How Obama Is Spinning the Midterms

When did life – especially bitter political ones – offer mulligans?

Next week will tell. Let the people speak.

Independent voters were the element responsible for electing Obama in 2008, when 63% of them cast votes for democrats. The numbers have now completely reversed. 68% are voting for gop candidates and only 27% voting for democrats. independentvoting.org An astonishing 82% of independents think the country is headed in the wrong direction!! What does that tell you?

It tells me independents “beliefs” shift with the wind. It’s sickening.

That Independent voters pay little or no attention and are swayed by the wind rather than facts.

Independent voters didn’t pay much attention to Obama campaign either or they would realize he has done pretty much what he said he was going to do. He ran on healthcare reform and he delivered even though it is less than what he campaigned on. Are they upset because they didn’t get the PO he campaigned on? He campaigned on Wall St reform, we got it. Are they upset because it isn’t a strong as he campaigned on. He campaigned on tax cuts for the middle class. They got one and yet they insist they didn’t. He campaigned on putting more effort behind Afghanistan. He is doing it.

So What the hell are Indies up set about, that Obama hasn’t done more of what he promised? Are they upset that DADT and DOMA are not yet gone? Are they upset that comprehensive immigration reform is not yet done?

I have no issue with Independents when they actually pay attention sadly most don’t.

As I always say, independent = indecisive. They get way too much credit for the inability to make up their minds.

I wouldn’t count votes before they are cast. Many of those independent voters make up their minds in the voting booth. And most don’t pay any attention to what is really going on. Far too many indies listen to nothng more than the most recent talking points. In ’08, it was “change we can believe in” that had them going to the polls. This year, the republicans are hoping it will be “repeal and replace” that will sway their votes. I’m hoping a great many of them have heard or read something of McConnell’s words about his party’s top priority for the next two years.

You could also say that they’re not “up to snuff”.
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http://www.wordorigins.org/index.php/site/up_to_snuff/

Katy,
do you mean…
“what the administration wishes they could have done differently during the first half OR QUARTER of his presidency. “?

So this election will finally show us the will of the people? Because when Democrats swept the 2006 and 2008 elections, all I heard was that the results didn’t matter and we were still a “center-right” nation.
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I guess conservatives only believe elections matter if they like the results.

We err on the side of not counting chickens pre-hatch over here. But feel free to revisit this query in 2012.

How disingenuous can you all be? In 2008, when the polls showed independents going to Obama, you called us smart and informed. Now the polls have reversed, you call us inattentive, disloyal and “not up to snuff”? My oh my, how things have changed in just two years. Could it be that independents were misled by “change you can believe in” and instead got “more of the same old crap, only worse”? In our eyes, democrats dropped the ball, badly and will pay the price for their ineptitude. Too many lies, too little fiscal responsibility and oh yes, let us not forget that absurdly written legislation called Obamacare!

“us”?

Cute, but you did count.
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“The first two years” would be not counting.

Earl, you were never a ‘us’ nor independent. All rightie libertarian types call themselves independent (you know, down the middle kind of people). You demonstrate absolutely no affinity for finding a middle ground solution or idea.

Well, since the traditional media meme has been for a tsunami election for months, I am sure they will be pleased at the results next week.
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Then they will find ways to push the Obama’s defeat scenario. Issues and real reporting will again be forgotten.
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It has nothing to do with the presses’ ideology but their need for conflict (unless it is war, of course).

“Well, since the traditional media meme has been for a tsunami election for months, I am sure they will be pleased at the results next week.”
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What defines a tsunami? Taking both the House and the Senate?
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Just the Senate?
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I don’t disagree with your framing but what happens if it rains but doesn’t pour?

Keep deluding yourself, hippo, there are millions of independents just like me and we view your characterization with total disdain. You acceptance of progressive dogma, regardless of its consequences to the country, brand you as rigid, uncompromising and clinically speaking, brain dead. We reject your “stay with the ship” premise and are determined to change the leftward tilt our country has experienced under Obama. (82% of independents think our country is headed in the wrong direction)

Paul-no: I have no idea what the media considers a tsunami. I am sure that is what they will designate the results in order to justify their pre-election talking point. Actual results wont matter.

And since we now know which scribes team Obama most regards, perhaps they’ll listen to this stew of Broderian vomit from your colleague The Halp:

http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,2027296,00.html

Summary for those who refuse to read–Obama was too liberal, he should move further right to achieve birpartisan bliss.

How very shocking.
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The outline was written inauguration day, the particulars just needed to be filled in.

“We err on the side of not counting chickens pre-hatch over here.”
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Please do spare us the unwarranted smugness. What you err on is never risking pissing-off “conservatives,” particularly if they’re also Republicans, by telling the ugly truth about them. The air is flooded with naked, disgusting lies about Obama and the Democrats, paid for by partisan, secret, corporate donations, that are going to send this country further down the corporatist rat hole, maybe for good, and you’re wasting our time on Obama’s “spinning”? You and your industry’s pathologically bi-partisan obsession and value-free he-said-she-said and civility conventions have given us the Clinton witch hunts, the Bush presidency, the Iraq War and the corporate coup d’eta of America, at the hands of the most corrupt, partisan, anti-Constitutional, anti-democratic Supreme Court in generations. At this point, the establishment media is as dangerous a force to against the nation as “conservatives” leaders and their corporate masters’ traitorousness ever have been.

