CHECK IN IF YOU SUPPORT OBAMA AND DEMS !!

[RBInMaine]

I have been reading the posts and know that there are some on our side who have had some disappointments with some of Obama's cabinet appointments, some of the overtures to R's to try to get more bipartisanship, some of the things taken out of the stimulus bill, etc. But please folks, let's not make the perfect the enemy of the BETTER (and the GOOD). Let's not make the FOOLISH and all too common mistake of forming that circular firing squad. Just look at all we HAVE to celebrate:

1) Bush/Cheney GONE !! (BYE BYE ASSHOLES!)
2) Obama is IN with a BETTER cabinet. (Not perfect, but MUCH BETTER)(And what an election victory it
was ! Great groundwork for building a permanent Democratic majority organization and coalition.)
3) Biden's middle class task force.
4) More D's in Congress (and more coming with Franken - YA!).
5) Gitmo closing within a year.
6) New SCHIP law.
7) New fair pay law.
8) Renewed respect in the world.
9) An economic recovery bill victory with many good provisions. (not perfect, but a major win
nonetheless).
10) Working to cap or limit exec. pay.
11) Mortgage help coming.
12) More bank regulation coming.
13) More environmental help coming.
14) More work on Middle East peace coming.
15) Returning to the international treaties Bush took us out of coming.
16) New government ethics rules already and more coming.
17) A brilliant and charismatic President who knows how to capture public support.
18) A GOP in SHAMBLES with NO ROOM LEFT for a moderate.
19) Working to get out of Iraq - no permanent bases.
20) One AWESOME First Lady !!
21) People in the White House who are truly "COMPASSIONATE."
And I could go on and on.

So please, even though it isn't all perfect, there is SO much to be thankful for.

SUPPORT OUR PRESIDENT. SUPPORT OUR PARTY. THE GLASS IS BETTER THAN HALF FULL. AND WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN.

[lamp_shade]

1. Checking in.

[mecherosegarden]

78. Checking in!

I am a democrat and I fully support my president and the democrats!

[KalicoKitty]

106. Present!

Thank God, President Obama was elected!

[Surya Gayatri]

2. The Americans-abroad contingent......

present and accounted for. A sea change has begun. Sure, there are some hold-overs from former regimes

and Obama is displaying some centrist tendencies (always a very open secret), etc., but the contrast

with Reagan and the two Bushes is already stunning--and after only three weeks.

Halleluia! SG


:patriot: :patriot: :patriot:

[HowHasItComeToThis]

94. BINGO CITIZEN

[Kind of Blue]

3. Been Checked-In! :)

[poetsdream]

4. Checked and Double Checked!

Obama is kicking some serious butt. I think he is doing an amazing job, particularly considering the truly horrendous burden he encounted when coming into office.

[Window]

5. K/R.

:kick:

[depakid]

6. I support policies- not politicians

or personalities.

We'll see what comes along. Thus far not terribly impressed with the economic measures.

[RBInMaine]

13. Perhaps you'd like Bush back? And by the way, you win through COALITION so if you want the right

"policies" then you better damn well support the right PARTY and the right POLITICIANS !

[salguine]

23. As long as he remains uninvestigated and unprosecuted, Bush hasn't left.

[JDPriestly]

92. But, remember, you can support a president and still push for

different policies in specific areas. There would be no progress if we did not push the president and Congress to consider our ideas and concerns.

[Lorien]

112. Pet peeve of mine; every time someone doesn't squeal like a Beatles fan over

Obama or other Dems someone always says "Perhaps you'd like Bush back"? or "So I guess you would have preferred McCain"? That's utter nonsense and you know it. Perhaps the intent of the thread is to separate the most loyal and fanatical party line toeing Democrats from the more pragmatic Liberals who do, in fact, put policy before personalities or individual politicians. There are such things as DINOS, so I honestly don't think that any of us back every single person with a 'D" after their name 100% of the time without question. "My party right or wrong" is as bone headed a sentiment as "my country right or wrong"; if anything is "wrong" then it's our duty to correct it!

