Let's settle this once and for all - Is Obama a "centrist" or a "liberal"

[kentuck]

Tell us why? Do you think he has changed since your initial endorsement or since the primary has finished? Or do you think he is only running as a "centrist" until the general election is over and then he will show his true liberal self? Or do you think he is a closet Republican and he's just running as a Democrat to fool everyone? What do your instincts say? :-)

[Deja Q]

1. Like Obama has said, it's about the actions and not the words.

Of course, that was over a flag lapel pin, but whatever...

The upcoming debates will have far more to say.

[Kahuna]

2. He's as liberal as I am. He's also as centrist as I am. I hope that clears

this matter up for you. :)

[jwirr]

3. Obama is a liberal who knows how to win an election with long coattails.

[Radical Activist]

47. There you go.

got it.

[mcctatas]

4. He is a....

"liberal-centrist"! (do I get a cookie now? :) )

[polmaven]

39. But I thought he was a centrist liberal!

Oh, I'm so confused!

[Faygo Kid]

5. He's the next president of the United States, and he is NOT George W. Bush.

That, frankly, is enough for me.

We have been destroyed the last eight years.

[whistle]

6. Actually Obama is moving to the right of John McCain as a clever political maneuver

...to draw virtually all of the republican voters away from McCain. After the November election Obama will come back to center-right where he has always felt more at home.:yoiks:

[skooooo]

7. A liberal who has to find his way in the real world (which means compromise sometimes).

[MercutioATC]

8. Do YOU support "freedoms" or "rules"?

My bet is that you support both, in some measure.

So, Obama is both a "centrist" and a "liberal". The terms aren't mutually exclusive.

[littlebit]

9. He is a centrist

He has always been a centrist. I don't understand why any of this is a shock to anyone.

[FrenchieCat]

10. I'd prefer that he not be put in one of those boxes......

some which end up being used as a wedge.

[elocs]

36. Ahh, but we Liberals love to put people into boxes, with labels of our choosing.

God (oops! as a Liberal I cannot invoke the name of god, can I?) help them if they are not in our box. I think it is possible for somebody to be Liberal on some issues, but centrist on others. Conservative Democrats we do not really care about and would purge them altogether if we didn't need their votes sometimes.

[ginnyinWI]

11. He is a Pragmatist.

He just looks for the best way to solve a problem. Works for me!

[Adelante]

17. Thank you

I don't know why people are always trying to put Obama in some ideology box. It does not work.

[Cleita]

12. We only have hints from his past political life.

We won't know for sure until he takes the office. After all, how many of us thought Bill Clinton was a liberal and found out he was a centrist when he actually became President.

[TahitiNut]

13. Here ...

[kentuck]

16. According to that chart....

DU should love Ralph Nader?? :-)

[TahitiNut]

31. Ideologically, yes ... but partisan bile sours that.

ALL of the attacks on Nader are partisan, not ideological.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

61. Not totally

but close.

Nader leans far to the Libertarian B.S. - which is ideological. Also, he is an abrasive prick. (Have you heard him interviewed by anyone who disagrees with him at all?) I find him to be a pain in the ass Libertarian who keeps fucking with the elections by garnering votes. I have a problem with Libertarian ideologies.

xoxo
Gilligan

[TahitiNut]

68. Those who call themselves 'Libertarian' these days are to the southeast in that chart.

They are 'liberal' regarding social issues and '(neo-)liberal' on economic issues. That latter stance makes them just as corporatist as the GOP ... favoring deregulation and Enron economics. Personally, I think Hayek and other traditional libertarians would be aghast at the license given to global corporatism - which is, after all, a government entitlement akin to privateers and 'Letters of Marque.' These pseudo-liberals seem to have a complete misunderstanding of the degree to which we have government facilitating corporate predation and privileges for wealth. All the posturing about being 'free to fail' and 'invisible hand' and 'free market' and other social and economic Darwinisms totally ignore the fact that government is far from being a regulator and impediment to global corporatism and has become a mechanism for the institutionalization of privilege and wealth.

