Do people here actually want Americans to come together as one nation?

[Winterblues]

Obama gets nothing but crap when he tries to forge relations with the Right. I have been a strong critic of Obama but not because he wants Americans to come together and is willing to compromise on many issues to accomplish that goal. I don't want compromise on promises already given though. I want our troops out of Iraq. I want the war in Afghanistan to end ASAP. I want some accountability from our economic sector. I want Civil Discourse to be the norm instead of the exception. Almost half of the nation leans right and they can't be wrong on every single issue no matter what I think. While I don't want Obama to follow discredited policies, I do want both sides to be at the table..I understand Republicans don't want this but I sort of thought most here would. Am I wrong about that?

[atreides1]

1. It's a great idea

But coming together requires both sides to step up and do what's good for all Americans. If you can figure out a way to get the Republicans to come to the table with open minds and without wanting everything to go their way, send it to the White House and the leaders of the US Congress.

[whatchamacallit]

2. Sorry, I don't really see the advantage in coming together with the "idiot half"

It just dilutes and pollutes. Fuck them.

[Stevenmarc]

3. No we want the Democrats to come together and the Republicans to get the fuck out of the way

[T Wolf]

4. No. No. No. The assumption is that both "sides" would work together to reach the

best decision. In the current (and un-changing) reality, that is not true and can never happen.

BECAUSE we have gone past the point where it is a debate between alternative means to ends. We are in the Fuck Nuze alternate reality where opposite views are equally valid and therefore the solution always lies halfway between. This leads to bad decisions.

I do not want the enemy to have a seat at the table and be able to influence policy to any degree. Allowing them to participate (wanting them involved) would result in half-assed (at best) "solutions" that do nothing to remedy problems.

1) they are not honest partners in the attempt to solve problems

2) their views are NOT valid and should not influence the final decisions.

The issue of slavery is the perfect example. Including the pukes as equal partners would result in a half-free and half-slave country, like it was before the Civil War. Is that a good solution? Current negotiation strategies and the premise of wanting "Americans to come together as one nation" would say so.

I disagree.

[Lasher]

5. In this environment that means capitulation, so no.

Republicans declared political war 30 years ago and it's about time we realized it.

[Marr]

6. This is something like hoping for "peace".

We all want peace. It's the *terms* of peace that differ. For some, peace means abusing everyone else and suffering no backlash.

So sure, I'd love it if 'all Americans came together as one nation', and supported the middle class, made society more fair, defunded the Military Industrial Complex. If they're against those things, they're against me, and I don't see any reason to 'come together' with them.

[Democrats_win]

7. This is the right question. The consequences: America will fail unless we unite.

The bush pResidency should have demonstrated to the wrongful Right that going it alone, without the support of the left, will not succeed. Unity is very important.

Yet there is tremendous need to push through legislation or actions to help America's families even if the actions harm businesses--most of which are 100% criminal operations. After 8 years of bush, it is mandatory that the Democrats help America's families.

The unity issue defines America today. Sadly the right seems to be nothing but a bunch of loser crackpots and Obama's goals are a fools errand.

[Zenlitened]

8. I want us to come together not with the right wing, but with...

... the many, many people out there who are, in their hearts, with us on important issues, but who feel alienated from the political dialog as a whole.

Those are the people we should be trying to reach.