[Adelante]

7. Check

[wroberts189]

8. This is DU... I would expect most of us would. nt

[RBInMaine]

12. Yes, this IS DU, and too many have bitched about Obama. So enough already is my point.

[TBF]

19. You're still going to see complaints - it's our job as citizens to question

what our elected officials do. But I will gladly thank the dems for getting this stimulus bill through. So much suffering out there, and so much left to do after 8 years of Bush/Cheney. The stimulus bill is a good start. Now, let's push for more.

[RBInMaine]

20. Yeah, but at some point the complaining needs to be curbed. Gotta see a half full glass sometimes.

We learn this in kindergarten. There is far more for Dems to be happy about these days than not.

[TBF]

22. Oh I've got plenty in my own life to be thrilled about - we did well in the

90's and frankly through the Bush years as well. Good jobs, beautiful children, we are blessed.

If I just thought about myself I wouldn't even post here. But I have this conscience and tend to lose sleep when I hear about 93-year old people freezing to death in their homes. That's why I'm here talking. And like I said - I'll applaud the dems if I see steps in the right direction. But I'm not giving out any blank checks. I'll save my hero-worship for rock stars.

[RBInMaine]

25. It's not "hero worship." It's being real. If you want a perfect world it'll be a long wait.

[madfloridian]

54. You are calling for lockstep. Those of us who speak out with differing thoughts

are seeing the number of recs and think oops....guess we better shut the hell up even as they modernize the hell out of Social Security and privatize Medicare....and turn our public schools into charter schools.

[wroberts189]

65. Wait my fellow blogger ..just wait..... give him time.

He will not betray us. We put him in there ..not the corps. did like last time.


He will succeed and I hope those of us with reservations will soon be applauding.


Lets give the man some slack... I'll be the first to condemn if he breaks his promises.

[madfloridian]

71. Oh good grief. Where did I say all that stuff.

I much admire Obama, but I reserve the right to question.

People who say give him slack are telling others that legitimate questions can not be asked.

[wroberts189]

88. Ask away ..by all means ask away.

When say slack I mean time.... but questions you can ask and I have a few of my own.


http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

[RBInMaine]

98. No, I am calling for REALITY and seeing some positive rather than just constant complaining.

Or is complaining all you ever plan to do? I ask again, are you satisfied with ANYTHING that has transpired since the last election, or are you just going to complain about everything no matter what forever? I ask again, would you be happier if Bush were still in office? And by the way, this is DEMOCRATIC Underground. NOT "Independent" Underground, or "Let's Complain Forever No Matter Who Is In Office" Underground,or anything else. If you have any sense of political reality, you understand that to achieve political power, and, hence, the policies you desire, you do so through building political coalitions. If you think the world is going to change overnight or that you will EVER get every policy enacted that you personally desire, you are living in a fantasy world and not in political reality. I'm not completely happy with every single one of Obama's early decisions, nor am I completely happy with the stimulus bill. But ON BALANCE, with ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, I am EXTREMELY HAPPY OVERALL with my new President, our Democratic congressional majority, and all that HAS been achieved that is a hell of a change and much better than what we had under Bush/Cheney.

[RBInMaine]

26. Are you seeing ANY steps in the right direction, or is it all bad?

[TBF]

32. I'm happy to see the stimulus bill passed. Even though I'd prefer

much more radical change, I can still applaud Obama when he does something positive, such as signing the Lily Ledbetter Act. For many years I was much more pragmatic and just played the game. But I've come to the conclusion that giving in to centrists is only pulling us further right. And as far as Obama goes I think he's doing the job he was voted in to do. It's my job (our job) to try to move him further left, he can't do it on his own. I wouldn't be posting here if I had given up entirely. :)

[wroberts189]

66. Remember... what is not in this package can be added later.

This man has 8 long years to go... and the pubs are already in total disarray. Their whole hope was to stop his first bill. THEY FAILED.

Imagine what it must be like for them. Sinking in the polls and relevance. Soon it will be hard for the networks to keep letting them bull horn us.

They are the minority now ...BIG TIME

[wroberts189]

64. Like we have someone sane in charge HOORAY !!!! :) nt

[madfloridian]

72. So you are policing threads to watch for complainers?

That's really not necessary.

[wroberts189]

90. No he/her is simply making a very good point.

You ..who want to ask questions but do not ask any despite the full freedom to do so would deny him his own post ..be it disapproval at certain attitudes?

