Obama Repeatedly Defecates On Progressives (re: John Barrow, FISA, NAFTA, Campaign Finance
)
By Deb Cupples
Its been a painfully interesting few days for progressives who were positive that Barack Obama would prove to be an agent of capital-C Change for those who truly believed that he was new and clean and would fight against corrupt, self-serving, old-style Washington politics.
The biggest clue that such capital-H Hopes were not rooted in reality came months ago, when newspapers like USA Today, the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune exposed evidence that Obama had used back door ways to take buckets of money from lobbyists and corporate interests after Obama proclaimed that he would not accept such money.
Since Obama became the Democrats presumptive nominee, he has wasted no time further dashing the Hopes of progressives far and wide.
Yesterday, for example, the Savannah Morning News reported:
*"In an unusual move, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is backing U.S. Rep. John Barrow [of Georgia] in a contested primary election.
*"On July 15, Barrow, who is white, faces state Sen. Regina Thomas, who is black, in a Democratic primary likely to attract overwhelmingly black turnout.
*"The Savannah congressman supports policies such as the war in Iraq and President Bushs tax cuts, which Obama and Thomas oppose."
Rep. Barrow also fought hard to promote the Bush Administrations domestic-spying programs and Telecom Amnesty (i.e., retroactive immunity for telecom companies that broke the law when helping the Bush Administration spy on Americans).
Progressives capital-H Hate Telecom Amnesty.
In short, Sen. Obama has chosen to publicly support a congressman who stands for three major policies that are egregiously offensive to progressives.
Incidentally, this is not the first time that Sen. Obama has endorsed a Republican in Democrats clothing. In 2006, Obama endorsed Joe Lieberman against anti-war candidate Ned Lamont (for whom progressive bloggers zealously campaigned).
Today, the picture became even rosier for progressives, when Sen. Obama (himself) publicly voiced support for a FISA bill that 1) broadens the Bush Administrations domestic-spying powers, and 2) includes Telecom Amnesty.
If certain progressive bloggers were dead, theyd be spinning in their graves like the blades on a Sunbeam blender.
Marcy at Firedoglake (who, fortunately, is alive) explained her take on Obamas statement as follows:
1. I will make a showy effort in the Senate on Monday to get them to take out immunity. I will lose that effort 32-65. But hey! I can say I tried!
2. But dont worry, little boys and girls, Inspectors General are an adequate replacement for our third co-equal branch of government!
3. Nice little bloggers! Arent you cute! After you demanded accountability we gave you piggy lipstick and fig leaves and told you it was time to move on while we important Senators told youin polite termsto **** off.
Not all Telecom-Amnesty-hating bloggers have voiced such understandable outrage. TPMs usually opinionated Josh Marshall (who seemed to lose his objectivity while campaigning for Obama during the primaries) merely quoted Obamas statement but refrained from commenting.
Perhaps Mr. Marshall feels that crow tastes better in private. Or maybe he (a major opponent of Telecom Amnesty) is still in shock and doesnt know what to say. Then again, he may be struggling to credibly phrase a defense of Obamas capital-B Betrayal.
Supporting FISA and endorsing John Barrow are not Obamas only recent acts of defecation upon progressives. Yesterday, Obama did a 180 on public financing for his campaign. Months ago, Obama said that if McCain agreed to public financing, then Obama would. Without even talking to McCain, Obama decided to skip public financing meaning he is free to raise as much private (e.g., corporate and lobbyist-tied) cash as he can.
Obamas campaign is spinning this reversal of position as a declaration of independence from the broken campaign-finance system. No, Im not kidding.
Yes, it is a bit like McDonalds trying to sell Big Macs as health food to kids during Saturday morning cartoons or President Bushs trying to sell the Iraq war as aimed at securing freedom for the Iraqi people.
Some progressive bloggers have already convinced themselves that Obama has done the right thing by opting out of public financing. Of course, those bloggers are simultaneously choosing to ignore the fact that Obama flat-out broke a promise to them.
Its amusing to watch people teach their logic to do gymnastics.
A few days ago, Sen. Obama admitted that his tough talk against NAFTA during the primaries was just talk: he doesnt really plan to threaten to opt out of NAFTA as a means of re-negotiating for American workers benefit.
Obamas campaign has tried to spin the 180-degree shift as a change in the tone of the rhetoric, but its much more than that. Check out this
video, which shows Sen. Obama railing against NAFTA at a rally in NAFTA-hating Ohio in February (i.e., just before Ohios primary).
Then theres the economy. Just days after becoming the presumptive nominee, Sen. Obama professed love for the so-called "free market." Basically, free market lovers want two things: less regulation and lower corporate taxes.
Other famous politicians who loved the so-called "free market" include George Bush and Ronald Reagan.
Since becoming the presumptive nominee, Sen. Obama has been looking more and more different from the person hed represented himself to be during the first five months of 2008.
Maybe Sen. Obama has a sound, strategic reason for making himself look less progressive and more like John McCain though I cant imagine what it is.
If he resembles McCain too closely, all those democrats who are outraged by Obamas Chicago-style campaign tactics will have good reason to vote against him in November: if the two candidates are so similar, why reward the one who misled voters, reversed himself on important issues, and fought to disenfranchise Michigan and Florida?
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Don't forget to pool hop over to the Hard Rock pool. It's a blast.
But 
