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Edited on Tue Apr-22-08 10:27 PM by Armstead
I just got a thread locked because it was flame bait.
Okay, to atone for that, and some other cheap shots I have made, here is something serious I posted in response to a question in another thread that asked: "How would Obama actually change Washington?"
This is why I support Obama -- not just because of the general election, but more importantly why I believe he is what we need in a president at this point in history.
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I frankly don't think Obama is going to totally change the Way Washington works. But I do believe he can do a lot to improve it.
Obama is absolutely correct when he says we don't need leaders who have been weaned on the current system. Frankly, if the Democrats had fought harder and been more aggressive advocates for the interests of the majority over the last 30 years, the system would not be so rotten today.
However, Democrats stopped actively challenging right-wing corporate messages and policies and -- all too often -- bought into them. And became dependent on the same oligarchs who have been running this country into the ditch.
The public has been fed so much shit from the right wing and corporate massahs, and have become terminally cynical as a result. The Clintons epitomize that problem. No matter how well-meaning thety may have been initially, they caved in, they stood up for the interests of the oligarchs more than the majority (free trade being a prime example) and echoed more of the GOP conservative approach than anything resembling true liberal/progressivism.
If Hillary is elected, she sees her major goal as working that syatem and hopefully making it a little fairer. But she will still have all of the baggage and residue and loyalties that she and her husband have had all these years.
The first step to changing that is to make people feel hopeful again. I believe that if Obama plays his cards right, he can accomplish that. Look at how he has reinvigorated the election this year.
2)Obama would be more beholden to the grass roots. No, he is not pristine, but he would know damn well who opposed him and who supported him. And if he does AT LEAST reduce the ratio of support he has from corporate lobbyists and otehr special interests, then he will also know where his bread is buttered.
Also, I believe Obama "gets it" in a way that is not conveyed in the MSM and otehr filters. I believe he knows the problems people face, the frustrations liberals have with the Weenie Democrats AND the reasons that too many independents and Republicans distrust Democrats and liberalism.
(Despite his verbal "gaffe" in San Francisco, his statement there was right on target.)
As a result, Obama IMO will actually advocate for issues that we all really care about. And I believe he has the potential ability to rally public opinion to overcome the inbuilt resistence and actually get things done.
3)I believe he has much more leadership ability than Clinton. She has basically botched almost everything she has touched that matters. She managed to take a popular issue in the 90's, health care reform, and allow it to be killed off because of her inability to lead the political process. She has taken her presidential campaign from the status of "inevitability" to the dismal state it is now. Even is she still manages to squeak out the nomination, it will still be a model of how NOT to run a campaign.
Obama has put together and overseen a campaign that has overcome great odds, was able to build an immense amount of public support and has been consistent, tough and focused. (Some gaffes yes. But that is inevitable in any campaign.)
If he applies the same skills as president, I believe he will -- if not change the system entirely -- at least break up the logjam and shake it enough to start moving in a much better direction.
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