Saturday, February 28, 2009
What a concept? An American president who tells the lobbyists they can go to hell while reminding them he works for the American people.
That’s exactly what President Barack Obama said today in his weekly radio and video address.
The president challenged the nation’s vested interests to a legislative duel, saying he will fight to change health care, energy and education in dramatic ways that will upset the status quo.
“The system we have now might work for the powerful and well-connected interests that have run Washington for far too long. But I don’t. I work for the American people.”
Obama said his ambitious budget plan, unveiled Thursday, will help millions of Americans, but only if Congress overcomes resistance from deep-pocket lobbies.
“I know these steps won’t sit well with the special interests and lobbyists who are invested in the old way of doing business, and I know they’re gearing up for a fight. My message to them is this: So am I.”
It’s still strange to realize we have someone like Barack Obama in the White House working for us and not for Big Oil or Big Pharma.
I’m at a loss to comprehend the barrage of criticism Obama keeps receiving from the left. He can’t do anything to make them happy.
Maybe they would have been happier of John McCain had won the election? Then they could all play victim 24/7.
I agree 100%, retahyajyajav. The progressives won’t be happy if President Obama fixes the economy, brings the troops home and cures cancer and AIDS in his first term. They will still find something to scream about. Frankly, I’ve just about had all I can’t take of these mealy-mouthed whiners. This is one of the reasons we keep losing elections.
This is great – so far Pres. Obama has been doing a great deal to reverse the policies of the Bush administration and try to get things working again. I totally agree that the left has been his own worst critic and it’s ridiculous.
All three above commenters have hit the nail on the head. This is a huge step in the right direction.
What Obama is basically telling K Street is ‘Bring it on,’ and as an American, who would like to retire in another decade, I can’t be happier.
About every 3 days comes a new announcement of a Bush policy Obama is reversing. It’s going to be as if Bush was never in the White House.
Yeah, the economy is a mess but did voters think Obama had a magic wand and with a wave, 8 years of deficit spending would disappear? The troop issue is rankling a lot of people on the left but what’s 90 more days? Even most of the troops are OK with the 21 month timetable.
Overall, Obama’s doing a great job, There have been a few stumble but that’s to be expected with a new administration.
Overall, I have been happy with Obama delivering on his promises & the effort he is making to help *the people*- that is a HUGE change.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record though, we really can’t ignore the elephant in the room.
Military spending- more accurately the completely out of proportion with the rest of all other countries combined, is a huge part of our financial woes.
Besides the fact endless warring is a moral cesspool of suffering, death & destruction, it is wrong to be spending billions more- of money we don’t have- on top of $600 billion already spent
in Iraq alone, for more wars.
We really do have to break away from this acceptance that a huge portion of the budget is allocated for war. Because even progressive Obama seems to not understand this is one huge change we really need.
I don’t think that is whining. I think it is common sense, practical & responsible. I also think if We the People don’t demand an end to it, the military industrial complex- i.e. more wars are a permanent fixture.
Not in my name.
America risks going the way of ancient Rome and the USSR if she continues down the path of warfare and pursuing the myth of Empire.
Such a path is folly. Don’t make the same error as nations before you have made.
If Obama really worked for the American people, not the lobbyists, he would have announced a rapid and full withdrawal from Iraq, not a plan to drag the war on for another three years.
Sadly, Obama is in the pocket of Big Oil, defense contractors, and mercenary companies.
I am this short of outright telling the Left to go to hell. Obama’s doing a lot of good things for the American people lately, no matter what party we’re affiliated with.
If the “progressives” don’t like it, they can vote for Mitt Romney in ’12. He won the CPAC straw poll today.
I’m sorry, libhomo, but while I’ll respect your right to express your opinions, I’ll exercise my right to express mine, and quite frankly, I think what you’re saying is ridiculous. I thought it was progressives who lived in the reality-based community.
Here, I’ll let Samurai Frog from “Electronic Cerebrectomy” take it from here because he’s smarter than me:
“It’s stuff like this that makes me take issue with the disappointed liberals who seem to think that Obama is just withholding some kind of magic hand wave that will make all of our problems instantly go away. The biggest complaint I hear is ‘He hasn’t done anything presidential yet.’ He’s been president for one month. And already he’s announced pay caps for staff, stricter rules for lobbyists, signed an executive order to close Gitmo and secret CIA prisons, signed the Lily Ledbetter Act, attempted to present a more tolerant image of America on Arab television, revived diplomacy, signed S-CHIP legislation, canceled leases around Arches National Park, signed the recovery package, announced a plan to prevent home foreclosures, banned emergency funding for Iraq, and attempted to find a common ground with an opposition party that is trying to obstruct everything he does. What exactly is their definition of ‘presidential’?”
Let’s face it, it’s going to take years before Obama is able to correct the horrors the Bush administration left behind, and I’d rather give him the benefit of the doubt before I surrender my common sense and do something stupid like vote for Ralph Nader or, worse, do nothing.
It was a collective effort that got Obama into the White House. Ain’t no time to quit now. That’s what the Republicans want us to do.
I think so many people on the left (and a few on the right too), no longer trust or believe any politician.
You can’t blame them. We’ve been lied to and pillaged for decades. But, I do think Obama is working to reverse the damages of the Bush era and I see nothing to suggest he’s in with the oil industry.
It is going to be a long four years with ups and downs. I believe the Obama’s are doing their best to make decisions for the vast majority of Americans. At times those decisions are not going to be in my best interset however, I am willining to stand by them because they are WORKING for us.
D.R.Scott: You are the one being ridiculous. Obama could easily withdraw all US troops from Iraq in a matter of weeks. There is no reason to drag the slaughter on for so incredibly long. Also, the US economy cannot afford the war. If Obama really continues the Iraq War as long as he has threatened to do, it could easily lead us into another Great Depression.
It will take Obama years to correct all of Bush’s problems, but the Iraq war is one he could easily correct by the end of April, if not sooner. It was so frustrating when Republicans defended Bush no matter what. I hope conservative Democrats like you don’t get so blindly and stubbornly partisan that they start ignoring what is staring them right in their faces.
You, Obama, and John McCain are all on the same side on the Iraq War now. That alone should make you nervous.
I thought Obama was hiring lobbyists in his administration (14 was when I stopped counting). Now he’s “taking them on”?
rjjrdq: Maybe he means that he is going to take them on in an Oval Office bridge tournament.