A browse through my commentaries on Obama’s presidency will make it crystal clear that I have never had any compunction about criticizing his policies. Hell, I even criticized his decision to feature Scarlet O’Hara wannabes in his inaugural parade.
So why are some of my liberal friends suddenly accusing me of political betrayal? In fact, my Tuesday commentary entitled, Obama Aping Bush on Mideast Peace Too, had some of them practically calling for a fatwa against me.
Well, persistent high unemployment (currently at 9.6%) and transformative initiatives (like passing health care reform) have driven Obama’s poll numbers from their once-transcendent highs to Jimmy Carter lows….
[P]ublic faith in Barack Obama’s leadership has fallen to an all-time low, with just 46 percent approval. The Washington Post-ABC News survey revealed high levels of public unease with President Obama’s handling of the economy, with 57 percent of Americans disapproving, and 58 percent critical of his handling of the deficit.
(The Telegraph, September 8, 2010)
This has given cause not only for Republicans to gloat, but even for members of his own Democratic Party to treat him like a skunk as they mount despairing campaigns for reelection this November.
Under these circumstances, I can understand why some of my liberal friends are unnerved. I can even understand why some readers might get the impression that I’m just another Obama supporter who’s now suffering buyer’s remorse.
Therefore, let me state for the record that I remain as ardent a supporter today as I was in October 2006, when I too was considered a skunk by many Democrats for urging Obama to challenge Hillary for the presidential nomination in 2008. Fellow supporters of his presidency should appreciate the constructive spirit in which I have criticized, and will continue to criticize, his policies. But nobody should harbor any doubt that I still firmly believe that Barack Obama remains by far the person best suited to lead not just America but the free world.
I regret that political loyalties are so sensitive (and fleeting) these days that I might be obliged to reiterate my unwavering support every time I write anything critical of Obama’s policies. Nevertheless, so let it be written, so let it be done.
Finally, I should note that, in addition to triggering ridiculously premature predictions about the demise of Obama’s presidency, polls are heralding a Republican takeover of both houses of Congress. I happen to think these polls, as well as the pundits who live by them, are wrong and that Democrats will retain control.
In any case, these foreboding polls explain why so many Democratic politicians are behaving more like rats on a sinking ship than like members of the ruling party. But here’s how I presaged this potential tidal wave back in January:
No doubt more than a few Democrats will lose their seats in the fall – just as was the case when many members of the Republican Party lost their seats in midterm elections during Reagan’s first term.
(The election of Scott Brown, The iPINIONS Journal, January 20, 2010)
It might have been more historically accurate and instructive to cite the fact Republicans seized control of Congress from the Democrats in midterm elections during Bill Clinton’s first term. (And look how well that turned out for them….) But I cited the Reagan precedent because he’s the transformative president that Obama hopes to emulate – by championing middle-class, Democratic values the way Regan championed rich, Republican ones.
What both precedents have in common, however, is the reelection of a president whose political death proved greatly exaggerated. I fully expect this to hold true for Obama too….
Related commentaries:
The election of Scott Brown
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