesis.

And now he's playing like he's been objectively observing Obama and made a conclusion about him, which his current objective observation now shows him is false.

Bullshit! He's been spinning Obama from the start, and he's spinning him now.

By the way, Brooks has his own ideology, and it's as "stale" as they come, it's called conservatism. He likes Obama when he's conservative and doesn't like him when he's not conservative. How mavericky of Brooks. :eyes:

[CTyankee]

12. Who do you think you're fooling, Brooks?

Progressives have been onto you for a LONG time. You dumb shit, give it up!

[ProSense]

13. Hahahaha!!

<...>

This wasn’t a speech to get something done. This was the sort of speech that sounded better when Ted Kennedy was delivering it. The result is that we will get neither short-term stimulus nor long-term debt reduction anytime soon, and I’m a sap for thinking it was possible.

Yes, I’m a sap. I believed Obama when he said he wanted to move beyond the stale ideological debates that have paralyzed this country. I always believe that Obama is on the verge of breaking out of the conventional categories and embracing one of the many bipartisan reform packages that are floating around.

<...>

That means when he talks about raising revenue, which he is right to do, he can’t really talk about anything substantive. He can’t tax gasoline. He can’t tax consumption. He can’t do a comprehensive tax reform. He has to restrict his tax policy changes to the top 2 percent, and to get any real revenue he’s got to hit them in every which way. We’re not going to simplify the tax code, but by God Obama’s going to raise taxes on rich people who give to charity! We’ve got to do something to reduce the awful philanthropy surplus plaguing this country!

<...>

Who is this moron kidding? Something will get done if Republicans stop being obstructionist assholes.

He's mad Obama laid out a progressive agenda! Tough shit, you sap!

He's also mad that the President is going to tax the rich. Apparently, he was hoping that the President would also tax low- and middle-income Americans. Sap!

Also what does this sap propose, a bunch of taxes that would likely not pass Congress.

He's right, he's a sap!

[CoffinEd]

24. Speaking of desperation...

mixed in with a measure of hysteria and a heaping of good old-fashioned BS:

"We’re not going to simplify the tax code, but by God Obama’s going to raise taxes on rich people who give to charity!"

The man went so far as to play the "charity" card. And in the words of John McCain, he dealt it from the bottom of the deck.

At a loss for words right about now.

[MilesColtrane]

15. Sap?

I would have gone with dickhead, but Brooks has never been about accuracy.

[Supersedeas]

16. labeling Ezra Klein as "an appreciative" -- at least Brooks label fits for not for the reasons

that he would like you to believe. He is a sap, but not because Brooks follows the "Reasonable Man approach" or the "centrist Clinton approach."

He is a sap because he acknowledges that Washington is a town of intransigent Republican ideologues, and as a Brookian Republican, the only reasonable response to intransigent ideologues is to meet them halfway on all of their most outrageous proposals--no matter how many many many many many many many many times these RW proposals have been tried and failed, and failed miserably.

If meeting Right Wing ideological insanity half-way makes you only half-way insane, then Brooks is best left alone in his happy sap box. Wouldn't most rational people be 'appreciative' if the President refuses to jump in the half insane box just to satisfy the rhetorical whims of a happy sap shill who spins talking points in service of his Corporate Media Bosses and their right wing agenda.

Leave it to Brooks to admit the obvious and then dress it as Centrism.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

17. Obama tried

probably harder than he should have to work with the Republicans to move past that ideological divide but he never got any serious buy-in from any of the Republicans. If Brooks should be lamenting anybody's lack of outreach, it should be the Republicans but, of course, as with all things, it's apparently all Obama's fault. :eyes:

[TwilightGardener]

18. What is Obama to do when a large part of the legislative branch wants to destroy the country?

They left him no choice.

[Honeycombe8]

20. Yes, Obama is getting a LOT of Republicans upset because he's not licking their boots anymore.....

They are very surprised at teh shift in Obama's tone. They expected the professorial, conciliatory Obama to continue.

The Republicans make no mention NOW of how conciliatory and compromising Obama has been until now, and that it did him no good, unless he wanted to hit a brick wall on purpose. No mention NOW of how UNconciliatory the other side has been.

The Republicans are aghast that Obama has taken a stand (GASP!) - which is a pretty moderate one that contains a lot of Republican ideas - and is saying that he will, of all things, maintain that stand. "His way or the highway!" "Class Warfare!" When all he has done is proposed a well thought-out plan containing TONS of Republican wants and wishes, AND ALSO, some Democratic proposals. And of all things did not include cuts to those horrible socialistic entitlement programs. GASP! Just WHO does he think he IS? The President or something?

Republicans are scratching their heads. Where did the old Obama go? Where is he? Maybe they should do a video where Republicans are looking under podiums and sofas in the Oval Office for him, like Bush looked for WMDs in that so-called comedic video years ago.

[lunatica]

23. David, you're kind of a sappy sap too. Drooly.