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Disappointed in Barack
As someone who has been rooting in a very serious way for Obama since the summer, as someone who is a broke college student but still managed to travel the country to volunteer in January and again in April, as someone who has donated to his campaign time and time again, as a voter I feel disappointed in Barack Obama.
This began with his opting out of public financing, which truth me told I didn't care a lot about but it certainly didn't play well and has a lot of folks (especially netroots) pretty upset, but that will pass once we get closer to November. My personal theory is that he should have opted in because I don't think he is going to be able to raise the kind of money he thinks he can, the economy is shit, I haven't given him a cent since he clinched the nomination simply because I haven't had the extra money, and now that I do I don't want to give him a cent.
My disappointment grew when Obama caved on FISA.. I couldn't believe it. My roommate and I are gay for Obama but we haven't even been able to discuss FISA-Gate because we are at a complete loss for words. Frankly she is so much more into this campaign than I am that I am afraid to bring it up her. It's a quiet disappointment we both share but feel too disheartened by it to even discuss it or try to make sense of it. What could possibly bring one to the conclusions Barack reached?
It continued today when he threw Scarlett Johansson under the bus, I don't really care about anything related to that other than his less-than warranted response:
"She sent one email to Reggie, who forwarded it to me," Obama said,
referring to his 26-year-old personal assistant, Reggie Love. "I write
saying, 'thank you Scarlett for doing what you do,' and suddenly we
have this email relationship"
Why? Why present it in that way? I am disappointed in Barack and if this continues it will be a tragedy. Perhaps he should worry less about gaining votes from those in the middle and care more about the people who got him here. Maybe he should be worried about losing our votes.
There have been other, more minor incidents but they all speak to the same thing: Barack Obama sold out and became a regular politician. The fear now is that he won't realize it and snap back into focus. I don't want to vote for just another politician Barack, I want to vote for a man with ideals and a backbone, not someone who does what is most convenient politically. Obama will win this race, I just hope he can do it the right way.
Comments (16)
He is doing it in the right way. Simply because he didn't do one or two things you universally approve of doesn't mean he's not the same candidate.
I'd advise you guys to learn more about what the FISA compromise is about, and get beyond the symbolism that has set so many people off. In an ideal world, I'd have liked to see him have a different stance, I believe strongly Dodd and Feingold wouldn't be filibustering this thing without Obama's nod.
And Scarlett Johansson? Are you serious?
If he loses one person's vote because of that, that person doesn't need to be voting. I wish I could be kinder on that, but really. I have nothing against Ms. Johansson, but you have to be kidding me with that comment.
Hate to break it to you: Obama's been a politician from day one. And I've supported the guy since his run for U.S. Senate, and remain one of his strongest supporters and volunteers. You're buying the Republican talking points, hook, line and sinker. All you have to do is get to know the candidates and make an informed choice. This isn't a movie, and he's not some political savior descended from the heavens to deliver a new politics. He's a very capable politician whose ideas are excellent and if you trust in his ability to deliver on those ideas, then great. But don't pout because the guy isn't everything you'd built him up to be.
June 25, 2008 3:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good job Scientific - basically, this guy who followed Obama around the country, who is obviously upset, he's just a dummy eh? Must have followed him around the country because he was a one-issue voter who cared only about FISA.
Good job reading his post btw - he wrote:
"There have been other, more minor incidents but they all speak to the same thing:"
then
"I don't want to vote for just another politician Barack, I want to vote for a man with ideals and a backbone"
So basically, your answer is: he is just another politician.
See, there are a LOT of people who supported Obama because he SAID he was different. Now you say he's a politician. I'll bet a LOT of his supporters were led to believe otherwise. Like, oh, a ton of people who post here.
Also, he told us he was different, but you knew he wasn't. So what else should I know? What else is hyperbole vs. truth? What else was just him "being a politician"? Maybe you can fill us in.
June 25, 2008 3:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jesus.
He is different. That doesn't mean he's not a politician.
Lincoln was a politician. He was unabashedly, unashamedly, rawly political. He had ideals and principle and a backbone of steel, and yet he did many things that those who craved perfection and purity found disappointing. Some of those things he did because he thought them right and necessary and others solely because he thought them necessary.
The same was true of FDR and RFK and of every other transformational figure who held political office. Understanding and accepting that reality is the difference between being a supporter of a truly transformative political figure and a supporter of some ineffectual fringe figure. It takes a certain mental toughness to deal with that reality. There are plenty of perfectionistic fringe candidates left out there to follow if you can't take it.
