Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Swallow It, Liberals: Obama Needs to Compromise

Pragmatic president must reassure his supporters tonight, Tomasky writes

By Jason Farago, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 9, 2009 8:44 AM CDT

(Newser) – "The summer has been a bummer for American liberals," writes Guardian America editor Michael Tomasky; after the heady optimism of President Obama's first 100 days, "reality has set in, and with force." Not only is conservative opposition "as Leninist as ever," but liberals have descended into a funk, unable to believe that their man is floundering. That's why Obama needs to go big during tonight's address—not only to save health reform, but to save his own supporters.

Obama's fans seem to have forgotten about the existence of Congress, which "by its very institutional nature likes to slow presidents down"—even George W. Bush couldn't get everything through. Obama will probably compromise on the public option, and a moderate bill will probably pass. Liberals need to rejoice in that, Tomasky insists, rather than "call it defeat and label Obama a weakling and a sellout."

[Images (3)]

[Quotes (2)]

Accompanied by members of Congress and medical professionals, President Barack Obama speaks on health care reform, Wednesday, July 15, 2009. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)

President Barack Obama participates in a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)

President Barack Obama after meeting with members of Congress to discuss immigration, Thursday, June 25, 2009, in the State Dinning Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

It did seem, for a while, that the brand of attack politics that conservatives honed during the Clinton years might not take hold this time. That their blind hatred of Clinton was uniquely about Clinton. It turns out it's not. - Michael Tomasky

Any thought that Obama could wave a wand and make the economy better, or give a speech that would force Iran's mullahs to see reason, has been defenestrated definitively. -

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

AP Photo

35 Brutally Honest Reasons Men Say No to Sex (The Stir)

Man in Mugshot Explains Why He Has Half a Head (HuffPost)

Another Sign Rihanna and Chris Brown Might Get Back Together? (Celebuzz)

These Exes Were Spotted Making Out … and That's a Bad Thing (Bleacher Report)

Which Entertainer Pulled Out of 'Inappropriate' Whitney Tribute? (NewsOne)

Partner Links

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

Showing 3 of 18 comments

freethemall

Sep 9, 2009 7:27 AM CDT

Say what you will, Bush's tax cut was a huge mistake. Some Democrats caved in and went along with it. And at least one Republican voted against this unfair and foolish measure. I speak of John McCain, who got my vote in his subsequent Senate re-election campaign, Republican though he was. To his discredit, McCain changed his mind on this issue, when it became politically expedient for him to do so.

riffran

Sep 9, 2009 6:45 AM CDT

Oh good greif..... It's the return of PEST. Post election selection syndrome. EVERY president and CONGRESS has slowly allowed this current mess to develop starting back in the depression era to present. The entire system has grown too fat and political to function efficiently There is no one single entity or person to blame. Regardless of how popular it is to bash a single individual.

freethemall

Sep 9, 2009 5:12 AM CDT

Obama needs to compromise because "even George W. Bush couldn't get everything through."???? Bush stole the election in 2000. He lost the popular vote, and therefore had no mandate at all, and yet was able to pass he tax cuts disproportionately favoring the wealthy. This resulted in the return of deficit financing big time. Obama won the election of 2008, he has a mandate! Compromise? Bullshit!

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Rick Santorum: Birth Control Is 'Not OK'

Valentine's Day Role-Playing Goes Very Wrong

Guardian (UK) (Source Grid »)

Politics • Health

health care • Barack Obama • Congress • liberals • health care reform • Michael Tomasky • George W. Bush • conservatives

More Newser Stories

Detroit Bust Would've Been Better Than Bailout

Ex-Prez Bush says bailout his idea, and a good one

(NEWSER) - Three years ago, Mitt Romney wrote that President Obama should " Let Detroit Go Bankrupt ," instead of bailing out the struggling auto industry, in a famous New York Times column. And today? Even with the American auto industry on the rebound, Michigan's GOP primary looming on Feb. 28, and Rick Santorum breathing down his neck in the polls , Romney still thinks bankruptcy would have been better than the president's "crony capitalism," he writes in the Detroit News . "I believe that without his intervention things there would be better," he writes. More»

How Much Did Obama Really Add to Deficit?

Ezra Klein crunches the numbers and comes up with a lower total than you think

(NEWSER) - Mitt Romney has taken to carrying around a debt clock, blaming President Obama for the ever-climbing number it shows. But the clock doesn't show how much Obama has actually added to that debt, so Ezra Klein set out to find out. "There are two answers," he writes in the Washington Post . The first, which is "simple and wrong" is $4.7 trillion. That's what you get when you subtract the debt when Obama took office (about $10.5 trillion) from the current debt (about $15.2 trillion). More»

Moderate? Romney Makes Bush Look Liberal

GOP has moved to the right since 2000, and Romney has, too: Ezra Klein

(NEWSER) - He may get tagged as a "Massachusetts moderate" by his rivals, but Mitt Romney's polices are more conservative than George W. Bush's and other recent GOP nominees, writes Ezra Klein in the Washington Post . He looks at Bush's policy speeches in 2000 on everything from education to entitlements to, yes, taxes, and concludes that Bush comes off like a "Kenyan socialist in comparison" to Romney. More»

House Expects to Clear Payroll Tax Cut Today

Though it's possible dissenting members could delay things

(NEWSER) - The payroll tax cut deal is expected to be ratified today, with congressional leaders planning voice votes that would require just a handful of members to be present, the Washington Post reports. Politico notes that the House will be using unanimous consent rules, however, meaning a dissenting member could force a vote next week. Because of the timing, disapproving members will have a hard time making it back to DC in time, but there are at least two who may object and force House members to return next week. More»

Dummy Firms Squeeze Millions From Medicare

Fraud-fighters finding it hard to stay ahead of shell companies

(NEWSER) - Fraudsters using complicated networks of ghost companies are sucking hundreds of millions of dollars out of Medicare every year and it's a bit like taking candy from a baby, a Reuters investigation finds. The probe—which officials say will likely lead to a criminal investigation of the firms involved—found that the "companies" of many Medicare providers are registered to nonexistent addresses, or the addresses of abandoned buildings. The thieves use stolen doctor and patient data to bill Medicare for as much money as possible in a short time. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Swallow It, Liberals: Obama Needs to Compromise