THE BLAIR HOUSE CLUSTER-COMBINE
Whenever people tell you "it's not about the money," it is, of course, always about the money. Similarly, enough people said about yesterday's Blair House hoedown, "this is not going to be mere political theater," that was obvious it was going to be, uh........, mere political theater. This is not to say it wasn't damned interesting political theater. It beat hell out of, for example, Kentucky versus South Carolina.
In the end, even political theater has winners and losers. Hopefully, the President realizes he lost this one badly. When an event is staged, particularly by the executive branch, there are no ties or close calls. The executive branch must clearly "win"for the event to have been a success from their perspective. That did not happen. If the Executive branch doesn't hit a scheduled matter out of the park, it goes into the books as loss.
Worse, the president managed to play the role of the simultaneously bullying and evasive discussion leader who monopolizes the discussion and leads (or firewalls) the talk away from any area he finds unpleasant. A number of Republicans who began the day as essentially nameless, faceless ciphers were elevated to near peerage status with the president. I mean, c'mon: did anybody but the worshipful right even give a rat's ass who Eric Cantor was until yesterday? These ciphers managed to portray themselves as simultaneously victimized and having something useful to add. American people hate nothing worse than not being told what is behind door number three. It doesn't matter that there's nothing much behind that door. It felt like the President was preventing it from being opened.
Finally, the most -- replayed portion of the meeting, while innocently intended, looks suspiciously like the president gloating over the increasingly tragic and sympathetic figure of his former opponent. Look for Saturday Night Live to reprise the blindfold and bowl of rice.
Without regard to the merits presented by either side, the interested viewer had only to watch a few innings of this game to come away with the inexorable opinion that Washington gridlock and gamesmanship are, indeed, bad now and getting worse.
posted by UMRBlog @ 08:44
17 comments
17 Comments:
I used to enjoy following politics, but the past 12 years have pretty much made it not fun anymore. Gerrymandering and the left/right echo chambers have created a situation where a bunch of cretins and kooks are running the show urged on by the cretins and kooks in the blogosphere (present company excepted of course). It would be great if it were professional wrestling- too bad people's livelihoods are on the line.
Well what the hell did you expect from America's first non-American President? This empty suit who doesn't can't pronounce corp correctly had the audacity to be disrespectful to a true American hero. What Barry needs is a good old fashion ass whipping to show him how to respect his elders!!
Jimmy Carter should get down on his knees every day and thank the lord for Obama. Who would have thought there was anyway Jimmy could have moved from last position.
righty,
Pretty Broad Brush there. I don't think anybody's argument is strengthened by playing the Birther Card.
I thought the McCain exchange was something between careless and gratuitously cruel. I thought the event was poorly conceived--why schedule a home game you can't win? At the same time, I think it's a little early to evaluate an entire presidency.
You mean "Corps"?
TYFCB
Democrats got double the speaking time, and Obama had last word on everything. Barry telling McCain campaign time is over is hilarious, as campaign is all Obama knows.
"did anybody but the worshipful right even give a rat's ass who Eric Cantor was until yesterday?"
A decade ago I became convinced of this inevitable "crash", by reading Prudent Bear type economic articles, and I've read hundreds of such articles since. The politics causing the problems is on both sides of the aisle, but much more on the Democrat side. But the political aspect is rather new for me ...
So ... yeah ... Cantor knows the numbers. Perhaps it is the opinionated and worshipful left that has been most blind to realities spoken by men like Cantor. These faithful lefties demonize anyone that doesn't bow to their position. But if you wanted to hear numbers that made sense, you'd listen to Cantor, not the lying left.
There is much behind door number three, despite your opinionated discounting of the conservative plan.
It seems your blog agrees with Obama ... it is your way or the highway. Your labeling of your "opponents" is classic Dem strategy.
Let's see how the reconciliation jam job works out. Obama is all about lies and deceit, and this staged event should confirm that.
But those that swallowed whole the lie that Barry never heard those things Rev. Wright said consistently, are probably too blind to "get it".
Over and out ...