June 25, 2008 4:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Never said that. Never said anything resembling that.
Hyperbole is not your friend. NC Steve covered my sentiments capably.
June 25, 2008 4:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
I haven't heard the Republican talking points. I was hopeful for a candidate that was strong enough to fight for progressive causes. I was hoping for a candidate who could not only win an election, but shift the center of political discourse to the left. He can't do that when he caves on progressive causes.
June 25, 2008 7:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Want a tissue?
I don't mean to be flippant here, but damn - everyone's known where Obama stands on virtually everything since January, and here we are. He's the nominee. Sounds like your guy was Kucinich, and that's all well and good. But we have what we have, and I'm sorry if that doesn't meet your ideals. Even if you consider Obama "the lesser evil", it's time for folks to get focused here.
June 25, 2008 9:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Geez, sci, you are really on the defensive these days.
June 25, 2008 9:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Matt -
I am not going to agree or disagree with your post. And I am certainly not going to say you are wrong. Hell this is how you feel, so for you it's not wrong. So what I offer is my opinion only about the issues you brought up.
FISA - I'm just not as cranked about this as some. The immunity doesn't bother me. Reason - I think most of the telecoms are holding onto their clearance letters from the Feds anyway. Their get out jail free cards if you will. The result the real people who broke the law Bush Cheney et al still get to skate and the only folks who would benefit from the ensuing legal battles with the telecoms would be the attorneys.
The netroots on campaign financing, all in all it looks to me like they are pretty happy he will have more than enough money to pound the crap out of McCain. At least in the posts and comments I read and a read far to many.
I didn't read the Scarlett thing like you. It read to me more like he was telling the press to stop being silly.
All in all I fully expected Obama to shift to the center more as he got into the GE. For some this is a betrayal, for me, it's what he has to do to win the GE. The Democratic party is more centrist than left and the majority of independents are moderate. So as unfortunate as it may be, for a politician to win, and yes he is a politician, one needs to appeal to a wide cross section of the population. This makes it somewhat difficult to stay on a strictly left tack.
June 25, 2008 4:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Please throw the phrase "throw under the bus" under the bus already. Couldn't you find anything less original to say?
June 25, 2008 4:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
You can't fault him for cribbing a line that even the Huffington Post was using for this story before they came to their senses...or maybe you can. Fuck it, go ahead.
June 25, 2008 4:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
The phrase "thrown under the bus" has "jumped the shark."
Much like the phrase "jumped the shark."
June 25, 2008 4:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh and I agree, I had originally written something else but wanted to simplify the whole thing by using worn out and over used phrases.
June 25, 2008 4:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well you have all made great points, I would like to say I wasn't attempting to do anything other than kinda vent about how I am feeling after reading the news these past few days.
I understand that Barack Obama is a politician and I expect him to make politically convenient choices at times, we saw it during the primary, it's not new. Now, that doesn't mean I have to like the choices made and commenting on it does not make me a dummy.
As for Scarlett Johansson, hardly a serious deal, I honestly couldn't even tell you a single movie she has been in, I am not a fan though she is nice to look at... I just thought his response seemed rather cold, but if you look at it as a critical comment about the media vs about Scarlett herself; that's obviously an entirely different story.
June 25, 2008 4:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
No one called you a "dummy", guy. Relax.
June 25, 2008 9:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Matt, I'm sorry Obama's disappointed you. But please give this whole thing some more thought - ie a broader focus.
The Democrats are, as usual, up against a ruthless attack machine which includes an entire cable channel that is utterly committed to painting their candidate in the most unflattering light they can come up with. And the reason they're doing it is the usual one: vested interest. If they win, the result is the same, usual one: McCain and the rest of the right have no interest in doing anything - not one iota - about the Corridor of Shame. Their policies have nothing to offer people on low incomes: McCain has just one knee jerk reaction to any problematic policy issue: throw a tax cut at it: the problem with that is that low income single mothers etc don't damned well pay enough taxes in the first place to benefit from those cuts. $5,000 tax cut for health care, $5,000 tax cut when you buy a new green car, $300m to invent a new battery....
Pleaee don't allow yourself to be distracted from these real life issues for so many struggling people and believe they aren't worth fighting for.
Please. It doesn't bear thinking about.
June 25, 2008 9:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh no worries there, I am not even considering voting for McCain. My vote will go to Obama I am certain of it. I was just a little bothered by some of these choices.. but it's not my campaign and I far from expect to love everything he does.
June 25, 2008 10:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
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