Nader is about a distant from that perspective as it gets. He, more than most, appreciates the excesses and predations of global corporations. Hell ... Mike Gravel is the one who's shifted from a nominally 'liberal' position to a (neo-)Libertarian position.

The 'chemistry' issues are non-ideological. Ralph has never been what one would call "charismatic." :shrug:

[Bjorn Against]

35. On most issues Nader is great, it is his tactics that aren't so great.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

60. Thank you.

That is why I love you Tahitinut.

I can have a drink and watch TV now. This place is making me want to smash my head against a wall. :banghead:

[GreenPartyVoter]

66. I am way, way southwest of Dennis, let alone Obama.

[TahitiNut]

67. The large majority of DUers are as well.

[Lorien]

72. Yet we vote against our own interests

because we have no other choice. :-(

[Lorien]

70. Yep. Says it all. n/t

[ulysses]

14. he's post-partisan.

There is no spoon. :)

[kentuck]

19. That is an enlightened thought.

:-) It would probably spell the end of the Republican Party if they were unable to divide people along Party lines. "Post-partisan"? I like that!

[TBF]

22. I like it as well. And honestly I think this country is doomed if we can't

evolve. I am for "post-partisanship" if it brings together people to make things better for all. :)

[ulysses]

23. it wasn't original to me.

The campaign has used it, iirc. Not sure how I feel about what it actually means - if it actually means anything - but it's different.

[kentuck]

25. But you remembered it !

:-)

[ulysses]

27. I remember too much for my own good. it is catchy.

In a wonkish sort of way. :D

[TahitiNut]

43. It sounds like "post-partum."

:dunce:

[ulysses]

62. heh.

I just hope it doesn't mean "bipartisan on steroids".

[PM7nj]

15. Center-Left.

[RaleighNCDUer]

18. He's a centrist who acknowledges that the Democratic base leans

liberal. Unlike certain other Democrats, he doesn't reject the base, but broadens his reach to encompass both the liberal base and the centrists and independents

Just the way he has always advertised himself.

[TBF]

20. People try desperately to label things to understand them, but perhaps

Obama defies easy labeling. He was opposed to the war when it wasn't cool (which shows me his pacifist leanings), he speaks of raising taxes of those making over $250K a year (shows me he has a brain), and he says things like we are not white america and black america - we are the United States of America (tells me he cares about all people).

Our current president is easy to label: fascist.

I'll take my chances on the peace-loving, brilliant, caring man who happens to also be multi-cultural and bi-racial. Seems like he understands alot about ALL of us, not just the wealthy few. You can label it if you'd like, but I'm just going to work my butt off to get someone more like most of us elected to the presidency.

[kentuck]

24. I like ulysses' name for it.

"post-partisan"

[BlooInBloo]

21. Whatever the label, he's not nearly leftier-than-thou enough for DU....

and DUers will pound him for it. That's just the way it goes. God I love the smell of sanctimony in the morning!

[H2O Man]

26. Interesting question.

The truth is that no single label fits him. One can look at a variety of specific issues, and come up with a variety of labels. Or one could generalize, and reduce the accuracy with a single label.

More, one could consider him in the context of the democratic party today; the democratic party over a variety of periods of time; in a current democrat vs republican analysis; in terms of the much wider political spectrum, including people on the "far left" and "far right"; or in numerous other ways.

If one is familiar with Barack Obama's life history, a number of inyresting things stand out. In high school, his favorite author was Malcolm X. Was Malcolm a radical, a moderate, a liberal or a conservative? Or was Malcolm a wonderful mixture of all of these? (He certainly was.)

When Obama was a community activist, he saw the need to go back to college, and to graduate from law school, so that he could accomplish more. Interestingly, when John Kennedy was a US Senator, he recognized the need to become President, in order to accomplish more.

When we look at Barack Obama, Malcolm X, and John Kennedy, one thing is clear: each one understood fully that in order to do more, they had to become more. That same law of life applies to each of us. That said, it would seem folly to attempt to reduce any human being -- including ourselves or others -- to meet the definition of a simplistic label.

