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On Assigning Blame, Or, "So, You Think I'm Retarded?"

by: fake consultant

Sun Feb 28, 2010 at 13:46:56 PM EST


LANGUAGE WARNING: Today's story is uncharacteristically blunt, and from this moment forward we will be using lots of inappropriate language in making our points.

Gentle Reader, you have been officially...warned.

With that in mind, if you take offense when confronted with language strong enough to knock a fuckin' buzzard off a shitwagon, please stop reading now.

It is by now fairly well known that Rahm Emanuel, President Obama's White House Chief of Staff, had a bit of a blow-up with liberals who were ready to start running ads against "blue dog" Democrats who were working very hard to shut down the health care reform effort.

Now we're not gonna get in the middle of that argument today; instead, since we're finally getting a chance to talk, I figured me and Rahm could get a few other things out of the way that have been on everyone's mind for the past year or so.

fake consultant :: On Assigning Blame, Or, "So, You Think I'm Retarded?"
"...What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease.

Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courage.

He wins his battles by making no mistakes. Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that is already defeated.

Hence the skillful fighter puts himself into a position which makes defeat impossible, and does not miss the moment for defeating the enemy..."

--Sun Tzu, "The Art of War"

So...Rahm, buddy...here's the thing:

In January of 2009 you came into the White House having just beaten down both the Republicans and Hillary Clinton, and baby, y'all were on a roll.

Reforming health care was the top priority of 59% of the population, you had a 75+ seat majority in the House...and of course, to quote your boss, there was that "largest Senate majority in a generation".

Y'all were appointing smart people to take over agencies, and the President gave that speech in Cairo-and even though people had their misgivings about the way the bailout and the stimulus came together, we were still right there with you.

And then, in May...remember when y'all promised to get a heath care vote done by August? If I recall correctly (and I do), the President said:

"...We've got to get it done this year. Both in the House and the Senate. We don't have any excuses. The stars are aligned."

And then for some reason, you decided it would be a smart idea to spend a couple of months letting Ben Nelson and Charles Grassley, who were both happy to let you know they were against this thing from the beginning, run the show.

"...When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be damped. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength.

Again, if the campaign is protracted, the resources of the State will not be equal to the strain.

Now, when your weapons are dulled, your ardor damped, your strength exhausted and your treasure spent, other chieftains will spring up to take advantage of your extremity. Then no man, however wise, will be able to avert the consequences that must ensue.

Thus, though we have heard of stupid haste in war, cleverness has never been seen associated with long delays.

There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare..."

--Sun Tzu, "The Art of War"

"...and then the C.H.U.D.S. came at me..."

--Homer Simpson

And then came the Tea Parties. For a solid month we were bombarded with images of uninformed people carrying signs demanding we protect Medicare while at the same time demanding Government stay out of health care, people who see Obama as the new Hitler, and people who apparently think Socialism, Fascism, Communism, and Vegetarianism are all different flavors of the same political junk food.

In other words, fuckin' retards.

And just to make things perfect, the Republicans couldn't wait to jump on the retard train: Sarah Palin quit being a Governor so she could turn her interest in "Death Panels" (and her desire to never be a quitter...) into a gig at Fox-and Rick "Goodhair" Perry, the Governor of what might be the most "Rah Rah America!" state in the Nation, suggested that making Texas into its own country might be the smartest way to save these United States.

I loved it.

I knew what was about to happen: the classic "pincer move", where you let the enemy race into the trap, and then slam the door behind them, locking them in a box from which they cannot escape.

And the best part was, they had made it so easy that a politician with even a moderately high degree of mental acuity could spring the trap. All the President had to do was to go to the States where these politicians live, stand up on a platform, with cameras running, preferably in the early part of the daily news cycle, and do one of these two things:

--Either put his arm around [insert politician's name here]'s shoulders and tell the giant crowd how the President and [again, insert name] are going to fight the insane Republicans and the evil insurance companies together, "No matter how much they try to stand in our way..."

--Or go to the same podium and give this speech: "I'm going to fight for you, all the way, and I want you to call [insert name here] and demand that they join the fight, too."

For extra effect, you could have sent him to one of those free clinics the viewers of Keith Olbermann's "Countdown" were paying for.

Repeat this process a dozen times or so, and the next thing you know you own the news cycle, and the enemy is crushed and disorganized.