Damn I guess you're user name should be taken seriously.

[JDPriestly]

93. It's still a marketplace of ideas. Obama is not a dictator.

You can support a president without giving up your right to free speech and creative thought.

[liberalsince1968]

115. Complaining needs to be "curbed"? Wow. Scary that a dem would say that.

[wroberts189]

67. They will come around once they see how effective he will be. nt

[Cherchez la Femme]

116. "enough already"?

I don't think so!

So Dubya & Darth are gone?
And?
ANYONE would be better than those two.

THAT reason, for one, should give Obama a pass? :eyes:
& I'm not even going to argue the rest of your 'points' -- just this alone is mind boggling.

If President Obama does something naive, or dumb
--yeah I said dumb: Nobody is immune--
or if he does something I strongly disagree with, like throwing his former loyal supporters such as Liberals and those of us who are LGBTQ etc. under the bus (alienating part of your loyal base in the futile hopes of winning over Conservatives?! Insane!);
if 'the pragmatist' futilely continues to kiss Repuke asses there is no way on heaven or earth I will think 'awww... poor guy, he's had enough already'.
Puh-leeze! NFW
& tough ta-ta's too.

Seems to me Obama is in a bit of a bubble himself, listening to his hand-picked "centrist" (i.e. conservative Democrat(ic?) minions: it's the newest White House group-think version, and I am very disappointed 'the pragmatist' has fallen to group-think! He should know better,
he should have known better before!

...don't get me wrong, bipartisanship is certainly acceptable but only to a certain extent: a certain amount of effort and degree! It is just plain crazy to give up things he promised the populace for those people (you know, the one's who can't wait for him to Fail?) to receive nothing back!

& if he thought it would be any other way, then he's far from the astute politician I thought him to be. For him to even THINK that he could appoint Repukes to his cabinet and other high appointments, especially in this political climate (going back to even before how they treated Clinton, their attempt to overturn the 1996 Presidential election, etc. --I mean, DUH!) shows alarming gullibility!

Back to his Reprofitcan appointment, could he possibly think that whatever 'puke wouldn't run straight to the RNC and report every damn word so they could preempt Obama in every way possible? Even if the aforementioned 'puke didn't want to, they would make it impossible for him to resist! How could they resist presetting their pundits up with their brand of damning propaganda? Forewarned is forearmed, you know!
There are many more examples but they are probably very obvious to most anybody, nor do I have enough time at the moment to type out a probably disjointed rant.

With all due respect, "enough already" is pure BS.
Unless, that is, you'd like us all to be just like the ass-licking Reich-wing neoCON's who couldn't withdraw their tongue from Dub's, et. al. nasty sphincters... you know, the kind we decried for so long??
If you don't, PLEASE stop posting this manipulative kind of crap! We have EVERY right to voice our opinion... doesn't the President works for US too?

[Vinca]

9. This is as good as it gets in politics. There will never be a leader

you agree with 100%. President Obama is starting out on a tidal wave and I've got a good feeling about how this is all going to turn out. Would I prefer a couple of different appointments? Sure, but I've got a suspicion he's a whole lot smarter than I am so I'll get over it.

[RBInMaine]

14. 10-4. NO ONE can ever get EVERYTHING he/she wants. Be happy with "better" and "good" sometimes.

[wroberts189]

68. YES ... Thats how I get by :)

[rosesaylavee]

10. If it were perfect or I agreed with all his decisions

then I WOULD be worried. I don't trust Geithner (yet but willing to give him some rope)and was extremely happy to see the senator from NH bow out as I never understood that at all. I don't understand why Howard Dean is absence from the admin or his contribution unacknowledged at this late date...

I am grateful for the stim bill passing but will wait to see what the fallout is from what was changed to get the RW senators on board.

BUT, I am ecstatic about the transparency, the amount of information we are given, the overall meme that responsibility and accountability are now expected at every level. The adults are in charge and what a relief that is. And the head adult speaks in complete sentences which is a continuous joy.

[wroberts189]

69. You cut right to the heart of the matter.

These are all good points. Some quite justified.


Give him time.... give him the benefit of the doubt. These people he has picked ... they work for him.

