Cynthia Tucker: Obama squandered his Oval Office moment

[Bluebear]

Not too many written reivews yet, mostly talking heads on TV, but this did come out...

===

Obama could have called for a “moon shot” tonight to make a transition from fossil fuels to cleaner energy, and he failed to do that. He made his first-ever speech in the Oval Office, and he had all three networks at the 8 p.m. slot, and he didn’t make good use of it.

The speech was flat and uninspiring. He recited a litany of the things the administration has done to try to bring the spill under control, but it was a rehash of things the public has already heard. Yes, he’s going to make BP pay. That’s good — as far as it goes. But he didn’t use the moment to assert a resolute sense of command.

Nor did he use it to call on Americans to make the sacrifices that will be necessary to make the transition from petroleum to cleaner fuels. Yes, he said a little about it. But he didn’t even endorse the energy bill currently languishing in the Senate.

The president has wasted a crisis.

http://blogs.ajc.com/cynthia-tucker/2010/06/15/obama-squandered-his-oval-office-moment/?cxntfid=blogs_cynthia_tucker

[bahrbearian]

1. Corporatism

[Xenotime]

62. Agreed. I think BP is getting some backroom deal on this one.

[jaxx]

2. Who is Cynthia Tucker?

[Bluebear]

3. The Atlanta Journal Constitution's political columnist. Biography for you:

Tucker was born in 1955 in Monroeville, Alabama in the age of segregation; she did not attend an integrated school until she was a junior in high school. She then attended Auburn University where she majored in English and journalism and wrote for the student newspaper, The Plainsman. After graduation in 1976, she applied for a job at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) where she was hired as a reporter. In 1980, she left Atlanta and the AJC for a job at the The Philadelphia Inquirer. Shortly thereafter, Tucker decided that she wanted to be a foreign correspondent in Africa, but the Inquirer considered her too inexperienced for the assignment. Tucker set out on her own, traveling around Africa and freelancing for six months. She then returned to Atlanta, where she was rehired as a columnist by the AJC.<1>

Tucker was selected as Nieman Fellow by Harvard University in 1988. She was promoted to her current position as editorial page editor of the AJC in 1990. In 1993, the National Women’s Political Caucus awarded Tucker their Exceptional Merit Media Award.<1> In 2005, Tucker received the Elijah Parish Lovejoy Award as well as an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Colby College.

Tucker currently blogs regularly and writes two columns each week. They appear on Wednesdays and Sundays. Her columns are further syndicated to over 40 U.S. newspapers and appear on the AJC's website. Those columns earned her nominations for the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 2004 and 2006 before her eventual win in 2007.<1>

In July 2009, Tucker moved to Washington, D.C. as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's political columnist.

[jaxx]

10. Does that make her opinion gospel?

[Name removed]

11. Deleted sub-thread

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[Name removed]

12. Deleted sub-thread

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[William Z. Foster]

13. odd

Why would we not judge a piece on its own merits, rather than judging it by the presumed power or status of the speaker? saying that "somebodies" should be listened to and "nobodies" should not - that seems to me to be the root cause of all of our political and social problems.

"Listen to and follow the powerful people; dismiss and ridicule the powerless." That thinking is the source of the injustice and inequality in the culture.

[scarletwoman]

20. Odd, indeed. Of course, that would explain why our elected representatives feel so free to ignore us

We don't have the proper credentials for offering our opinions.

[nashville_brook]

21. so well said. we're supposed to be above the "down with intoohlucktools" crowd.

[Lorien]

73. Well said. nt

[newtothegame]

79. No, Obama is God. His life is the Gospel. nt

[Ignis]

81. You show that strawman who's boss!

:eyes:

[saracat]

86. No but it is respected.

[northernlights]

87. nobody said her opinion is gospel

but I, for one, always loved listening to her on the Sunday morning lineup. Smart, smart, smart woman. One of my favorites. One of the few who would hold her own against the yammering rightwing bigmouths.

[tekisui]

95. Does opinion have to be gospel to be relevant?

[treestar]

32. Exactly, and who gives a shit what she thinks?

She and Tweety can go hide in a closet.

[LooseWilly]

45. Interesting choice of metaphor...

[donco6]

57. And Jon Stewart, don't forget.

And all the others you folks are ignoring now.