This is Politics 101, and it's just as effective at moving along reluctant Democrats as it is reluctant Republicans.

But that never happened, Rahm, did it?

Instead, as far as I can tell, you let the fuckin' retards kick your ass for the past eight months.

You didn't even really try to organize your friends: for example, where was the coalition-building process while all of this was going on? Did it ever occur to you to try to get gay activists and youth activists and healthcare activists together to help move this process along?

Had you been on the ball here you could have organized a "Counter Tea-Party" for every single one of those stupid "patriotfests"...and now, when you need support to move issues that matter to the gay community, you haven't built up the kind of trust that would have been enormously helpful in keeping the GaYTM open and available, as it was in 2008.

Only in the past ten days or so have y'all finally figured out what Alan Grayson seems to have known all along: an aggressive, in-your-face Democrat will not only survive, but thrive-even in Florida.

And that's the part I don't get: you came in here enormously popular, with every advantage, with Republicans who were falling all over themselves to make your life easy, with the facts on your side, and a public who wanted to go along with the program.

And despite that, you let yourself get beaten down by idiots, you failed to spring the obvious trap, you never tried to really engage with your friends at critical times, and now you find yourselves in a tough election environment having to play catch-up, when it's the Rs who should be running for cover while your guy is pulling a 65% approval rating, or something similar, and Democrats expand that Senate majority to 63 or 64 seats.

And if all that wasn't enough, now you have to sit here and listen to people like me, the proverbial "overfed, long-haired, leaping gnomes" of politics, tell you something you should have known all along.

Which finally brings me to the part I really don't understand: how did our situation get so turned upside down that you are viewed as the big-time highly-paid political genius...and somehow, the people who thought you would be easily digest the pre-chewed political snack food that was being served up to you on a silver platter became the fuckin' retards?  

It's a question I can't answer, Rahm...but you better figure it out, and fix it-quickly-or the next three years are going to suck a lot more than this one did.

Poll
what should rahm be thinking today?
"the enemy is crushed!"
"victory is near!"
"we're doing ok"
"things could be worse"
"at least they passed me back my hat..."

Results

Tags: , , , , , , , , , (All Tags)
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there is no reason for us... (4.00 / 1)
...to be on the short end of this stick...and there's no reason why this can't be fixed...so, hey, rahm...how about it?

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

Even with the warning, (4.00 / 5)
I really, really object to your use of the word "retard" in this diary.

You can claim, as others have, that we now use other words to describe people with these cognitive issues, such as developmentally disabled or intellectually disabled.

Still, the federal government uses the designation "mentally retarded" as a diagnostic name for these people.

They have been, and are, an oppressed minority in this country. Would you write derogatory names used for other oppressed minorities in a title for a diary? I hope not.

Somehow it's still and always okay to put people with this condition down, to mock them, to compare them with angry, misinformed people.

And then to claim you're for progressive social change.

I'm not buying it.



I just caught This American Life - (0.00 / 0)
The American Psychiatric Association has posted for comment its DSM-5, which establishes the clinical nomenclature.

They propose dropping the phrase "mental retardation" as both  offensive and inaccurate. They propose the term "intellectual disabilities" instead.


[ Parent ]
Do you think (0.00 / 0)
it's only a matter of time, let's say, ten, twenty years when the term "intellectually disabled" becomes an insult as well?

The vast majority of people I know  who fall into that category  are politically progressive, so it further adds insult to injury using it as a taunt/insult/description of the tea party crowd.


[ Parent ]
I'm not clear on their usage patterns - (0.00 / 0)
It may be possible to accept a broad category of "intellectual disabilities" without accepting the use of the term "disabled."

And it may be accurate and useful to include in a category of "intellectual disabilities" patterns such has a tendency to reject new ideas.

But yeah, it isn't obvious that solves things.


[ Parent ]
i'm not putting anyone down here... (4.00 / 1)
...except rahm, who chose this language himself, and the tea party community, who often seem far more cognitively impacted than any of the developmentally delayed people i actually know.

but it's a reasonable concern, and i happily acknowledge that...but it's also fair to point out that this is a matter of context, and i'm not sure that every single use of the word "retard" is fairly interpreted as putting down the developmentally delayed.  

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Since when is Rahm (0.00 / 0)
someone to emulate.