And while congress is throwing spit wads at each other across the aisle, and in the face of predicted spring flooding:
The National Flood Insurance Program Expires at Midnight on Sunday, February 28, 2010
"The statutory authority for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) was previously extended until February 28, 2010. Unfortunately, Congress will not be taking action to extend the statutory authority to issue flood insurance under the NFIP prior to the February 28, 2010 expiration. As a result, there will be a suspension period during which you will not be able to bind coverage and we will not be able to issue new policies, increase coverage on existing policies or issue renewal policies. The length of the suspension period is expected to be brief." We hope.
1308,
You been reading long? Last three posts about the Obama administration have been rips.
The theme of this one was that they created an event they couldn't win. By way of explanation, I used Cantor as an exemplar. I didn't say he was good, bad or indifferent. I said nobody but politicsphiles knew who the hell he was until the Obama administration set him up to enjoy fame and legitimacy.
Appreciate your interest but, please, read what I actually write and not what you think I'm gonna write.
TYFCB
1416,
You are so right. When is somebody going to run the store?
TYFCB
Anyone looking for POTUS Obama to "run the store" is looking
in the wrong place.
Obama has never "run" anything in his life and his worshippers say that he isn't a "Decider" kinda guy anyway, he is a "consensus builder", which, if true, would mean that Obama should have honored his pledge to complete his term in the US Senate before he ran for POTUS---which he didn't do.
Barack Obama: the wrong guy for the wrong job.
QCE,
I'd be more interested in the topic I started with. Who won the Blair House Cluster?
TYFCB
Who won?
That's like Roshomon---it depends on your POV.
The leftwingers crowed
that Obama schooled those ignorant, homophobic, racist GOPers but good.
The rightwingers crowed that Obama and the Democrats can no longer lie about them by calling them the Party of No and no ideas.
Various pundits, both left and right thought Obama came off as an arrogant jerk.
Other pundits thought the winners were Obama and the GOP.
People like me just want our political class to STFU NOW about health care and move on to things that are really important.
So when you ask "who won", you are demanding we make those false choices Obama decries.
"1308,
You been reading long? Last three posts about the Obama administration have been rips."
Yeah, I got that, but you continue to rip on those that you view as "worshipful right" just because they don't conform to your opinionated view.
So you want posts that align with your view ... and you trash talk those that express more conservative views.
Maybe some go too far right for you (or too nuts for me), but you "paint with a broad brush", as you like to say.
Your frequent "trash talk" of those you consider your lessers does not make for good open blog dialogue.
But overall you are OK, despite being frequently wrong, and caught immersed in lawyer and politics worlds. :)
Of course this is just my view.
oh .. and my point about Cantor was that it is not just Republicans that might know him, but people that know economics, and appreciate a politician that points out what should be obvious to the average half wit.
That is why I listen to the likes of a Cantor. Sorry for not spelling out my point more clearly.
QCE,
Always appreciate your view but I think the backdrop is more like: This political Kabuki dance took place. It had an effect. I thought a discussion about that effect was anything but a "false choice".
TYFCB
1701,
Sigh....The point was there was a very small number of people identifying Cantor as a useful resource. Now, thanks to BHO, Cantor is more famous and has more followers.
TYFCB
Cantor did get a chance to shine ... good point.
But the reason more reasonable fellows like him don't stand out, is too many worshipful types on left AND right only care about pushing the party line.
The worshipful are on both sides, but it is Obama that is praised as the chosen one, and his vast promises to feed and heal the multitudes is smoke and mirrors.
If BHO doesn't destroy us, perhaps more such competent citizens will be pushed to the front, out of necessity.
Sadly the Democrats side leaned heavily on emotion provoking stories of people that had health care problems. They should have had Sally Struthers come out and cry for each story.
Oh sorry. I should have included one of these thingees --->:-D
after "false choice".
I still stick by my view that there was something for everyone in this little display of political theatre. One nutroot blogger compared Obama's performance at the summit to LaBron James playing hoops with a bunch of
7th grade bench riders.
We all see what we wanna see, eh?
Eric Cantor...is he the guy who Hank Paulson flat out made fun of because his alternative to the TARP plan was so awful and vague. Is he also the guy who complained that the Recovery Act didn't do anything and then went home and boasted how awesome it was he got money from the Recovery Act that would create all these jobs? Is that the guy, or are there two Eric Cantors? Which one did you think was cool?
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