BTW - who ARE you listening to anymore?

[QC]

64. Robert Reich is the latest on the big list 'o heretics 'n apostates. n/t

[JHB]

92. And is Krugman a saint or scumbag this week? I get whiplash keeping track...

Has anyone else noticed that those who have the most binary reaction to support or criticism of Obama are often the first to complain about "purists"?

[QC]

94. I can never keep up with Krugman's status, given how it changes from moment to moment.

And you are right about the 'purist' business.

[QC]

65. Who are you? n/t

[KonaKane]

4. Obama could have pulled gold bars from his ass and a crew here would criticize it.

It wasn't his best but it sure wasnt his worst. I'm getting awfully sick of the defeatism that will surely lead to more years of GOP rule if we don't watch it.

[Bluebear]

7. Sorry, KonaKane, Cynthia Tucker isn't on "a crew here".

Are your craigslist buddies mad again?

[KonaKane]

29. You're more hung up on craigslist than anyone I have seen here.

You can't give that one a rest, but I'll leave that for you to figure out. Point is, Cynthia sure has her accolytes here, especially when it comes to bagging on Obama for everything he says and does.

[Bluebear]

43. Accolytes, oh how brainy. We're not worthy.

:silly:

[provis99]

14. No, Obama pulled corporate shit from his ass.

I don't see anything wrong with criticizing that.

[Bluebear]

16. Cynthia Tucker and her "crew" here are just haterrz

:rofl:

[Laelth]

15. Pray, tell. Which was his worst speech, then, if not this one?

:shrug:

:dem:

-Laelth

[nashville_brook]

22. whaaaaaaaa? they're all A+++++++++!!

:evilgrin:

[Laelth]

25. Exactly. Crickets from the poster above. n/t

;)

:dem:

-Laelth

[Captain Hilts]

90. Ha! Are you allowed to quote another poster? Careful.....nt

[dgibby]

34. And he could pour oil in the gulf on national TV in primetime

a crew here would not only applaud it, but excoriate anyone who found fault with it.

[jgraz]

37. It's only a year and a half into his presidency. You can't possibly expect him to stop pouring oil!

[Hardrada]

75. LOL!

[walldude]

83. Oh so you'd rather have Sarah Palin pouring the oil?

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:


Sorry, couldn't resist.

[LooseWilly]

35. When Obama pulls gold bars from his ass, I vow to applaud the performance.

I look forward to it. Is said performance already scheduled?
:thumbsup:

[XemaSab]

48. If that wasn't his worst speech from the Oval Office

I don't know what was.

[leftynyc]

58. I think it was his first speech

from the Oval Office.

[jgraz]

5. Yet another lost opportunity.

Once again, Obama skillfully avoids having greatness thrust upon him.

[me b zola]

23. +1. n/t

[Carolina]

27. Touche!

[Poboy]

41. Yes sir. Its all gift wrapped and ready for the taking, and he shrinks. - nt

[Yuugal]

6. and then he went all god on me

As an atheist, I really hate that. Why don't christians ever read the damn book they keep trying to shove in my family's face?

Matthew 6:6

"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

In other words, it was god being nice to the rest of us and telling his followers to cut that shit out and stop waving him around like a big puffy foam "we're #1" hand. /religious indignation


As for the rest of the speech, I want my 18 min back. :)

[mix]

8. This is a pattern with the Obama administration.

War, education, the economy, the environment...the White House has held the course, instead of breaking with the failures of the past.

[highplainsdem]

9. The crisis is ongoing and hasn't been "wasted" -- not yet. But tonight's speech was.

[apocalypsehow]

17. How do you "waste" a crisis?

:shrug:

That's rank cynicism, not cogent analysis.

Myself, I thought the speech was a bit too mild, given the stakes. However, there are a lot of considerations a President has to make when he gives a speech like this. For one thing, he doesn't want to panic the market tomorrow morning and make the recession we're just emerging from worse.

[Bluebear]

18. I did not get that phrase either. Really what strikes me initially...

...is that this is the nationwide address the President should have made one month ago.

[apocalypsehow]

28. I agree 100% - you nailed it. I couldn't put my finger on it till you elucidated it, but you're

exactly right: this is more along the lines of the first speech he should've given. I think that's why this one disappoints. Good call.