I hope that sheds some light on this interesting topic.

[TygrBright]

28. He's a centrist on some things and a liberal on other things...

...and who gives a flying ***k at this stage of the game, anyway? He's what we've got to work with, he's light-years of improvement on the competition, and we're in a pretty deep hole and he'll at least STOP DIGGING, so could we all please start putting our energy into fighting against the creepy troglodytes trying to lie, cheat and steal the election?

wistfully,
Bright

[Skidmore]

29. Obama is a common sense-trist.

Something long lacking in the partisan battles of the past 30 years. I welcome his ideas and careful thinking.

[RazBerryBeret]

30. he is a democrat

and he isn't a Bush. He's our best chance for change that we so desperately need.

[NYC_SKP]

32. Hybrid. Defies categorization, all the best people do.

Of course, so do many of the worst.

My least favorite politicians are often strict party liners without imagination or souls.

And my favorite people in business and entertainment, and my friends, defy categorization.

I don't understand the desire by some to use labels...

[Bjorn Against]

33. There is no such thing as a centrist. He is liberal on most issues, but not on all issues.

[AZBlue]

34. Why must he be labeled?

Most people, including Sen. Obama, have mixed opinions and don't fit into one particular label at all.

[pitohui]

37. he's a centrist and not as liberal as i am

he hasn't changed and those who think he did change are the type of person who pays more attention to a rousing speech than to the actual platform (about identical to clinton's)

the dream would be clinton for 8 years, the young obama as VP and THEN president for another 8 years, well, we fucked it up with our greed and our resentment of older females (none of this obama's fault, mind you) so all we can do is move forward and try to get SOMETHING

the delusional folk who thought his platform was different from clinton's because he was younger, maler, and thinner -- they need to get over it and support the party even though obama isn't the return of jesus christ -- i don't even want to hear their damn bitching and their "oh i'm so disappointed," they didn't wait until hillary was cold in the ground to stab their man in the back

he's a good candidate, he's sharp, he's popular in africa ( probably elsewhere overseas but i don't have personal knowledge of that yet), and WE NEED A CHANGE, centrist? liberal? any of it is better than fascist alzheimer's victim mccain

[Warren Stupidity]

38. He is our party's candidate.

Please stop it.

[paulk]

40. he is whoever you want him to be

on any given day for any given audience.

His goal was to be the nominee, now it's to be the President. If he achieves that, then I suppose we'll find out where he is on the political spectrum.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

41. If he were truly a liberal, then he would have been my first choice.

I had the honor of choosing Kucinich. Then, Edwards. And then, quite reluctantly at first, Obama. It was always clear that I could never support Hillary because she's DLC.

[Radical Activist]

49. There are some good reasons why

Kucinich supported Obama over Edwards as the second choice for Iowa this time. Edwards gave great speeches and moved to the left to appeal to the base. But Obama has the liberal career record and background as a progressive activist that Edwards doesn't.

[Speck Tater]

42. In politics there is no such thing as "once and for all." NT

[Blondiegrrl]

44. He's slightly to the left of center. n/t

[wyldwolf]

45. oh, let's see

Approves of welfare reform. Check.
Approves of private social security companion accounts. Check.
Teacher's merit pay. Check
Free market capitalism. Check
Politics for the common good, not identity-based. Check
Believes in reaching across the aisle. Check
Market-based (not universal) health care. Check.
60s era social programs haven't worked as advertised. Check.

For more information, click here, here, and here

[Colobo]

46. He's a liberal and so am I.

[Lorien]

71. How so? Name some very specific policies, if you could. n/t

[Radical Activist]

48. He has a liberal career voting record and a lifetime of progressive activism.

There's not question. This would be easier if Obama wanted to throw his liberal credentials in people's face, but he chooses to appeal to a majority of Americans.

