Obama, in Truman mold, casts Congress as foil

[trumad]

Music to my ears!

Heading into a tough re-election campaign, President Barack Obama has been railing against Congress to pass his jobs plan and casting Republicans as obstructionists who would rather score political points than help the economy rebound. It's beginning to look like the Truman show.

"If Congress does something, then I can't run against a do-nothing Congress," Obama said Thursday at a White House news conference. "If Congress does nothing, then it's not a matter of me running against them. I think the American people will run them out of town."

Obama's message is straight out of the playbook of former President Harry Truman, who overcame a midterm drubbing by Republicans and assailed a "do-nothing" Congress from the back of a campaign train to win another term in 1948. The comeback was epitomized by a jubilant Truman hoisting a copy of the Chicago Tribune after the newspaper printed the headline "Dewey Defeats Truman."

The Truman strategy lets Obama blame Congress for the stagnant economy at a time when Washington lawmakers are loathed by the public. It also sets up a contrast with Republicans, allowing Obama to campaign on popular issues like tax cuts for small businesses and aid to rehire construction workers and teachers, whether the bill advances or not.
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/articles/2011/10/07/obama_in_truman_mold_casts_congress_as_foil/

[TheCowsCameHome]

1. It's about time. n/t