Memo to the Obama Team: The Recent Rolling Stone Essay

[HardWorkingDem]

Tim Dickinson has what looks to be a fine article in the new Rolling Stone on the Obama Administration. I have not read it, but it looks to be a very good one, but the mere section headlines illustrate one of the problems facing the Obama Administration.

That is to put it bluntly, the Obama Administration, while accomplishing historic measures, has ignored how the major things that have been done have not been tangibly felt by many of his supporters.

I do not think the every day American understands or sees how the bank bailouts have helped THEM. Nor can they understand how a depression was averted. And with many health care reforms coming later, again, the ire over "Obamacare" has just grown. Of all the things this administration has done, too many Americans just don't "feel" them to make them immediately noticeable.

It's like taking a awful tasting, very slow working medicine - the immediate results are not felt and people can't tell if they are working or if they are worth it. Frankly, as technology advances, Americans have become more demanding of having immediate results. We want it NOW. And if we can't have it now, we throw our fits.

And these are things these Obama Washington people are missing/ignoring. To me, they have taken the left for granted and have grown to expect we will always be there for them no matter what.

Here's the link......

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/17390/220013

[jwirr]

1. Not just the left. My family are all just average working Americans

and they are feeling that way. Those are the kind of people who are going to stay home when we need them to get out and vote Democratic. I believe that the real activist left will vote because we at least understand that the other way is worse. I will get my family to the polls but we are in NE MN and we all pretty Democratic here.

I did suggest to them that we all move down to Bachmann's district a day before the election and vote there! :evilgrin:

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

2. I don't see what your point is. You say that things like "Obamacare"(puke talking point)

will take a while to be felt and that he isn't out touting them enough. The part that I don't understand is that you conflate this with taking the left for granted. Maybe he thinks that the left should be intelligent enough to know this just like you've written. Maybe he thinks that having to reassure the left all the time in a campaign where right-wing extremist are popular enough to attract moderates and independents might not be a winning strategy.

[Bluenorthwest]

3. Hard for me to see anyone who'd vote for a right wing extremist

as a 'moderate'. How could that be? What does 'moderate' mean if they might vote for extremists?

[Vincardog]

4. Name ONE time Obama as been 'reassure the left all the time ' talk about(puke talking point)

[HardWorkingDem]

5. I don't think there is any doubt there is a feeling that...

the Obama Administration has taken the left for granted. There are a plethora of examples out there - from the tag line of the "professional left" to the disrespect of Howard Dean, to someone in his admin stating "fuck the UAW."

I'd strongly suggest if given the opportunity, mingle with our opponents in a stealth like manner and pay attention to their comments. Even less than that, pay attention to the comments of the people who are not in the echo chamber and more importantly, those people who don't follow politics as closely as others.

As for my point, I was trying to illustrate that while the Obama Admin has accomplished many good things, like the article suggests, many aspects of these good things are not being felt and it seems to have taken the Obama Admin by huge surprise. .

The word "Obamacare" is in quotations to highlight how the right has characterized the meaning of the word and it is used as an example to show the Obama Admin appears to be missing something when it comes to how many Americans view his health care improvements.