[Poboy]

47. Exactly. This speech is 1 month overdue, and what should have been said

tonight, will fester unsaid until yet again, perception forces him to make the half-hearted obligatory acknowledgment.

[XemaSab]

49. My thoughts exactly

I'll even up the ante: This is the nationwide address the President should have made six weeks ago.

[nashville_brook]

24. Rahm: "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste," NOVEMBER 21, 2008

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122721278056345271.html

This opportunity isn't lost on the new president and his team. "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste," Rahm Emanuel, Mr. Obama's new chief of staff, told a Wall Street Journal conference of top corporate chief executives this week.

He elaborated: "Things that we had postponed for too long, that were long-term, are now immediate and must be dealt with. This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before."

He ticked off some areas where he thought new doors were opening: energy, health, education, tax policy, regulatory reforms. The current atmosphere, he added, even makes bipartisanship easier: "The good news, I suppose, if you want to see a silver lining, is that the problems are big enough that they lend themselves to ideas from both parties for the solution."

Mr. Emanuel noted, correctly, that the U.S. largely squandered the opportunity the oil shocks of the 1970s presented to make serious, long-term changes in its energy habits -- a failure that has returned to haunt the nation today.

[apocalypsehow]

30. Thanks for the link. It lends context to the column posted by the OP.

I can see the point, and it's well taken. I concede the point but still maintain it's a pretty cynical way to do business. I guess I still retain a shred of starry-eyed idealism from my misspent youth. :-)

[nashville_brook]

36. heheh -- i remember being starry-eyed in my youth.

[XemaSab]

51. I remember being starry-eyed last year

x(

[Hydra]

46. Think of it as using an opportunity

Sad thing is, it takes a real shock like this to say "Maybe we don't love oil as much as we thought we did."

It's "wasted" when we pass that up and say "Oil is still the only way to do things, and we're not going to work at doing something different. The gulf was just a blip."

[amborin]

52. wouldn't want to "panic the market," now, would we? when it's Goldman Sachs vs the Gulf, no brainer

[apocalypsehow]

54. That kinda really wasn't my point....as much as you and I might not like it, President Obama has

obligations to measure his words in public, unlike the two of us, anonymous posters on the internets.

All presidents do. That goes with the job of being the Leader of the most powerful nation on the planet. The responsibility of leadership in such a powerful position often entails a sort of enforced diplomacy of the tongue, whether you like it or not.

And while we're on the subject...your dismissive hand-waving at the stock market - "Goldman Sachs" as you style it - is a cheap, easy shot. I get it. But there are literally hundreds of billions, TRILLIONS, of dollars playing in that market. Are a lot of rich assholes getting richer off it? Sure. But there are also millions of teachers and public servants and Union members and cops, firefighters, other first responders and farmers and nurses and simply good, honest folks who have their retirements tied up in that which you so breezily dismiss as "Goldman Sachs."

I don't think you've thought this line of reply to me through. Please reconsider. Thanks.

Edit: misspelling.

[amborin]

67. i think i've thought it through

of course millions of decent, hard working stiffs have their pensions tied up in the market; and many have been stiffed, too, by underhanded hedge funds; Calpers being a good example of that.....

but it's disingenous to say that criticizing banksters harms these workers; these folks and many more will be footing the bill for this spill for decades if Obama doesn't put BP into temp receivership; just look at how Bophal and Exxon Valdez played out;

Obama needed both bold language and bold actions last night, and neither are on the horizon

[apocalypsehow]

76. Then you're deliberately misreading my post, and attempting to "pick a fight." I said nary a word

about Obama criticizing or not criticizing "bankers." That was all a big, massive Straw-man of your own making. What I pointed out was that, unlike you and I, he has to choose his words carefully in public settings, being the President of the United States and all, or, say, face the consequences of the market panicking the next day, among other unpleasant consequences. If you disagree with that, then you're not living in the real world.

