Obama, Democrats Are Guilty Of Substance & Failure To Advertise Successes Etc

Obama, Democrats Are Guilty Of Substance & Failure To Advertise Successes Etc
Written by Paul I. Adujie

President Obama inherited two foreign wars in Afghanistan and Iraq respectively.
These wars are costing Americans more than almost $3 billion dollars every week!

And what is worse? An American economy in free fall, and spiraling out of control and downward a cliff or the abyss!

It is the case that George W. Bush and the Republicans partied and behaved like drunken sailors for 8 years during which they frittered away budget surpluses which were created and accumulated by President Bill Clinton and the Democrats.

Republicans partied and vomited over the furniture. And then, Obama and the Democrats arrived and volunteered to clean up after the Republicans. But, Obama and the Democrats should have continued to remind Americans where we are and how we got here in the first place, even as Mr. Obama and the Democrats continued the tasks of cleaning up and doing the heavy lifting or the Herculean tasks of clearing the Augean Stable!

Obama and the Democrats were given a clear mandate on November 4, 2008 by the American electorate which also appropriately handed the Republicans a rebuke, a reproach and resounding repudiations for Republicans’ wrong headed domestic and foreign policies.

Obama and the Democrats have been and again now, surprisingly, accepting public shaming and responsibility for American domestic and foreign policy crises. When in fact, Obama and the Democrats should be commended for their spectacular legislative successes during the 20 months preceding the 2010 midterm elections!

Even now, the evidence and the fact remains that President Obama’s legislative achievements, accomplishments are unparalleled. President Obama made outstanding achievements which are unsurpassed by any American president in the preceding 70 years before Obama.

It is the case that President Obama despite competing dire economic circumstances, managed to have created more jobs in 2 years of his presidency than President George W. Bush was able to do in 8 years as a two term president of the United States

The Republicans and their Tea Party proxies and surrogates, have managed to repackaged and changed the label on the multiple crises they created for America. Republicans and the Tea Party have managed to have orchestrated and choreographed bazaars, carnivals and festivals of hate and resentment directed at the Obama and the Democrats, for problems which were created by those who now have managed to foisted public anger upon Democrats and have fostered and finessed it to Republican advantage, like magic!

Why should Obama and the Democrats have been silent? Why should they have neglected to fight back? Why did they accept blames or responsibility even as the busily cleaned up after the Republicans?

Obama and the Democrats, tried, to rephrase the public debate, American national narrative and the message and it was too little too late! The Democrats and Mr. Obama embarked on these failed efforts when it was a couple of months to the November 2nd midterm elections, at a time when the Tea Party and the Republicans have sealed the fate of Democrats through aggressive messaging and advertising, which pretended that Obama and the Democrats are to blame for all that ails America.

Obama in the last 50 days before November 2nd tried mightily with a car analogy to reshape and properly frame the factual circumstances of American economic circumstances with a car analogy, in which illustrated how it was the Republicans who drove the car into the ditch and how the Democrats are trying have to get the car out of the ditch, with the Republicans standing aside, mocking, sipping slurppy while demanding the car keys back in order to put the car in reverse, instead of allowing the Democrats to rescue

Sadly, the Republicans are now arguing, arrogantly and rather audaciously, that Obama is the new driver. And that the car bears the registration of Democrats. Republicans with arrogance, with boldface, continue to argue that the car wreck and ruin which they the Republicans caused, now belongs to Obama and the Democrats!

Obama and the Democrats ought to have argued forcefully before the midterm elections and even now, in rebuttals, that it was George W. Bush, and the Republicans who drove the car recklessly, ruining the transmission, the motor engine and then promptly drove the car ditch!

Obama and the Democrats allowed the Republicans to hijack the American national narratives. Obama and the Democrats failed to articulate and advertise the successes; Democrats neglected to stay on the message. And so, the American voters still grieving from persisting economic travails and given the short attention span in American microwave culture of instant gratifications, permitted a revisionist retelling and editing of all the wrongheaded policies of Republicans during the course of 8 years.

Republicans, and especially, Sarah Palin who was a spent force and an inconsequential and an insignificant and an almost irrelevant politician at the end of the 2008 election season, was allowed to metamorphosed into a Republican proxy and surrogate of a national proportion.

Sarah Palin who abruptly resigned as governor of Alaska after the American voters rejected her and Senator John McCain as vice president and presidential candidate respectively, managed to reinvent herself into political relevance, instead of a befitting obscurity .