[ Parent ]
it is a literary tool of long standing... (0.00 / 0)
...to use the words of others to point out the problems in their own houses, and while you might point out that i'm not sam clemens, i would reply that satire and sarcasm and other similar devices are not somehow restricted to the elite.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
But I AM sure that (4.00 / 1)
every single use of the word "retard" as some sort of slam is hurtful to a lot of people: the people with different mental abilities, their families, and the other people who work with and love them.

Pretty high cost for a cheap rhetorical trick.


[ Parent ]
i would respectfully disagree... (0.00 / 0)
...and i would suggest that a lot of the very people you describe are entirely capable of discerning the intended context of the story--and i'd further suggest that at least some of the people who are working with this community are using gallows humor as a coping tool that is often just as shocking as what was said here today...in fact, based on the people i know personally, i would not be surprised to discover that virtually every worker at a state institution serving this clientele has described the upper management of their own facility as "retarded" at least once in their career.  

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
*sigh* (4.00 / 1)
If the Republicans get away with putting retards like George W. Bush, Sarah Palin & Frank Guinta in positions of responsibility, surely we Democrats should be allowed to use the word "retard" in extreme situations.  The HCR debate is an extreme situation.

-----


Thanks for all the fish


-----


[ Parent ]
It's possible that Rahm isn't simply incompetent and arrogant - (0.00 / 0)
It's possible that he has been fighting on the other side, all along - and has been victorious in his efforts to kill real health care reform.

it is indeed something to consider... (0.00 / 0)
...but i could not speak to that possibility with any certain knowledge of my own.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
Stay Edgy, Yo. (0.00 / 0)
My "Fire Rahm" Meme.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?

fake consultant (4.00 / 2)
I don't find your use of the term "retard" to be edgy or interesting. Its an insult that's been floating around since my childhood, and I'm 54 years old. It's recently come back into some sort of faux-subversive terminology because of Sarah Palin.

Using a slur for a minority group isn't clever. It's tedious. It isn't interesting when the right does it, and it's even less interesting when it's someone who is posting on a site for progressives.

You may have made some worthy points in your diatribe. I'll never know. I can't be bothered to read the whole thing. I worked with people who have profound physical and mental disabilities for a number of years. Some of these people were warehoused in a terrible place that used to exist in NH - it was called the Laconia State School. At the Laconia State School, there were people who were locked, naked, and screaming in cages. Some of the staff physically and sexually abused these people. They were tortured. They were treated like animals.

How we treat the people in our society who need the most help says a lot about who we are. Making fun of people who have absolutely no recourse isn't funny. It's just a sign of smug intellectual laziness, and bigotry. The "retards" can't come back at you, fake consultant. Too bad. Seeing the playground bully get his comeuppance never gets old.


member of the professional left  


What a cruel world (0.00 / 0)
where threads can be hijacked by the PC police.  

I'm waiting for Sarah Palin to chime in.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
Sorry, Jack, (0.00 / 0)
this is beyond "PC". It is a nasty, unnecessary use of derogatory language, and I'm sick of it.

Words are powerful. They can hurt.

Name calling is not conducive to lively discourse.

I'm really, really sick of it.

It's not funny and it's not cute.

As Susan stated above, people have been cruelly treated for the crime of having the characteristics Fake Consultant derides.

And he uses the word in his title, so we're not "hijacking" the thread.

I would feel the same if he used derogatory words for any other oppressed minority, and I would call him out on it.


[ Parent ]
With all due respect (0.00 / 0)
I couldn't agree less.

Flailing about on a blog about word choice amounts to what? It's his/her diary, not anyone elses. Are you defending the honor of Blue Hampshire?

Let folks take or leave the diarists thoughts based on the merits. The remark is not so far out of bounds and it is in context. Hell, the word "faggot" was thrown around here after the Grok fiasco. Was it in context?

I'll concede it's a slippery slope. It could get out of hand. But the slur was not directed at an individual. It was used to make a point. Even make you squirm while considering it.

I wouldn't have used the slur in the title, as Dean set the example when amended his diary.

You should come to my 'hood, these slurs are commonplace. This world is very imperfect.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
The effect of using the term is that FC hijuacked his own diary. (4.00 / 3)
We are thirty or so comments in and no one has discussed the ideas that form the heart of the diary. Self inflicted wounds hurt as much as any other kind. So aside from any other problems with the 'edgy' term, it has defeated communication.

"But, in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope." Si se puede. Yes we can.  