But this was never about Obama or bankers or the market: you simply, like a significant minority of posters lately, are mad about something, and invented a debate with another poster who wasn't even taking the other side of argument you are basically having with yourself. Please go find someone else's time to waste, thanks. :thumbsup:

[Poboy]

56. BP Hires Goldman Sachs

BP Hires Goldman Sachs
Tuesday June 15, 2010 7:24 am
Slipped into this Reuters piece is the news that BP has hired Goldman Sachs as "advisers" for unknown purposes, in addition to Pete Peterson’s Blackstone Group and Credit Suisse Group. (Tip o’ the hat to Brad Johnson)
BP has hired investment banks Blackstone Group, Goldman Sachs Group and Credit Suisse Group as advisers, a source familiar with the matter said, without identifying the purpose of the advice.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8567516

[bvar22]

88. If BP hired Goldman Sachs, it is to get advice on...

...how to make the American Working Class PAY for their fuck ups.

[butterfly77]

19. I guess its over now..

since he didn't give a good speech in some people's eyes..

[Bluebear]

26. No, just to Cynthia Tucker, she's part of my "crew" here you're always talking about.

:cry:

[nashville_brook]

31. at some point it's going to dawn on you guys that it's not about the *speeches* it's the (in)action

[KonaKane]

33. Like what? Putting on a cod piece and flying a jet into the Gulf airspace?

No one has yet given a sensible idea of what he could have done other than what he has already.

Hey, I got it...how about we hang a large "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" banner from an oil rig?

[nashville_brook]

38. Captain Straw Man strikes again!!!!!

[scarletwoman]

39. Hey, you can't blame folks for wanting to have their little erotic fantasies.

[nashville_brook]

40. that's what GD-P is for -- there should be a "you must be 18" to enter

it's so gooey in there.

[QC]

66. Sometimes it's like walking in on a slumber party over there.

"This picture of the vice president makes me feel all funny inside!"

[walldude]

84. It is for some people who live in the gulf.

While they sit and watch their precious resources get eaten away. Only to be patronized by another "speech".

[Name removed]

42. Deleted message

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[Bluebear]

44. ---

:crazy:

[Name removed]

50. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[democrat2thecore]

53. And.....It took EIGHT WEEKS for an Oval Office speech!

I never dreamed this president could appear so weak and indecisive. One-term and out and let's hope he is forced off the ticket in '12 and he sees he has no Democrats running in '12 that want to drown with him. It's a little early for this, but I know there are Democrats starting to look at this race - not to CHALLENGE him, but with the assumption that there's no way he will be in a position to run for re-nomination. So very, very sad.

[bluestateguy]

55. What a load of crap

She obviously didn't even read or watch the speech.

Obama could have called for a “moon shot” tonight to make a transition from fossil fuels to cleaner energy, and he failed to do that. He made his first-ever speech in the Oval Office, and he had all three networks at the 8 p.m. slot, and he didn’t make good use of it.

that was exactly what he did, and acknowledged that sacrifices (higher electric bills) will be a part of that

The speech was flat and uninspiring.

Impressionistic drivel from the emotionally needy media. This is not a Dr. Phil episode where we get to be "inspired"

He recited a litany of the things the administration has done to try to bring the spill under control, but it was a rehash of things the public has already heard.

No, the public has largely not heard this stuff, because media dingbats like you only want to talk about the president's emotions and in some cases such matters as the kind of slacks he wears when he visits the Gulf

Yes, he’s going to make BP pay. That’s good — as far as it goes. But he didn’t use the moment to assert a resolute sense of command.

Now you are just making things up. This is a vapid, empty criticism with no basis in fact

The president has wasted a crisis.

Is that the popular line now going around at all the Georgetown Cocktail parties; because it sounds nice and cliché and pseudo-intellectual? You are a waste of a journalist.

[eilen]

59. Being prepared for higher electric bills

Good grief. Every year we have higher electric bills. Climbing costs is not a shocker Mr. President, in this economy they are a constant.

I dunno.... maybe he hasn't looked at the monthly WH electric bill, grocery bill, gas receipts for the Presidential Limo fleet, cable bill etc.

[Radical Activist]

60. Was she watching a different speech?

Obama spoke about all of those issues effectively.

[immune]

68. Not effective enough, its never enough

I get the feeling that some people wouldn't have responded well to what he said unless he had promised that the oil would stop flowing by 10:00 am on Friday morning and that the clean up would be completed by Monday morning.