[stray cat]

50. A complicated person rather than a superficial label

[concerned canadian]

51. the best way of knowing him is through his personal writings

I'm half way through 'The Audacity of Hope' and i highly recommend it for anyone with questions about where he really

stands or how he thinks. Maybe he's not into 'punishing' people who were 'just following orders' and saving his fury (however

moderated) for the big guys AFTER he is elected and has real clout.

I say give him some room, lots of room to do what he feels he has to do to proceed in this so very, very important GE.

[loyalsister]

54. I was going to post something similar

He has a way of looking at things that is definitely outside of the box and outside of traditional models. I find it very refreshing and it's why I was an early supporter.

Incidently, "He" was "expected" to be in Missouri flying his liberal flag...

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama — who has made a special effort to reach out to gay and transgendered supporters — will be headlining the crop of candidates who are expected to have a float in the <Pride> parade near Tower Grove Park.

http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/political-fix/political-fix/2008/06/obama-others-to-court-supports-at-pridefest/

Not sure if he was there or just the float.
I know he went to Walter Reed. I guess it's not impossible that he worked both in somehow.
Will know more tommorrow.

[shugah]

52. centrist

i've always thought he was centrist. so, no surprise that he is running a bit different campaign now.

(i am very disappointed in his FISA position.)

there are qualities about Obama, however, that make him stand out as not just another politician. what my instincts say (since you asked) is that while he is currently a consummate politician, that when he is president, he will rise to the challenge. i do think that he knows what plagues this country, that he wants to fix it, and that by the time he takes office things will be still worse and he will have to swing to the so-called left. Obama is not deaf to the voices of the people in this country, and those voices are about to unite in a mighty cry not heard since the days before FDR. i don't think FDR initially ran on "The New Deal," but he did rise to the challenges he faced as president, and did what was necessary (yeah, lefty, as it turns out) to pull us back from the brink. that is what i think Obama will do - the right things - even if he isn't yet convinced that those things have to be done.

[kentuck]

56. I think circumstances may dictate what he will be...

As others have stated, he is a pragmatist. He will do what has to be done and what works. If the economy turns even further south and other unpredictable events take place, which they surely will, then he will react to those in such a way that will define he and his Presidency. I hope he will rise to the challenge. At the very least, if our leader is intelligent and courageous, we will have hope. I don't know if he will be a liberally active President but I do believe he will react responsibly and wisely when it is necessary. He will be a leader with vision, for without vision, we are lost...

[Bodhi BloodWave]

53. the answer is quite easy actually :D

He isn't a liberal, he isn't a centrist and he isn't a conservative, he is a realistic pragmatist B-)

[papapi]

55. Obama is a phenomenon that we're lucky to have as leader of our Party.

[rebel with a cause]

57. Obama is not as liberal as I am,

I never thought he was, but then I follow my heart while he follows his head. I often create problems with my seeking of the way, while he solves problems with his searching to find a way.

I do the right thing which sometimes turns out very wrong for me and those I care about, while he does the thing right which turns out right for him and us.

I've walk in almost everyone's shoes (empathy)because of my sacrifices have been left with nothing, he walks in many shoes (also empathy) but choses wisely the path he follows in those shoes and because of his and Michelle's sacrifices have made great strides in their personal and public life.

No he is not as liberal as I am, I tested out left of Ghandhi. But he is more reasonable than I am, more intelectual and with more drive than I have. He recognizes when the choice should be made toward the liberal side and when compromise is better to reach our goals.

Oh, and about the universal health care thing. He does believe in it, but realizes that we already have a system in place that makes it very hard, if not impossibe, to come in and instantly change it to a new one. So his idea is to change the system we have into one that is more beneficial for the people and then work toward the ideal universial health care we all want. It will come to late for me, but I could have used his health insurance plan four years ago, two years ago, and even today.

[kevinmc]

58. Depends on who you read …..From what I have read

He is a Marxist, Democrat, Leftist, Neo-Liberal, Muslim Terrorist, Christian Evangelist, Conservative, Liberal, Populist, Centrist. Hawk, Dove, American Citizen, Manchurian Candidate, Born in Africa, lousy Bowler, and a good Basketball Player.