[ Parent ]
Choice (0.00 / 0)
The diarist choose the word. The commentors choose the angle of their response.

It was not a self inflicted wound until it was turned back around at the source. There is nothing that compelled either.

As an attorney, I'm sure you project the splash of your words before you speak. You are aware that a poorly formed statement can be detoured.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
It was a conscious choice to use a word that the diarist knew was likely to elicit exactly the response that ensued. (4.00 / 2)

Since there were two choices-- use it it or don't-- it is 'self inflicted' to me.

(Just to be clear, no words bother me, I consider them all sounds, and as any particular sound is not intelligible to 90% of the world,  I don't get mad at sounds. I do recognize that sounds can elicit strong reactions in other people, and for the most part I am successful in choosing my sounds in such a way that I avoid causing unpleasant reactions in people. I think however that most other people are much better at this than me, so it is hard for me to get too upset at someone else's failure to choose wisely).

"But, in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope." Si se puede. Yes we can.  


[ Parent ]
Not a peep (4.00 / 2)
and I'm still floored.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?

[ Parent ]
a few thoughts... (4.00 / 1)
...i did have to give some considerable thought to how the story would work, and i finally came down on the side of doing it this way for a few reasons:

--the irony of how rahm's own words fit to the circumstances makes a powerful statement, and if you look around at the various places this is posted you'll see many readers who straight up agree with the thinking behind the story.

a lot of this, i think, is because we see ourselves as the "retards" he referenced.

--there is a potential for the story to bring suffering to people who face issues related to cognition, and the community that surrounds those folks, but i am making a bet that the vast majority of that community is entirely capable of understanding the context involved, and, should they come across this story, that they will.

--you alluded to another issue, and i will acknowledge in advance that for some who have commented here this argument will hold no water...but there is a community of people who feel that there is no place for language that offends others, and specifically that the use of this type of language limits the potential for lively discourse.

i can respect the argument, but i disagree, and it's because of the question of "where do we stop when we go down this path?"

if we are to proscribe "retard", then logic follows that "idiot" and "moron" must also be barred.

both share exactly the same context of association with cognitive disorders and being used as derogatory terms that potentially offend the exact same community of people referenced here.

this evening, rachel maddow referred to the "lame" enforcement that is associated with securities law violations...a term that is, obviously, potentially offensive to those who are non-ambulatory.

is "lame" now to supplant "lesbian" as the "l-word"?

obviously, if we take this too far we could get to a point where lively discourse becomes darn near impossible.

the answer to all this, again, is context, and as i walked through the development of this story i saw no contextual conflict that was so severe as to cause me to abandon the effort.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
just to put the entire thing... (0.00 / 0)
...in perspective, The Girlfriend just reminded me that one of her clients actually referred to me as a retard once, in a joking way--and as she also points out, i deserved it at the time.

so there you go.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
this is a legitimate concern... (0.00 / 0)
...for a lot of people, and i want to respect that, but there is a place for harsh words as well--and in this case, emanuel chose the words...i just noted the irony.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
usually those who engage in the (4.00 / 1)
bleating  about PC are those who are still feeling bad that they can't use ethnic slurs, or sexually harass women.

I wish a gang of retards could beat you and fake consultant up. They can't. Picking on a minority group that is unable to defend itself is not acceptable.


member of the professional left  


[ Parent ]
Know you subject (0.00 / 0)
It is often noted that "low functioning" people can act with great physical strength.

Keep trying to invent my charicature, though. You know me so well.

PS. I hope someone gives you a hug.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
apparently (0.00 / 0)
you don't know much about those considered "retarded". Many people with profound disabilities cannot even walk. They live their entire lives in wheelchairs. They are utterly and completely defenseless. In institutions they are molested.

PS - You're your own best caricature material.  

member of the professional left  


[ Parent ]
That plank in your eye (0.00 / 0)
Oh, sorry. My biblical reference is a construct of my christian superiority complex. I need to coddle the pagans because of historical shame assumed at my birth as a white, male of european decent.

I have done so many wrongs for this one life. Shame on me.

Why do I speak? I have no moral standing!

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
ironically, i'm watching the movie... (0.00 / 0)
..."accepted", and lewis black's character just used the exact same language, and i'm going to suggest that neither the writers, nor i, miss the good ol' days of keeping slaves.

just to ensure that i'm not misinterpreted here, the phrase "the good ol' days of keeping slaves" is also intended as a joke.

thank you.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Bullshit. (4.00 / 2)
Here's a clue, Jack: when someone starts complaining about "political correctness," it is because they want to be rude and hateful.