Oh, and that clean, non oil based fuel would be available at every gas pump by the beginning of the work week.

Oh, and that he was cutting a personal check to anyone who might have suffered a lost night of rest as a result of his own failure to prevent/stop the leak.

Anything less is unacceptable from "the most powerful man on earth".

[Radical Activist]

77. A lot of progressives like dramatic pandering.

There are many who want someone like Kucinich or Edwards who scream and shout to prove how progressive they are. Obama expects liberals to read and pay attention to what he's saying. When he does something liberal he doesn't broadcast it as such. It was the same during the campaign. It's a good strategy in some ways but I'm disappointed by how many liberals miss what's going on because they're still looking for theatrics.

[whatchamacallit]

78. Misappropriation of Che Guevara's image (nt)

[Radical Activist]

80. Che was a man of action

not symbolic gestures. So I don't see your point.

[dionysus]

61. do you just google "obama speech bad" to come up with this crap?

[tekisui]

97. Do you always turn it on the DUer?

[QC]

63. Cynthia Tucker never really loved him!

:cry:

[cliffordu]

69. She means he didn't make the Carter energy speech.

the one that got him re-elected.

[Raineyb]

71. Regardless of the fact that selfish jackasses elected Regan, Carter was right. n/t

[cliffordu]

72. I started riding a bike after that speech.

still do.

[walldude]

85. History proved him right and had Reagan not fucked up his policies

we'd already be weening off of foreign oil.

[Selatius]

74. I think the Iran Hostage Crisis did more to kick Carter under than his energy speech.

People called him a debbie-downer as a result of his energy speech, but when it came to policy, that was all they could say, because they knew he was speaking truth and showing a path toward the future that wasn't an easy one to take. Afterall, it's difficult to break a habit. They just didn't want to look in the mirror is all. Almost coincidentally, the Iranians overthrew the pro-US dictatorship in Iran precisely because they didn't want foreign entities dictating to Iran what it should do with its oil reserves. Little did anybody know in those violent days they'd simply replace one group of dictators with a homegrown group of dictators.

[cliffordu]

82. Yep.

[Captain Hilts]

91. BINGO. Go to the head of the class. nt

[JHB]

93. Yep. And even then he didn't really tank until the Desert 1 fiasco...

Carter benefited from the "rally 'round the leader in a time of crisis" effect as much as anyone. But that didn't survive the reaction to a complete, flaming (literally) disaster. And the failure wasn't even something that could have been shifted onto the Iranians: they didn't even know it was happening until after the fact. It was a 100%-US-owned clusterfuck, and the buck for it stopped at Carter.


I'll quibble with your last part, though. I don't think many people were particularly surprised with what they got when the "father" of their revolution was Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. For some, that was fine and dandy. For others, it was likely a case of "at least there's some hope it will be better...."

[ProSense]

70. "The president has wasted a crisis."

That's right, Cynthia, the President didn't say anything worthwhile because he didn't say it using the exact words you were looking for.

So one of the lessons we’ve learned from this spill is that we need better regulations, better safety standards, and better enforcement when it comes to offshore drilling. But a larger lesson is that no matter how much we improve our regulation of the industry, drilling for oil these days entails greater risk. After all, oil is a finite resource. We consume more than 20 percent of the world’s oil, but have less than 2 percent of the world’s oil reserves. And that’s part of the reason oil companies are drilling a mile beneath the surface of the ocean -- because we’re running out of places to drill on land and in shallow water.

For decades, we have known the days of cheap and easily accessible oil were numbered. For decades, we’ve talked and talked about the need to end America’s century-long addiction to fossil fuels. And for decades, we have failed to act with the sense of urgency that this challenge requires. Time and again, the path forward has been blocked -- not only by oil industry lobbyists, but also by a lack of political courage and candor.

link

These pundits are acting like they're clueless. This was not an energy policy speech, it was an address about the Gulf efforts. The President used it to mention all the things they say he didn't go into detail about, but what the hell were they expecting from a short address?

[Captain Hilts]

89. Should have set up a specific fund to aid Gulf marine life. People want to help. And aren't being

asked to do so.

[Statistical]

96. +1. Look at how much Americans helped after Haiti Quake. n/t