I don't think he's a repuke and he's apparently not a progressive

[rhiannon55]

but like he has said more than once, he's the president of the whole country. He apparently really means that and takes his job seriously. Maybe that's why he tries again and again to work with and for everybody, not just people in his own party. He seems to have this extreme sense of fairness that may cloud his judgment sometimes, but he is NOT the Manchurian Candidate, or a secret Republican, or a secret Muslim, or the Anti-Fucking-Christ. He is a good, caring, intelligent man who is trying really hard to work with toxic, evil people. I don't agree with or understand everything he does, but I still love him. Maybe part of it is that after the Bush fiasco, I appreciate having a grown-up in the WH who thinks before he acts and weighs his decisions carefully. I think he's working extremely hard to do what he thinks is best for the country. Our country was so fucked up when he took office, and the Republicans are so united in their determination to take back the WH, that ANYTHING he can accomplish that makes life better for even SOME of the people feels like a major victory to me.

(edited for grammar)

[Skittles]

1. he certainly is pleasing repukes

[Cant trust em]

3. Yup. I bet they loved the health care reform act.

They seem to be really happy that it passed.

[Skittles]

5. they like it better than I do

[Cant trust em]

6. So you want to repeal it? nt

[Skittles]

7. that bil is big giant turd

[Cant trust em]

8. A turd that should be repealed?

That's what they want to do with it? Do you?

[Skittles]

9. no public option, and penalties for not buying overpriced crap "insurance"

it should never have passed

[Cant trust em]

12. Now that the bill is law, would you support a repeal?

I cannot make this question any more clear.

[Skittles]

13. I don't give a fuck what they do with it

all I know is I will not be forced to buy insurance from the same greedy bastards who caused all our healthcare problems. NEVER.

[Cant trust em]

14. Well, they want to repeal it.

If you don't care about what they do, then by definition they do not like it more than you do.

I know its fun to be melodramatic, but let's not say silly things.

BTW, why is it so hard to answer a simple question?

[Skittles]

16. it's not hard

that is the answer - I don't give a fuck - doesn't make any difference - it's garbage one way or the other - it didn't solve anything

[Cant trust em]

21. Ironically, many republicans also hate the mandates.

For entirely different reasoning to be sure, but they don't like mandates either.

[Parker CA]

2. Kick and Rec for a well stated post. nt

[CakeGrrl]

4. K/R

This will probably go over like a lead balloon with the overall mood of DU, but it's a good post. It's too bad that reasonable observations have to contend with conspiracy theories.

[Webster Green]

10. A reasonable observer could theorize that there must be a conspiracy.

So there.

[Clio the Leo]

11. From the day he was born, it was literally impossible to pigeon hole him into one tidy category...

.... and he's lived his whole life that way. Is he black or white? American or Indonesian? Agnostic, Muslim or Christian? Liberal or moderate?

He's obviously proud of his ethnic identity, religion, citizenship and party identity ... but I think he sees the boundary lines a lot more blurred and liquid than we do. If you can improve the country by passing one of the most progressive piece of legislation ever then that's good. If you can improve the country (for the short term at least) by agreeing to more conservative economic legislation than you might otherwise like, then do it.

We anointed the man the saviour of the country after he'd made a speech proclaiming that our nation's greatness was defined by our UNITY .... then, once he gets into office, we demand that he champion one side to the exclusion of the other.

It doesn't even make any sense.

[Cant trust em]

15. This is a wonderfully put post.

Really one of the best I've read in quite some time.

[Clio the Leo]

18. One of my fav. boyfriends was mixed..

... and grew up all over the world.

The President seems to have the same way of looking at things as my ex did. I cant really explain it .... and I dont really need to as the President's first book does it better than I ever could ... but it's a wonderful thing.

And we need more of it.

[Cant trust em]

22. I must admit, being a mixed person myself I really relate to Obama's life story.

I feel like with him being president I finally have someone who sees the world like I do.

Which would probably mean that most DUers would think I would be a really shitty president. :)

[Clio the Leo]

24. lol well, I know one thing....

The site of THIS first family is one I never thought I'd see (but I'm glad I did.) That's Michelle's sis in law and nephew sitting between her and her mother.

U.S. President Barack Obama with his mother in law Marian Robinson , wife First Lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha watches a college basketball game at Howard University November 27, 2010 in Washington, DC. President Barack Obama attended the game between Howard University and Oregon State, which is coached by his brother in law Craig Robinson.


In no way do I pretend to know what it's like to be African American and be alive at this moment. But I've had enough "why is that white girl with that n****" and enough trying to determine whether a certain restaurant was "safe" to eat at, in my time to feel a bit of pride too.

I get a lil' knot in my throat just looking at them.

[Cant trust em]

25. I was in DC for inauguration and went to the American History Museum.

They have this bit on the presidents and they have all of their pictures in a line.

Starting at George Washington and working your way to the right, all you see is white face, white face, white face, and then all of the sudden you get to Obama. It's really funny to have it put in that perspective.

[Clio the Leo]

26. And THEN you go to the part of the Smithsonian ....

..... where they have the Woolworth lunch counter. My father was a member of SNCC, organized voter registration drives in MS. I wasn't around to see that, but I WAS around to help him elect the first African American president ..... and not only that, but a man who was LITERALLY elected .... JUDGED by the "content of his character."

If folks want to suddenly dismiss that same character then it's their loss.

[Cant trust em]

27. The Civil RIghts Museum in Memphis was interesting.

The have the actual Rosa Parks bus that you can sit in. They have a simulated audio recording of a bus driver telling her to move. It's really haunting.

[Clio the Leo]

28. Yep, both that one and the one in Birmingham are well worth the visit. nt

[rhiannon55]

23. I know what you mean, Clio

I have known a number of people who are at home wherever they are in the world, people who simply appreciate and respect people wherever they meet them. President Obama is certainly like that, and I love that about him.

We do need more people like that.

[rhiannon55]

29. Delete

replied to the wrong post.

[RaleighNCDUer]

17. The question is, WHY is he trying really hard to work with toxic, evil people.

I thought the idea was to work AGAINST toxic, evil people.

If somebody wants to kill you, are you supposed to compromise and settle for being maimed?

[rhiannon55]

19. Maybe because those are the people in the House and Senate

that he has to deal with. He doesn't govern in a vacuum and he can't make things happen all by himself.

[Cant trust em]

20. Obama's biggest weakness is that he doesn't want to walk away from the deal.

You know how they always say that to get the best deal from the car dealer, you have to be able to say no and walk away? Obama never wants to walk away. He'd rather get less than what he wanted and still (in his opinion) move forward. Most of us want him to walk away and get nothing.

Ironically, this is what the republicans usually want. They DON'T want the government to act. Take health care for example. The republicans were fighting against the bill. They weren't fighting for their version of reform. They wanted nothing. If Obama sticks to his guns and walks away, then the republicans actually get what they wanted all along.

[donheld]

30. He's a corporatist.