Grow up.


[ Parent ]
The Girlfriend... (0.00 / 0)
...(we of 28 years now, going on 29) is a nurse who also has a clientele which comprises the same community of people, this haveing been her exact line of work for about 35 years now, so this is not something about which i am completely insensitive.

but i've also known a few of her clients personally, and i have to tell you that some of them would say the same thing about this situation.

as you are probably also aware, the point here is to use rahm emanuel's own words to make the point here.

so, no, it's not an effort to be a bully--and i would encourage you to consider the example of other works that use language that we consider inappropriate to make points about our society...including "huckleberry finn", which is regularly assailed for its use of the word "nigger".

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Sorry, dude, (4.00 / 1)
but you're not Mark Twain. This is not literature we're writing, but a political blog.

Just because Rahm says something stupid, doesn't mean it has to be repeated, even to make a point.


[ Parent ]
Ah (4.00 / 1)
what a clever variation on the "some of my best friends are..." defense.


member of the professional left  

[ Parent ]
Note to diarist (0.00 / 0)
Normally, when I see the "PC ploy" engaged, it is to distract from the subject of the diary.

That's not the case here. Rahm has little love amongst this crowd.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


we'll see about rahm... (0.00 / 0)
...and the history, after it all plays out, will be fascinating.

is he actually working to subvert reform efforts, is he a "secret corporatist", did he just get snowballed by his own presumption that "things would work out", or is he chafing at the bit to do the things we're talking about here, with a boss who says no?

i don't know which is which, and that's what makes this such a crazy situation--at least, from the perspective of the outsider looking in.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
From the outside (4.00 / 1)
I saw the inclusion of Rahm as a h/t to Clinton(s). Or it might have been with some Chicago insiders that wanted their man in close. As much as I swoon over Obama, I don't think he is above "politics as usual."

Nothing about him and his idiom reflects the Obama that I came to know, mostly through his staff. Matt Rodriguez is no Rahmbo.

I, against my gut, supported Rahm's selection to COS. My thought was, his background in the House and on the DCCC would be helpful. Especially with Biden as VP to whip the Senate.

A lot has been accomplished, so far. And I think much of the quagmire is due to Obama inclination to build consensus. If I was to charge Obama with a flaw, it would be that he too often looks at todays solutions through the prism of a hundred years from now.

He is thinking about his page in the history books. Maybe it is because of his intellectual composition. Or maybe he is feeling the weight of being the first black POTUS.


Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
here's another possibility... (0.00 / 0)
...i've been mulling over.

obama has had years of experience finding consensus--but always as the person seeking consensus from those more powerful than himself.

additionally, he's been working in an environment where he couldn't afford, as a community organizer, or even as a state legislator, to get on the wrong side of a mayor or alderman--or party leader, or governor.

put the two together, and it may be that he's not yet sure how to "project" his new power.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Chin scratching (0.00 / 0)

obama has had years of experience finding consensus--but always as the person seeking consensus from those more powerful than himself

Yes. This could prove a tricky adaptation. To view others' contribution as the end user, as opposed to a facilitator for the end user is a subtle, but key difference. It could elude him.

I'm sure he gets that he is "top dog," as it were. Though, it seems he is willing to allow Congress & SCOTUS to assume their Constitutional place of parity. That may explain his deference to the suasage making. I doubt, highly, that Obama still feels demured in the presence of Harry Reid.

Did he ever?

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
based on what we've seen so far... (0.00 / 0)
...the greatest demurral was offered to senate finance--even above other senate committees--and it is entirely reasonable to attribute that to constitutional deference.

i don't know what the personal dynamic is between the house and senate leadership, and obviously that is another issue potentially at play here.


--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
No, I do not think (4.00 / 2)
the stoopid use of the word "retard" by Rahm Emanuel is an example of our team's 11 dimensional chess.

I think it's just another indicator of why he is the wrong man for the job.

Being Chief-of-Staff to the most powerful person in the world, and in a democracy, moreover, is a tremendous honor.  I think the proper disposition for someone in that role goes the following way: In 2,4, or some other undetermined number of years, my life is not my own.  It belongs to the American people, via my service to the executive branch.  What am I doing this moment to advance the President's agenda and bring honor to it?