Sarah Palin was soon joined by persons like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich, the Tea Party and other proxies and surrogates of the Republican Party defined Obama and the Democrats, smearing them with avalanche of lies and illogic. Republicans and their surrogates and proxies, went to town with downward definitions and unsavory labels for Obama and the Democrats, with castigation repeatedly denouncing them as Re-distributionist, socialists, Hitler and worse, during the last 20 months.

If there are lesson for Professor Obama, the Democrats and the American public the 2010 midterm elections, it has to be the idea that self definition and self assertion are infinitely better than allowing your opponents or enemies of your agenda define you and your agenda, which is what Obama and the Democrats unwittingly permitted the Republicans and their proxies and surrogates to do for 2 years before the just concluded midterm elections.

Politics is war and information and misinformation are great tools. In the current instance, Obama and the Democrats allowed the Republicans to manipulate, use and misuse information and misinformation to obfuscate and confuse an understandably despairing American electorate. Republicans, Tea Party and their surrogates and proxies won the midterm elections by default. A failure on the part of the Democrat advertise their own efforts and therefore keep the collective memories of the electorate fresh as to how America got to where it is in recent times and the elephantine efforts Obama and the Democrats were making to reverse the misfortunes created nurtured perversely by the Republicans.

Obama and the Democrats failed to fiercely resist mischaracterizations and portrayals in by lights by the Republicans. As a result, the Republicans successfully inflicted mortal wounds in electoral sense on the Democrats. It is reminiscent of Roger Ailes, and how the Republicans have always seen political campaigns as mortal combats not meant for the faint at heart, but instead a rough and tumble tackles and down and dirty war of survival of the fittest. Primordial and killer instincts are routinely deployed. Dirty tricks of the Willie Horton and Swift Boat tactics are germane to and are considered by Republican operatives to be essential elements for electoral or political victories.

Michael Dukakis, John Kerry and Barack Obama have been portrayed as weaklings soft on defense and national security. John Kerry is a war hero, and yet, he was Swift Boated and portrayed as if he was a weak and soft on defense and national defense, by folks who actually dodged American war. A war hero made to look as if he was in fact a pacifist!

In the current dispensation, Obama and the Democrats have been portrayed and presented as if incapable and ineffectual, even as Obama and the Democrats busied themselves resolving problems created by Republicans of course.

Obama and the Democrats bailed out Banks and Financial institutions in the aftermath of the financial meltdown and consequent economic downturn. Now, Citigroup, AIG, Goldman Sachs etc, all bailed out companies, which played ignominious roles in the current economic crises, and have gone scot-free and without punishment, penalty and retributions, have started to pay out bonuses after becoming solvent and profitable with bailout help from American taxpayers. The new profits and bonuses are being carried out by the major institutions as if the economic crises which arose from the financial meltdown, the bailout of too big to fail rescue policy. American Banks and financial institutions are profitable again as if the crises and bailouts never occurred in the first place.

Instead of a public outcry and demand for penalty and punishment for those responsible for the economic imbroglio? Where is accountability? Banks, financial institutions and the auto industry are now already solvent and profitable and repaying the so-called bailout monies. These same institutions and entities, are repaying bailout money, while simultaneously hoarding and withholding investment into the American economy which would have in turn helped in stimulating the American economy while generating the much needed job growth in the current so-called jobless recovery in America.

These institutions, entities and industries which were bailed out or rescued by Obama and Democrats have been the same ones funding Republicans’ efforts to defeat and unseat Obama and the Democrats as Republican Senator Mitch McConnell have publicly stated that Republicans’ priority is limited to and focused on, ensuring that Obama becomes a one term president of the United States, in plain English, Republicans are sworn to frustrating and preventing the reelection of President Obama from being re-elected to second term of office.


