President Obama's Gallup approval rating amongst liberal Democrats for April 2nd-8th is 87%.

[Ken Burch]

53. That poll does not mean the left is ok with Obama's compromises and betrayals.

Obviously, most progressive people are going to back him by default...that goes without saying.

But no genuinely progressive person could think all the compromises and all the rightward tacks were actually a GOOD thing.

We didn't really gain anything, for example, by settling for less-than-half of a healthcare bill, for example. We've got that, and I hope it isn't thrown out, simply because it would give aid and comfort to our enemies if it were to be...but that doesn't mean the passage of the bill was a victory. It was just a win-in-name, and should be seen as such.

No gains were realized by abandoning the fight for card check-and no votes were gained by leaving Gitmo open or dawdling about getting out of Iraq OR staying in Afghanistan. I'll vote for the guy anyway, and so will most, but those were still unjustifiable bitter pills.

It's bullshit to imply that a general approval rating means that progressives think Obama is one of us. They simply mean a recognition that the GOP would be worse. But we had a RIGHT to expect more than "the lesser evil".

A lot of people are voting for Obama through gritted teeth...and threads like this don't help keep those people committed to actually showing up at the polls. That's what I'm saying.

There just needs to be an end to the left-bashing. That's not too much to ask.

You need to recognize that you're asking these people to do something unpleasant in settling for re-electing this admin on the current terms.

Obviously, we're all going to be working to try to bring down the Boehnerhaus, and to increase Dem strength in the Senate if possible(although only the election of progressive Dem senators actually counts as a gain)but it's default support at the top of the ticket, and the attitude the admin took towards the activists(including most of those in "the Obama movement" has a lot to do with that). You switch from transformation to "the art of the deal", and you have to expect that you'll have trouble hanging onto the people who voted for transformation.

Finally, it doesn't make you a "purity tester" just because you defend your principles. No one should be attacked for having standards. It's not like compromise ever really serves the people anyway.