[quote]Mufasa wrote:
Question; when the President’s historical narrative begins to written; will this all be looked at as completely his inability to lead? In other words, will any responsibility be placed on the “Do-Nothing-Congress-2”?[/quote]
Any? I am sure some will, but it’s insignificant on a fair assessment. Obama had two years to govern and prioritize any way he liked. He decided he wanted he wanted his Presidency to be a revenge opera for the Bush years instead of a post-partisan, pragmatic “let’s face these challenges together” way. That was his choice. No one else’s.
He burned bridges, and not just with Republicans, don’t forget. He flat out sacrificed the moderates in his party and refused to listen to them on issues like health care. They warned the President over and over that his approach was bad - bad for policy (as without consensus, the legislation would be considered illegitimate), bad for America (creates unnecessary divisiveness), and his party (it will decimate the ranks of moderate Democrats, the linchpin for a national party).
He ignored them all in his quest. Fine, but now the chickens have come home to roost.
Obama constantly tried to blame the “obstructionist” Republicans. But as I noted to smh23, who hired them? And why? The “obstructionist” GOPers were hired precisely to obstruct - and Obama, who isn’t very good at the long game, reaped what he had sown.
Perfect example. After giving an on the record, respectful, and moderate speech about the seriousness of Paul Ryan’s budget, and how, though he disagreed with it, it provided a good framework for discussion among the camps, the administration invited Ryan and the members of the Bowles-Simpson Commission to come to his big speech on the budget. Everyone (except Obama insiders) actually thought Obama was going to endorse Bowles-Simpson in that speech. Instead, with Ryan in the front row, Obama demagogued Ryan’s plan as nastily as any Huey Long rant, and exploded any notion that was interested in a dialogue on the issue.
Ryan, of course, left furious. Even more notably, Alan Bowles - the Republican - and Erskine Bowles - the Democrat - went to Ryan and expressed disgust at how the President handled the situation.
That isn’t leadership, Mufasa, on the biggest issue of the day, and it wasn’t “obstructionist” GOPers getting in the way. Behave like that, and you can’t make deals, you can’t get things done.
History already recognizes that, and future historians will note where the buck stops.