Soooooo, I believe he is OK with me.

[OwnedByFerrets]

59. It doesnt matter....

ya got two choices, Barack or McSame. All other labels are irrevalent.

[Umbram]

63. I love DU, always settling everything once and for all. We are amazing people. (nt)

[shayes51]

64. Lately, he's been just a "politician."

So much for change?

[Arthurtheking]

65. I think he's a liberal pretending to be a centrist

He was a liberal in the primaries because liberals were large part of the target. Now that he's campaigning in a GE contest where centrists are more important, he's moved to the center.

[newmajority]

78. That's the answer I'm going with.

And nobody will know any different until January. But I know which direction I'm hoping he takes after that.

[TwilightGardener]

69. He's got a conservative streak, and he's a pragmatist (NOT as much of

an idealist as he's painted).

[rox63]

73. He's a liberal who has to play a centrist on teevee until November n/t

[mentalsolstice]

74. Hopefully, he's pragmatic! nt

[Hutzpa]

75. He is a PROGRESSIVE

we need to stop trying to label him, he is a Progressive and a member
of the Democratic party, all this crap about Obama being a liberal or
centrist is just a ploy to take him away from the real person.

I know he is progressive and thats what matters.... capish!!!

Obama is not a closet Republican not by his voting and his past work
and Kentuck you should'nt ask questions whether he is a closet Republican
because thats a Republican talking point, they wish they had someone like
him.....NOT.

[MadMaddie]

76. He is our Democratic nominee....and he has my vote.

He is not an in the closet Repug for sure.

[ClassWarrior]

77. He has a "centrist" record, but he represents an OPPORTUNITY for Progressives...

An OPPORTUNITY unlike any we've seen since FDR.

CUNY Professor Frances Fox Piven on a recent Democracy Now!:

You know, in 1932, FDR didn’t run with a good program; he ran with the same program the Democrats had run with in 1924 and 1928, and that wasn’t a good program. But nevertheless, his rhetoric encouraged people who were suffering as a result of the Depression—working people, the unemployed—and helped to fuel the movements, which then forced FDR to support initiatives which he otherwise would not have supported, including the right to organize...

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/2/6/super_tuesday_roundtable_with_bill_fletcher

NGU.

[johnaries]

79. He is a Liberal who knows how to LISTEN.

I applaud him for his desire to build a Lincolnesque "Cabinent of Rivals" instead of a gaggle of "yes men".

The best example is how he presided as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review:

Beyond his appearance, what set him apart was his approach to argument, the lifeblood of the law school and the constant occupation of the young lawyers-in-training. While other students were determined to prove the merits of their beliefs through logic and determination, Obama preferred to listen, seek others' views, and find a middle way.

"A lot of people at the time were just talking past each other, very committed to their opinions, their point of view, and not particularly interested in what other people had to say," said Crystal Nix Hines, a classmate who is now a television writer. "Barack transcended that."

.....

"Even though he was clearly a liberal, he didn't appear to the conservatives in the review to be taking sides in the tribal warfare," said Bradford A. Berenson, a former Bush administration lawyer who was an editor at the review.

"The politics of the Harvard Law Review were incredibly petty and incredibly vicious," Berenson said. "The editors of the review were constantly at each other's throats. And Barack tended to treat those disputes with a certain air of detachment and amusement. The feeling was almost, come on kids, can't we just behave here?"

(emphasis added)

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/28/at_harvard_law_a_unifying_voice/

Considering the constant squabbling in politics today, isn't that exactly the kind of leader we need?

[LWolf]

80. He's been slightly right of center all along.

He hasn't changed. It's the perception of his voters that have changed. Too many were willing, apparently, to turn a blind eye to his actual positions in the naive assumption that "change" meant moving left of center.

I think people believe what they want to believe regardless of evidence to the contrary, and that there will be plenty of people who will shift themselves to the right of center for Obama's sake.