Obama Lacks a Corporate Foe to Rile Up Democratic Base

[Purveyor]

By Julianna Goldman May 13, 2014 12:00 AM ET

The White House is missing something in this election season: a corporate bad boy to rail against and whip up the ire of Democratic voters.

Oil companies, Wall Street executives and even the political action committees that draw unlimited donations are off-limits to President Barack Obama because of unique political dynamics in the 2014 midterms.

That’s left him with the most generic of adversaries, the Republican Party.

“Campaigns are often times decided just as much by what you’re against as what you’re for,” said Ben LaBolt, who was Obama’s 2012 campaign press secretary and now is a communications consultant. “This cycle, Republicans are running against Obamacare, full stop. Democrats are for raising the minimum wage and pay equity -- but they could be sharper about what they’re against.”

Finding a rallying message that will boost turnout for the midterm elections is critical for the president and his party as they work to maintain their Senate majority. Democrats are defending 21 of the 36 Senate seats on the ballot in November, including seven in states the president lost in 2012. With the Republican hold on the House firm, a flip in the Senate would give Obama’s partisan foes an opening to widen investigations of the administration, hold up nominations and force him to use his veto power.

more...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-13/obama-lacks-a-corporate-foe-to-rile-up-democratic-base.html

[Laelth]

1. k&r for exposure. n/t

-Laelth

[tularetom]

2. "unique political dynamics", is that what they call it now

Like he took a ton of money from Wall Street in 2008 and 2012 and he owes them big time. They aren't about to let him trash them just to get more Dems elected to congress.

Especially when some of those Dems could be Elizabeth Warren types who might go after Wall Street thieves.

[seabeckind]

3. FDR wasn't specific.

And forged a very, very effective winning strategy as well as used that to forge a very effective recovery strategy.

BTW, we're still recovering. And recovering. A...n...d......r...e...c...o...v.........

Maybe we'll get there during my grandkid's lifetime.

TR wasn't specific and forged a very, very effective ... well, you know.

Maybe Obama is hanging out with the wrong crowd. The ones who make more by not recovering.

[msongs]

4. that's because they are all his best friends nt

[frazzled]

5. I don't need a bogeyman to rile me up to vote

My motivation--as I suspect will be the case for millions of other Democratic voters--will be a range of issues, from the environment to women's rights to economic issues, and the knowledge that our nation is in safer hands with Democrats in charge rather than Republicans.

I know that to get maximum turnout you need a gimmick, but I think the gimmick should be all of us working to increase voter participation, especially among the young and minorities, who tend to vote only in presidential years. We need to put in as much effort as we did in 2008 and 2012.

PS: The gimmick can be--what are we against? We're against crazy, mean Republicans.

PPS: That was a stupid article at the link.

[flpoljunkie]

6. Tell that to Harry Reid. He's got his sights set on demonizing the Koch Brothers.

Doing a good job, too. The Kochs have also leased over one million acres of Alberta tar sands. Harry should harp on that, as well.

[winter is coming]

7. Demonizing the Koch brothers doesn't sound like much of a stretch. n/t