[rosesaylavee]

105. I think he's had the most successful and amazing

first 30 days of any president that I know of. I am quite willing to wait and see how his appointments pan out - even Geithner. I am just now reading his 'Audacity of Hope' published in 2006. Almost everything that is happening now with the economy he predicted then and he lists ways of addressing or reversing some of the problems. Truly amazing that he had that kind of foresight.

[Honeycombe8]

11. I do! nt

[Milspec]

15. Yes We Can

Yes we did.

[CLANG]

16. 22) Witnessing the complete destruction of the Republican Party

PRICELESS!!!!!

[KathieG]

17. Of course I'm checking in!

:kick:

[Love Bug]

18. Obama on his worse day is still going to be better than Bush on his best day

Geeze-louse, the guy hasn't even been president for a month yet but I'm already seeing "I'm so done with Obama" posts on DU. Give him a chance, will ya?

[Hello_Kitty]

21. Works for me! eom

[Phx_Dem]

24. Obama has had an awesome first 3 weeks.

A few potholes in the road do not negate the big wins he's got just 3 weeks into his presidency.

As most of us knew would happen, the public loves him and they blame the GOP for the lack of bipartisianship. Some Republicans even love him. :rofl:

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0209/18861.html

A CBS News poll released February 5, for instance, found 81% of Americans said Obama is reaching out to congressional Republicans, while just 41 percent said the congressional Republicans were looking for bipartisanship.

“There have been a number of different surveys that have shown that Americans perceive that Obama is extending a hand of cooperation, a hand that the Republican leadership is not reciprocating—that’s very striking in the data,” said Mark Blumenthal, the editor of Pollster.com, who also noted that Obama has managed to remain popular even with some Republicans.

SNIP

There’s another possibility, however: That In opposing en masse a stimulus bill that means instant, massive national spending, the GOP is cast as the Grinch to Obama’s Santa Claus. And outside Washington, Obama’s aides anticipate, the spending will drown out the chatter about recent White House stumbles.

““Let’s be honest: Will the economic recovery or Judd Gregg be a bigger discussion point a week from now?” Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, asked reporters Thursday.

Pollsters almost universally agreed with Emanuel.

“I don’t think he’s lost anything in terms of overall job approval or favorability,” said Andy Smith, a pollster at the University of New Hampshire. “That’s just the a perception inside the Beltway that everybody outside Washington pays attention to politics and eats and lives politics the way you guys do down there.”

[Odin2005]

27. Obama is reminding me so much of what I've read about FDR it's scary.

I swear he's read Johnathan Alter's book on FDR's first 100 days The Defining Moment.

[EraOfResponsibility]

79. I watched FDR's Inaugural speech and it sounded so much like Obama

it was uncanny, I mean, that speech could apply to 2009 easily.

[Top Cat]

28. kick

[Hellataz]

29. K & R

[La Lioness Priyanka]

30. my love for obama is purer than your love for obama. nt

[RepublicanElephant]

31. i'll always support my dems!!!!

even though they're not perfect, they ARE the best hope for us average americans.
:dem:

[JimWis]

33. K & R. Obama's doing a good job. Slowly and surely. He's just

getting started.

[joanski0]

34. Checking in. Everything you said,

and more!

[FrenchieCat]

35. K&R! The glass will get fuller as time passes!

That's my guarantee!

[Township75]

36. YES! When I read the headline this morning of 27 dead in Pakistan from a US raid, I said YES...

this is my party and president! YES!

[bobmorr1]

37. k &r

[Cowpunk]

38. Here's what is FOOLISH...

Assuming that Obama and the Democrats will do the right thing without vigorous encouragement(and criticism when they screw up) from the Left. Notice how many of the items on your list are merely expectations at this point. Glenn Greenwald encapsulated my view far better than I ever could yesterday:

...there is very little political or media structure to Obama's Left that can or will criticize him, even when he moves far to what the Beltway calls the "center" or even the Right (i.e., when he adopts large chunks of the GOP position). That situation is extremely bad -- both for the Left and for Obama. It makes impossible what very well might be the apocryphal though still illuminating FDR anecdote:

FDR was, of course, a consummate political leader. In one situation, a group came to him urging specific actions in support of a cause in which they deeply believed. He replied: "I agree with you, I want to do it, now make me do it."