I actually think that the entire “bi-partisan” Kabuki would have worked pretty much as planned on the pathologically centrist Village Scribes, as well as the politically vacuous, centrist independents, except they foolishly stuck to the script after the economic meltdown. That changed the whole equation, and Obama and Emanuel weren’t quite sharp enough to figure that out. Or maybe they did but decided it was just too risky to try to actually get out in front and lead the people in a progressive direction, rather than follow the polls and feed the corporatist beast.

Shep,
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IOW, centrism works dandy in times of plenty (Clinton) but not when 30 years of bad policy go uncorrected (Obama). I probably come down on the side of they’re “sharp enough” but for various reasons they’ve opted to double down on GOP lite. Afraid to lose the financiers they’ve already lost for this cycle at least?
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But maybe Obama is still amenable to the oligarchs. Thus far, there’s every indication that if the GOP nominates a loon in ’12 that the ruling class will be perfectly happy with a 2nd Obama term–what with signals on the Bush tax cuts, catfood for everyone…
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Ian Welsh said this today:
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“Bernanke’s academic oeuvre is about how to make sure that a great financial and economic crisis does not turn into a Roosevelt moment.”
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I responded that that’s the case for all of our elites.

Agreed.

Though, what sticks in the craw of liberals and progressives will always be…what could have been. It was almost the perfect opportunity to bury corporatist “conservatism” for a long, long time and they blew it disastrously.

“It was almost the perfect [and perhaps last] opportunity…”
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Even for an expat a world away, my craw is all stuck upon.

Your edit helps explain your expat status, jc.

Yes and no, Paul. I left in April 2008 when there was still a lot of “hope to believe in.” Decision was far more personal than political. While Japan is a better place to raise a family at present (at least on teacher’s wages), there’s no telling what’ll happen going FWD.

“…there’s no telling what’ll happen going FWD.”
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One thing’s for sure, if the oligarchs finish taking us down, pretty much everyone is going down with us. The world is already on the precipice due to their unbridled avarice and mendacity. Mere oceans won’t spare the innocent.

“Keep deluding yourself, hippo, there are millions of independents just like me and we view your characterization with total disdain. You acceptance of progressive dogma, regardless of its consequences to the country, brand you as rigid, uncompromising and clinically speaking, brain dead. We reject your “stay with the ship” premise and are determined to change the leftward tilt our country has experienced under Obama. (82% of independents think our country is headed in the wrong direction)”
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Do you know why your nonsensical argument fail; you cannot point to one single post I’ve made where I take a ‘progressive agenda stance’. You on the other hand spew the same talking points righties use, you take every single right libertarian stance, you’re not in disagreement with anything on the right. In fact most of what you wrote is pure projection – it’s you in a nutshell.
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You’re no more independent than most so called tea party members. You’re just to chicken to admit you were always conservatives since you don’t really want to associate yourself with the failure of Bush and his gang – in fact in your eyes he was not pure enough. Not conservative enough. That’s not independent, thats just a libertarian that’s to fricken scared calling himself essentially the fringe.
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The difference is that you’ll find a lot of disagreement on the left over a lot of things. You show absolutely no difference in thinking than Freedom, textee, freeinpa etc. It’s the same mangled talking points scrambled together into a anti-liberal stew. Independent thinkers do not spend so much mangling talking points and use pointless ‘liberal’ phrasing.

Agreed, though certain countries (Japan, for instance) are far more dependent on American prosperity than others.
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But I’m often struck by the collapse-ists who somewhat blindly advocate emigration. Not to mention the difficulties involved.
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OTOH, the world will do just fine in the wake of another failed empire if they learn (despite US intransigence) to achieve peace and a sustainable biosphere.

Or, if Iran gets the bomb and uses it, it’s time to rethink.

Thanks so much for responding to commentary, Katy Steinmetz, it is always greatly appreciated.

Come on, liberal.
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If Pakistan, which has a bomb, uses it, it’s also “time to rethink.”
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Avoiding our descent into failed empire, a Russia-like oligarchical partnership with a lawless, corrupt state is a greater imperative, at this point.

“OTOH, the world will do just fine in the wake of another failed empire if they learn (despite US intransigence) to achieve peace and a sustainable biosphere.”

That’s a lovely thought. I must confess, I’m more in the “something will probably survive. Something unbelievably unimaginable to 20th Century human beings but something…,” camp. The “sustainable biosphere” thing. Not looking good.

Well, Shep, all I can say if you’re right (and you might be, hopes for my child notw/standing) is that neither half of the duopoly is going to prevent dystopia. Voting is theatre at this point, as Hedges puts it.

You’re welcome, Stuart. I’m also on Twitter (@katysteinmetz) and will do my best to be at least equally responsive there.

Obviously, I hope I’m wrong. Perhaps our corporate overlords will produce some sort of carbon or sunlight mitigation technology, for the sake of their children if not ours. But they’d better get a lot more concerned (and a lot more competent) pretty soon.
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http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2010/10/coming-mega-drought