Michael Winship: The Afghan Ambush

[cornermouse]

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/blog/2009/12/michael_winship_the_afghan_amb.html#comments

...Last week's Gallup Poll showed that while 65 percent of Republicans support sending all the troops McChrystal wants, only 17 percent of Obama's own Democrats do; 57 percent want a troop reduction. In other words, ignoring the entreaties of a majority in his own party Obama is going to war cheered on by the opposition that will do everything in its power next fall to bring him and his fellow Democrats down.

Friday’s NEW YORK TIMES reported, “President Obama’s decision to send more troops to Afghanistan over the objections of fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill is straining a relationship already struggling under the weight of an administration agenda that some Democratic lawmakers fear is placing them in a politically vulnerable position.”

Next year’s midterm elections could be a disaster for the Democrats. That’s what happened to Lyndon Johnson. After winning by the largest plurality ever in 1964, bringing with him huge majorities in the House and Senate, in 1965 he escalated the Vietnam War. The next year, Democrats lost 50 seats in Congress...

[fasttense]

1. I remember those days when like most Democratic politician, LBJ

turned his back on the Democratic base and the base turned their backs on the Democrats in the next election.

Since President Obama has the support of the Republicons, maybe they can get him elected. Maybe President Obama will follow Lieberman's lead?

[cornermouse]

2. I have no idea.

I know that I don't want another republican president 3 years from now but I also know that Obama has lived up to almost nothing of what I look for in a democratic president. In fact, his determined pursuit in keeping Bush's political pyramid intact is rather frightening. And I know people on DU are having a lot of fun with Palin but I think if the neo-cons retain control the candidate is more likely to be Huckabee or someone unknown than Palin.

[izquierdista]

5. The Manchurian candidate

The idea that Obama was the stealth Muslim candidate was so ridiculous, that it provided complete cover for the fact that he has turned out to be the stealth Republican candidate.

[Vinnie From Indy]

3. I think that LBJ suffered more harm politically from the civil rights legislation of the 1960s

rather than the Vietnam War. This is when he lost the "Dixiecrats" and he knew he was going to lose them.

[cornermouse]

4. So he didn't just offend one group of supporters,

he offended two. Sound familiar?