Showing how tough you are to liberal advocacy groups by using schoolyard slurs in range of reporters' notebooks doesn't meet that standard.  It smacks of selfishness, and dumb strategy.

When you're done you can write a tell-all book and curse in public and be an individual again.  But not when you have this once-in-a-lifetime moment to make the country a better place.  During that time you belong to the People, via the POTUS.

No wonder John H. is out there defending Emanuel. Peas in a pod.

birch, finch, beech


"my life is not my own" (0.00 / 0)
You get it, Dean. Service to the nation.

While in the military, especially while in uniform, one does not get to act based on free will, within reason. You are yolked to the honor of our nation.

This point is highly nuanced, but your remark above should be ingested by those that seek to serve, either by enlistment or election.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
i think you nailed it... (0.00 / 0)
...and i think the bigger point here is that rahm has not succeeded in helping all of us advance an agenda we all share--and that's the real problem here that needs to be addressed.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
A lack of self discipline. (4.00 / 5)
As was the juvenile payback implicit in the treatment of Howard Dean at the beginning of the administration.

"But, in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope." Si se puede. Yes we can.  

[ Parent ]
imagine howard dean... (4.00 / 1)
...either sitting at the table encouraging some democratic boldness, or doing it out on the rubber chicken circuit with presidential imprimatur.

imagine, for example, dean on a white house-sponsored tour of 100 rotary clubs in tough congressional districts, for example, explaining how a public option could help small business--or, for that matter, on a 100 city "public option tea party tour".

either or both would have been potentially very helpful, and letting that get away was a major loss.



--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
You dont have to imagine Howard Dean encouraging Democratic boldness. (4.00 / 2)

Come to Portsmouth on Sunday to hear the truth about Health Care Reform straight from the Doctor- It will be a rare opportunity to hear two people  talk about the road ahead.

5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.: Howard Dean at the Rally for Hodes for Senate, the Gas Light, 64 Market Street, Portsmouth, NH.

It is a fundraiser, but reasonably priced at $25 so that working people have an opportunity to take part in a discussion with America's conscience on health care while helping to elect a strong vote for real reform.

"But, in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope." Si se puede. Yes we can.  


[ Parent ]
thie issue here isn't howard dean... (0.00 / 0)
...who, [insert name of preferred deity here] bless him, has been out there for years making this effort...it's the president who needs to put his stamp of approval on those efforts, as jack says below, in a very public way.

if dean were to serve as the bridge between the distrustful left and this administration, it might create the opportunity for healing...but only if real efforts follow dean's words...and that might be the fly in the ointment, if our darker fears about obama really do come to pass.  

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Linky (4.00 / 2)
Howard Dean Endorses Paul Hodes

I see this as exactly the bridge you mention.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
this is potentially a good deal for everyone... (4.00 / 1)
...and if real clear politics is to be believed, this a race that's been sitting about three points outside of the margin of error for about the last two months, with no evidence that ayotte is putting hodes away.

it looks like a great opportunity for dean and the pres to come in and grow the pool of likely voters, and to do some serious reframing--and if they do it together, a bridge begins to be built--but all that depends on whether obama's side feels hodes is a likely winner...and if they are not overcome with fear at the possibility dean might go all "biden" on them.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Pardon my French (4.00 / 1)
Fuck this: depends on whether obama's side feels hodes is a likely winner...

In June of 2007. Paul did not lick his finger and stick it in the wind.


Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
the reality is, though... (0.00 / 0)
...that presidential involvement in state campaigns carries larger connotations: if obama comes in to nh, and his assistance carries the day, it accrues to his advantage nationally...and if hodes were to lose, despite obama's assistance, that would also carry national weight.

you'll note that this has already happened, to some extent, in the aftermath of scott brown's election--and you can bet that this will make plouffe, et al. skittish about anyone who seeks obama's "presence".

that's not what i'm advocating--but as a cynic, my guess is that's what is presumably going to go through the minds of the white house political operation.

bigger picture: how does obama deal with arlen specter if he makes similar requests? that will also be a calculation for the wh--but it could actually work for hodes, especially if plouffe were to suggest obama lie low in pa and support hodes in nh, all to shore up his base.