As Judis points out, Obama, on some issues, might move to the Right because he wants to. In other cases, he will do so because he perceives that he has to, because the combination of the GOP/Blue-Dog-following-caucus/Beltway-media-mob might force him to. Regardless of Obama's motives, the lack of a meaningful, potent movement on the Left to oppose that behavior ensures that it will continue without any resistance. The lack of any independent political pressure from the Left ensures that Obama will be either content to ignore their views or will be forced to do so even when he doesn't want to.

Prioritizing political allegiance to their leader was exactly the mistake the Right made for the first several years of the Bush presidency.

[City Lights]

39. Count me in!

:hi:

[firedupdem]

40. All the way in! I'm proud of my Prez and my party! The naysayers

can talk amongst themselves!

[Hope And Change]

41. Yay....K & R!

[CitizenPatriot]

42. checking in!

and oh, so grateful!

[jenmito]

43. Anyone who DOESN'T support Obama and Dems. don't belong here!

Just sayin'.

[Number23]

44. Sho 'nuff!

But that doesn't mean they still aren't....

:)

[madfloridian]

56. So we shut up and march in lockstep?

And fall in line?

[Maven]

45. OMG WHAT A CONTROVERSIAL THREAD

[OKNancy]

46. I fully support Obama and the Democrats because I AM

a Democrat. I also hate to say it, but I take great pleasure in saying, " You lost.... thank God"

[classof56]

47. I'm there, RB--all the way!

#1 is best of all, but #18 gives me such a sense of euphoria, almost as good as all the great feelings I get, just knowing Obama is THE MAN!

We said we could, yes, we can and yeah, we've only just begun!

Woo-Hoo!

[Still Sensible]

48. You bet!

[silverweb]

49. Checking in.

Don't know why I didn't see this thread sooner.

GObama! GoDems!

[southerncrone]

50. Nothing in this life is perfect. But we've made a quantam leap toward perfection!

The progress that has been made in 3 weeks is amazing compared to the last 8 years.

No one agrees COMPLETELY with what should be done to repair our nation. Obama has taken more than just baby steps towards our recovery already.

I support him 100%. :thumbsup:

[Miss Chybil]

51. Here! nt

[madfloridian]

52. Wow. Fall in line.

Don't question.

[Jennicut]

80. Um, I question him on a daily basis. But I still support him.

There is a difference.

[RBInMaine]

100. NO ! That is NOT what is being said. Don't DISTORT. "Support" does NOT mean "never question."

Sure we can and should have disagreements. However, we also need to see the positive and not just piss and moan against OUR OWN SIDE when every single things isn't exactly what we'd like. That is not political reality. Would you rather have Bush back? If not, then curb the bitching and on balance support our new President and our Democratic congressional majority. It's damn well better than Bush !

[Carni]

53. I do! eom

[madfloridian]

55. Lockstep.

Dangerous.

[wroberts189]

70. If we were cats yes ..perhaps there would be some fur flying.

But we are not. And you know we all are independent thinkers (well most of us) or you would not be here.

The best thing about this board is that we do no march in lockstep.

[RBInMaine]

102. You are DISTORTING. No one is saying "lockstep." "Support On Balance" does not mean "lockstep."

How do you think you achieve political power and policy change in this world anyway? THROUGH BUILDING COALITIONS AND REACHING AGREEMENTS. That doesn't mean every person has to agree on every detail. It means you support your side ON BALANCE, and gee, maybe once in while even give your own side a pat on the back. Is that asking too much? Or are you going to complain about everything forever if it isn't exactly what YOU want? How do you think we got the United States in the first place? By marching in complte "lockstep"? No. One group of founders was able to put together a large enough COALITION of colonies to support American independence. The minority accepted the decision. They still had their reservations, but they accepted it. How have we been able to keep our national union? Through collective willingness to adhere to the Constitution, as imperfect as it may be, and support it and our system on balance, as imperfect as it is. It is an imperfect world. But political strength, power, and achievement occurs, and always has, through coalition and consensus building, often tempered through a strong dose of compromise. Welcome to democracy in ACTION. Welcome to political reality. Absolute lockstep, no. Coalition building and general SUPPORT, you are god damn right, that is, if you ever desire to achieve anything CLOSE to what you want. This principle can be applied to all manner of collective life. Just try running a successful organization of ANY kind without working with others, compromising here and there, and building consensus and lasting support. You'll NEVER get ANYTHING done.