Democrats engaged in unilateral disarmament and truce in a vicious bloodletting war also known as American politics no reverends or bishops need apply! Furlough Parole in Massachusetts

Obama and the Democrats allowed Republicans and fringe groups to define Obama and Democrats. Obama and the Democrats allowed Republicans to demonize them and further allowed the Republicans to hijack American narratives for 20 long months and so Americans only understood the Health Care Reforms in terms of phantom Death Panels and only thought of Obama as Hitler, fascist socialist etc

The White House created an emptiness or vacuum and Sarah Palin and Ms. Karen Ignagni of Health Insurance Plans filled in the gap took it, they exploited the vacuum to great disadvantage to Obama/Democrats with relentless attacks against Obama as the enemy… American politics is not for college professors, it is for those with killer instincts, the rough and tumble, it is for those who are willing to fight and get dirty

It is the case, the evidence, the fact President Obama attained spectacular successes with his legislative agenda… He achieved and accomplished so much public good in less than 20 months as POTUS… this, despite Republican Party’s obstructionist opposition to Mr. Obama’s every move… Obama obtained legislative victories despite the obstacles, impediments and iron clad barriers put on his way be the party of NO! Republican opposition even after this just concluded midterm election, is sure to become more strident and relentless or even more vicious, as a member of the Republican hierarchy are on record as saying defeating Obama, making sure he is a one term president is their priority

Two foreign wars, and a domestic economy in quagmire and extreme debacle brought about by the wrong headed policies of the Republicans, and yet, Mr. Obama too often blamed himself for the crises he inherited! He was too busy being professorial and intellectual about American politics… In the end, instead of the Democrats acting on the mandate given them on November 4th 2008, Democrats allowed themselves to be timid, tepid and in a state of permanent panic… And so, the Democrats were Swift Boated by Karl Rove, Sara Palin, Mitch McConnell , Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich etc

Obama eventually, too little too late, took charge of communicating his message, his agenda and policy position to the American public, when it was two months to the November 2nd elections, it was too late to be aggressive

Larry Summers, Tim Geithner trickle down economics of tax cuts of 40 dollars per month did not register in the eyes and ears of the electorate. Whatever happened to Obama’s suave eloquence or his extraordinary ability to communicate? Why did he not hire a combative Press Secretary? Instead of Gibbs, the polite Midwesterner?

Republicans remain the party of No! the party of obstructionist. Republicans have always shown and clearly indicated the only interest as winning elections, the next election, and the next and the next!

Obama and the Democrats on the other hand, seem lacking in requisite killer instincts. Obama and the Democrats should not have allowed themselves to be lured into sleep or lethargy or coma. And so, even now, the Obama and Democrats will do well to be alert and awake, as the die is cast, Obama and the Democrats should not be deceived by the new platitudes being uttered by Republicans as bipartisanship and friendliness etc

Obama and the Democrats should insist on another substantial stimulus package for building new public infrastructure, while simultaneously repairing old public infrastructure throughout America. Republicans have ceaselessly and endlessly contended that Obama and the Democrats have not created jobs in 20 months. Republicans argue further that it is in fact not the duty of government to create jobs. History, quite to the contrary, demonstrates that the American federal government created or generated massive employment, directly and indirectly, through Public Works Projects nationally as FDR did some 70 years ago.

Jobs creation through massive public works projects is now an imperative in the face of private sector inability or refusal to invest huge cash reserves and accumulated money since the bailout.

President Obama should replace Larry Summers, Tim Geithner and Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. Summers and Geithner are seen as insiders of Wall Street banks and financial institutions with conflicts of interest and friends still on Wall Street, hence their unwillingness to punish or take drastic actions against players on Wall Streets, who were bailed out, and who are not investing and are actually funding the negative campaigns against Obama and the Democrats.

Obama and the Democrats economic challenges are perhaps further proof of the dissonance or impracticalities between ivory tower intellectualism, Harvard Business School theories and everyday practical economics, politics and governance. Elections have to be won and the sometimes wily electorate are not amenable to "fine" experiments by sanguine professors

In the case of Gibbs, he busied himself pointing fingers at leftists instead of drumming home, Obama and the Democrats message and saving his drubbings the Republicans! Senator Mitch McConnell and the Republicans are gunning for the White House, Professor Barack Obama can capitulate now, or President Obama and the Democrats can engage in the needful work of vigorous pursuits of Democratic Agenda for which they receive an overwhelming mandate from the American electorate in November 2008. The feelings of frustrations among the American electorate can still be assuaged, when and if Obama and the Democrats deliver.

The final nail to the coffin will come in 2012 if Obama and the Democrats engage in panics and U-turns and abandon the Agenda for which the Democrats are supposed to represent or stand for. Obama and the Democrats will be better served to be seen standing for Main Street and being obstructed by Republicans and their Tea Party proxies and surrogates. The Democrats can forget the White House in 2012, if they are the weakest link and point of least resistance in Washington against Republicans extremists etc