--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
I think you may be mistaken about this. (4.00 / 3)

I would be amazed if the President did not come to help out Paul Hodes, whose endorsement in July of 2007 set him apart from virtually every elected official in NH at that point and was a clear example of leadership that came with great potential for downside.

I don't think the President is the kind of person who forgets things like that.


"But, in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope." Si se puede. Yes we can.  


[ Parent ]
i may indeed have misread this... (0.00 / 0)
...but you may also recall that jim martin was hoping obama would come down after his election and help out with an uphill effort in a senate runoff against saxby chambliss, which he chose not to do, sending lower-level staffers instead, even though a victory would have been a 60th senate seat.  

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
Mr. President, "Deputize" Howard Dean (4.00 / 2)
FC is on to something here. Obama needs to, imho, embrace Dean in a VERY public way.

Let's put Dean where he is best, working the event horizon of our party.

The left will grumble at first, suspicious. Then the desire to win will kick in!

If Sec. Clinton can work for President Obama, Howard Dean can work for Tim Kaine. Let's be bold. Put Dean at the helm of OFA.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
this is a bit off the track... (0.00 / 0)
...but i think i'm going to have to do a story that talks about that suspicion.

it seems to me that there is a connection between the mistrust of the left and the tea party movement--and the key here is that both became not just mistrustful, but actually contemptuous, and even afraid, of our government, all thanks to our friends in the bush administration--and i'm not sure this administration understands just how damaging that eight years of trauma was.

for obama to successfully advance a progressive agenda using the "deputize dean" strategy, he may have to take a huge risk and position himself against "obstructionist" congresscritters, both democratic and republican, which is, of course, the very strategy emanuel spoke out so strongly against.

but that's the best shot obama has for his entire agenda, be it financial reform, another stimulus, environmental and energy reforms (obama wants nuclear? if you want to sell that to the left, you'll need help...), enda, "don't ask, don't tell", or any effort that might still be made regarding card-check.

there will be a senator or two or three every single time, so we need to go over their heads and drag 'em along by the constituents, a point i made in the original story...and howard dean would be helpful for several of those efforts, if not all of 'em.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]
Slaughterhouse For Sacred Cows (4.00 / 1)
It all has to be on the table.

Let's make clear. The willingness to discuss a subject, is not advocacy of it. The old school of politics demands that opposing ideas be starved of oxygen. This is done, in part, because folks are afraid that merit may present itself.

Kill the Buddha.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
the trick here... (0.00 / 0)
...is communicating to your base that your big tent requires allowing ideas your base might not support; that requires some significant degree of trust, and, at least for the moment, it's a burden that's probably as hard for the administration to bear as the fear that the other side's ideas might be worth considering.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them

[ Parent ]
Messaging is key (0.00 / 0)
Often, when sound Progrssives run, the base handcuffs them to self-affirming rhetoric. As the pol messages to the center, the base roars "traitor."

We see GOPers do it and we scoff. Why don't we see it in ourselves?

Smoke and mirrors are tools. We watch the magi because we know the girl won't really be sawn in half.

Whack-a-mole, anyone?


[ Parent ]
In other words (0.00 / 0)
progressive is just another word for * wink * * wink * centrist - and we should all understand that, and NOT hold them accountable.


member of the professional left  

[ Parent ]
Ask, *wink** wink*, Howard Dean n/t (0.00 / 0)


Whack-a-mole, anyone?

[ Parent ]
unless Howard Dean (0.00 / 0)
is posting through your account, your comment appears to be an attempt to  divert attention from what you posted.  

member of the professional left  

[ Parent ]
actually... (4.00 / 2)
...in a lot of places, centrist does mean progressive, with no winking required.

majorities want better national health care options--including a public option--as well as a lot of other items on a progressive agenda.

the question before us today is how to push the representatives of those centrist/progressive voters into being truly representative of those how those voters actually see the world, and that's, if i may humbly suggest, where this administration has missed opportunity after opportunity after opportunity.

in fact, that was a big reason why we felt the stars were finally aligning in november '08--and it's also why i'm still optimistic that this can be turned around with better outreach and messaging.

as for accountability: as i suggested in the original story, it's up to the president to reach out and drag the unwilling along by their constituencies, if need be, and the failure to do that, from the beginning, was a major tactical error.

was that his fault, or rahm's?

that's the big question, and we have several ideas on this thread about what the answer might be.

--we are making enemies faster than we can kill them


[ Parent ]

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