[bread_and_roses]

117. It's hopeless, MF. Though I admire you and others fighting the good fight in this thread. (n/t)

[Capt13]

57. Check

[clydefrand]

58. Here I am! I approve. He's great.

[Nedsdag]

59. K/R!

:kick:

[munkie]

60. Support for the DEMs.

Yes, President Obama has my support.

[Laelth]

61. My sig. line expresses my feelings on this subject. n/t

:dem:

-Laelth

[polmaven]

62. As the President has said....

He already knows he isn't perfect. (Actually, I would be pretty frightened if he thought he IS perfect.)

He is doing a damed good job so far. I don't agree with everything he says and does, but I don't always agree with everything I say and do. Usually, but not always.

I think he will make us all proud to be Americans again.

[Politicalboi]

63. My full support also

I see nothing but good coming from him.

[madfloridian]

73. Now I just feel so guilty. And on top of questioning...

I don't especially care for those around him...many the ones who got us into this mess.

Some of you act like we did not even support him.

This is like the McCarthy era.

[Lugnut]

74. Here!

:hi:

[firedupdem]

75. Checking in again!

My President Rocks!

[ClayZ]

76. Check, check, check!

K and R

[DontTreadOnMe]

77. The glass is more than half full!

Lately, I have been feeling better about my country.

[man4allcats]

81. Finally, America's President is both smart AND cool! - unlike Georgie who was neither.

What a guy!

[veganlush]

82. present and accounted for...

:patriot:

[ZombieHorde]

83. Check. nt

Sucker! There is totally text in this post, even though I clearly marked my subject line with, "nt". My lies were designed to hurt you.

[scytherius]

84. Let's get this party started! n/t

nt

[drm604]

85. Absolutely.

If you expect perfection in everything then you will always be disappointed. He's done plenty right.

[OmahaBlueDog]

86. The press conference is when the big difference struck me

He speaks in complete sentences, and addresses the questions intelligently.

[NBachers]

87. Big Time!

Also, Big Time!

[Autonomy]

89. Hmm I wonder

if anyone supports the Democrats on Democratic Underground. Hehe. Count me in.

[JDPriestly]

91. And how! Yes, I support Obama and the Democrats.

It's so great to see a competent president and competent presidential staff. What a relief.

Does not mean that I always agree with Obama, but I support him absolutely even when I do have a different opinion about strategy or policy on one point or another.

[Raine]

95. Yes, Yes, Yes!!!!!!!! nt

:thumbsup:

[Raymond82]

96. Don't Mess With My Disability Benefits

Entitlement Reform is the first cousin to Social Security privatization. I didn't vote for Obama to have my disabily check cut!

[concerned canadian]

97. checking in from outer space in canada

[old mark]

99. Absolutely!. nt

[Veracious]

101. Dems would rather spend it here than over there.

GOBAMA!

[droidamus2]

103. Check

Acknowledging the fact that no political party gets everything they want I think President Obama is doing a great job.

[Optical.Catalyst]

104. Check

And I am hoping Al Franken gives us 59 soon.

[RichGirl]

107. Yeah....baby!!

[graywarrior]

108. They keep me on the edge of my seat, but I support them

[Fire1]

109. I may complain about a lot of things, but Obama being

President isn't one of them. I may complain about 'some' congressional members of our party, but nobody's perfect.

[Honeycombe8]

110. You betcha. nt

[Demi_Babe]

111. checking in and K & R

[liberal1973]

113. here

[Tarheel_Dem]

114. Checking In!

:kick:

[ulysses]

118. of course I support them.

Doesn't mean I'm going to be quiet when they fuck up, but yes, I support them.

[Pushed To The Left]

119. I'm enjoying our victory more and more every day! The right wing is beside itself over the changes

that are coming. Just go over to "Free Republic" or any religious right websites to see how miserable Obama and the Democrats are making them. If the right wing is miserable, things are good!