A True Weenie

by Deacon Blues

Symbols of trouble with this administration, aside from its ineffective dithering with BP over the destruction of the Gulf and a trip that is about three weeks too late:

Arizona Immigration Security

Instead of defusing the Arizona immigration mess weeks ago by sending troops to the border, Obama waited and took the position that comprehensive immigration reform was the answer, even though his administration then sent mixed signals about when it wanted to act upon immigration reform. So rather than show Arizona and other border states that it understood their concerns (and take a club away from the right wing message machine), the administration did nothing for weeks while looking disengaged. That is, until today, when Obama finally sent troops, allowing the GOP message machine to take credit for being right from Day One.

Showing Weakness

Obama went to Capitol Hill today to try one more time to appeal for bipartisanship with Senate Republicans, who promptly took advantage of the opportunity to label him as “thin-skinned”. Aside from the silliness of opening himself up one more time to looking like he was going hat-in-hand to people who have demonstrated no willingness to work with him, Obama then looked even weaker to the GOP when he incredibly asked them to compromise with him because the progressive base he ignores was being mean to him.

Brownback said Obama explained several times that he was "under pressure from his left" on major issues, including climate change. Obama asked Republicans to be willing to take some of the same criticism from their right flank in working toward bipartisan accords, other senators said.

Did he not know these GOP senators would be only so happy to run out to the cameras and reveal such weakness to the media, while planting a new dog whistle with the far right? (“thin-skinned” = “uppity”) And why would the right wing not gleefully chortle at Obama blaming his abused and ignored base for his weaknesses? It must have taken everything for them to avoid laughing out loud at him for making such a ludicrous claim.

They know, as does his staff and the progressive base itself that Obama and Rahm don't give a crap about the party's base. And why would Obama's problems with his base be any motivation at all for the GOP to work with him? The GOP has no such problems. Why would they willingly piss off their base to help him out, unless they actually feared him, which after today's miserable performance they will never do.