We needed a Roosevelt, but we got an Obama

[jaxx]

19. Obama Just as Progressive as non-mythical FDR

<..> Very progressive ideas, to be sure. But as I said, while FDR was advocating for the above, he was also smacking Hoover around for his “fiscal irresponsibility” in running such huge budget deficits. So, which is it? Was he a progressive, or was he not? By today’s standards, according to some quarters of the progressive movement, he should have been written off, because there simply can be no talk of deficits while the country is reeling, right?

Even if you don’t think his railing about deficits during a depression disqualifies him from “good progressive” status on its own, you should know that Roosevelt campaigned on the Democratic platform in 1932, which, among other things called for "immediate and drastic reductions of all public expenditures," (huge spending cuts), the abolishment of "useless commissions and offices” and the "[consolidation] of departments and bureaus (small government) and “eliminating extravagances" (again, huge spending cuts). He also campaigned on a balanced budget, although he fell short of calling for an amendment to the Constitution.

Okay, so what do we have so far? We have a guy who’s running as a deficit hawk during a depression, who advocates for a balanced budget and smaller government.

<..> FDR was a great president, not perfect, and his record is actually much like Obama’s. Therefore, when you trash Obama, you trash FDR. When you say Obama is just like Bush, you’re essentially saying that Bush is just like FDR, which is absurd.

http://pleasecutthecrap.typepad.com/main/2011/09/obama-just-as-progressive-as-non-mythical-fdr-1.html