Compare and Contrast: How Obama Treated Dennis Kucinich vs. Blanche Lincoln

[jonathon]

This is an awesome post from a reader blogger at FDL - tears to ribbon the excuse of Obama as the impotent bystander.

http://firedoglake.com/2010/03/17/compare-and-contrast-how-obama-treated-dennis-kucinich-vs-blanche-lincoln/

In light of today’s news, it’s worth revisiting a post about Obama’s supposed powerlessness over Congress by Matt Yglesias.

I think there’s something perverse in the very strong desire I see among liberals to make problems in congress be about anything other than congress. It’s just not in the power of Barack Obama to make the senate anything other than what it is. <...> These are men and women who have amassed a great deal of power, and who ultimately need to decide on a daily basis what it is they want to do with that power. If they choose to use it for bad ends, then blame them for that, not Obama or his team’s alleged lack of familiarity with the United States Senate.

Cue Blanche Lincoln.

President Barack Obama hasn’t reached out to lobby Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) on healthcare, the senator said Wednesday.

“I made it pretty clear that I didn’t support reconciliation,” Lincoln said during an appearance on MSNBC, by way of offering a reason as to why the president would let her be. “I think he hates asking people to do things contrary to what their gut tells them to do.“

Oh, really?

Rep. Dennis Kucinich, a fierce critic of the health care reform bill from the Democrats’ left, relented Wednesday and said he would vote for it.

The Ohio Democrat’s decision brings House Speaker Nancy Pelosi one member closer to the 216 votes she needs to pass reform.

But Kucinich is not doing it gladly, and his capitulation comes only after intense pressure from Pelosi and President Obama, who traveled to Ohio with Kucinich earlier this week.

The strong-arming of Kucinich makes Yglesias look more than a little silly today. But the idea that the president is simply an impotent bystander in the face of the awesome powers of the United States Congress was always an absurd position — especially in light of the ample evidence that Obama White House gleefully puts the screws to liberals.

So Blanche Lincoln can threaten to filibuster her own party’s bill, and she doesn’t get so much as a phone call.

But Dennis Kucinich, on the other hand, stands up for a key principle of health care reform that the president campaigned on — and gets a personal visit from Air Force One

[ShortnFiery]

1. So many people believe that this is a good first step.

However, it's a Trojan Horse. We are making a big mistake.

p.s. I can't blame Kucinich for folding. What Obama did was nothing short of coercion. Especially tacky was his improptu comments during a "rally." Really Klassy, "Did you hear that Dennis?"

Yes, Kucinich didn't stand a chance.

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[hobbit709]

2. Actually need 218 votes out of 435

[nykym]

3. Correction

From ABC News

As we’ve previously covered, 220 members of Congress voted for the bill when Pelosi brought the House legislation to a vote.

Since then, four yes votes are no more: Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao, R-Louisiana, has said he won’t vote for final passage, Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hi., retired to run for governor, Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla., also retired, and Rep. John Murtha, D-Penn., died.

That means to pass the Senate bill, Pelosi starts out with 216 members of Congress who votes yes last time. With the pending retirement of Rep. Nathan Deal, R-Ga., there will soon be only 431 Members of Congress total, meaning a majority will be 216 votes

-Sunlen Miller

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2010/03/whip-count-no-4-in-a-series-grijalva-leaning-toward-voting-no-.html

[frazzled]

4. Oh, silliness

According to Kucinich's statements to reporters today, he was not strong-armed in the least. He became convinced that the legitimacy of the presidency and future initiatives was at stake with healthcare. His words, not mine. http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/03/kucinich-to-vote-yes-on-health-care-reform--heres-why.php?ref=fpb

Kucinich was talked to because the vote count in the House is razor thin (remember, a better version passed by only 2 votes last time).

Lincoln's vote is not needed--we can lose 9 senators and still pass in reconciliation. So why talk to her.

Plus, Kucinich is not at risk for reelection, Lincoln is. His is a liberal district. Hers is ultra conservative.

[Lord Helmet]

6. +1

I would think this would be obvious. Guess not.

[LynneSin]

5. I think Blanche Lincoln is dead in the water

Else someone would have stopped Halter from running against her in the primaries. And Emily's List refuses to give her one cent for any future elections and these are the folks that campaigned tirelessly to get her first elected back in 1998. She's a sinking ship that no one wants to touch.

To me, the fact that Obama won't visit her will only make her re-election even more difficult. She's become a Lieberman but unlike Joe himself, she doesn't stand a chance running a 3rd party election in the general election.

[DFLforever]

7. LIncoln voted for HCR, remember?

And the poster above was right, we don't need her vote for reconciliation but we did need and get it for HCR.

[berni_mccoy]

10. FDL Bullshit. Oh, and BTW, FDL is now going after Kucinich. If anyone needed convincing

they now work for Norquist, the clue phone that has been ringing off the hook just fell off the hook.

[RaleighNCDUer]

11. What, you jealous? nt

[WI_DEM]

12. Yes, but the focus is on the House. They are considering the Senate bill.

We can pass reconciliation without Lincoln's vote. It's questionable if we could without DK. So, it makes perfect sense.