On Hawaii vacation, Obama reads up on Reagan

[somone]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hvMbx_MsGP-aLfXF5XhkkOwCD_7w?docId=CNG.445614837f895a6d45ac08b65c212dc7.41

On Hawaii vacation, Obama reads up on Reagan

HONOLULU — US President Barack Obama is using his Christmas holiday in Hawaii to read up on former president Ronald Reagan, an icon for the resurgent Republicans he will face next year. The president "is reading a biography right now on Ronald Reagan by Lou Cannon," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs wrote Friday on the micro-blogging website Twitter. Obama has taken an interest in the former president ahead of his return to a more deeply divided Washington next month, when the Republican opposition will assume control of the House of Representatives.

Reagan, who occupied the White House from 1981 to 1989, is revered by Republicans for his hard line towards the Soviet Union and his conservative fiscal reforms, which included cutting taxes and reforming the tax code. He managed to pass a raft of legislation despite presiding over a divided government with Democrats in control of the House, a feat that Obama, despite occupying the opposite ideological pole, hopes to repeat.

Obama will face a similar divide in January, after a "shellacking" by Republicans in November that gave them a majority in the House and a bolstered presence in the Senate. Obama is spending the Christmas holiday with his family in his home state of Hawaii.

Next year the United States will mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Reagan, who passed away in 2004 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.

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"I think it's fair to say that the Republicans were the party of ideas for a pretty long chunk of time there over the last 10-15 years in the sense that they were challenging conventional wisdom. I don't want to present myself as some sort of singular figure. I think part of what's different are the times... I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not. He put us on a fundamentally different path because the country was ready for it... he just tapped into what people were already feeling, which was we want clarity we want optimism, we want a return to that sense of dynamism and entrepreneurship that had been missing." - Barack Obama, Jan. 2008

[dennis4868]

1. and this is considered news?

[tabatha]

3. yes, even a sneeze

to some

[wtmusic]

6. This is considered posturing.

Obama wants to appear flexible and compromising. IMO, to a fault.

[PufPuf23]

7. Evidently so, I heard the same on MSNBC.

POTUS Obama really really doesn't like nor care for many of us.

Reagan was evil.

[earth mom]

51. Reagan was EVIL. That can't be said loud enough or often enough.

And you're right, Obama doesn't like most of us.

[former9thward]

22. The reading material of any President has always been considered news.

And always reported.

[Starry Messenger]

2. Looking for blueprints?

:popcorn:

[Jackpine Radical]

9. "Obama, despite occupying the opposite ideological pole…"

Hah!

[Foo Fighter]

67. Ya gotta love it when a reporter shows a sense of humor like that.

But the full quote was "He managed to pass a raft of legislation despite presiding over a divided government with Democrats in control of the House, a feat that Obama, despite occupying the opposite ideological pole, hopes to repeat."

Seems that Obama already managed surpass Reagan as he passed a boatload of legislation that Saint Ronnie would truly be proud of despite the Dems having majority control in BOTH houses.

Unfortunately, as stated in the article, Obama is hoping to repeat that with the new Congress. IOW, we are truly fucked.

[Name removed]

69. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dennis4868]

4. conservative fiscal reforms?

ummmmmm...Reagan blew up the deficit and grew the size of the government like no other president in recent history....why does the media look at Ronny as a fiscal conservative? He is anything but when you look at the facts and numbers....

[Generic Other]

5. Wish he'd read up on FDR instead of Raygun

Next he'll be reading GWB. Blech.

[WiffenPoof]

10. Excellent Response, Generic n/t

[MineralMan]

26. Actually, he's read two biographies of FDR since taking office.

Google is your friend.

[Generic Other]

44. He should have been taking notes then because he missed the point

There are lots more worthy people whose biographies he could be reading and learning from. Reading Reagan biography is like reading a Hollywood movie mag. No substance.

[Foo Fighter]

66. But he did take notes.

He wanted to make damn sure to not make the same mistakes as that damn FDR guy.

So far, he's done a bang-up job.

[Mimosa]

31. +1000! n/t

[treestar]

34. Oh for pete's sake

Reading about someone to become more informed does not mean one likes them or wants to emulate them. You'd be incredibly ignorant if you only learned about people you like.

[tekisui]

70. The selection and release of what Obama is reading is highly political.

The WH is sending a message with the selections.

[treestar]

71. Absolute baloney

And you'd have to get his entire reading list to make a judgment. Why focus on just one thing?

Really. To read a "message" into that borders on paranoia.

[tekisui]

74. The WH doesn't do anything without considering and planning the

politics of it, including what is released of the book list. You'd be naive to believe otherwise.

[Generic Other]

75. He could read "Mein Kampf" for all I care

Or kiddie porn. Neither seem that far removed from a Palin book, Glenn Beck, Rush, Coulter or a freakin' Reagan biography.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

81. The problem with us Democrats is that we don't understand when the Corporate Media

is attempting to gin up divide within our ranks. I applaud you for being keenly aware of this fact. I wish more of us wouldn't fall for this bullshit.

I am an unabashed liberal who just finished reading George Will's "Men at Work," because I love baseball. Does that mean that I now love George Will or that I'm now a conservative? I think not.

DU spends far too much time on this meaningless bullshit.

[DutchLiberal]

77. He has to read up on Poppy before he hands him the Medal of Freedom...

He has to be informed on all the great things Poppy did before he can start writing a speech to kiss Poppy's ass. :puke:

[hlthe2b]

8. Gagg me...Maybe we should all send him FDR biographies....

[Little Star]

11. I wish he'd read up on FDR. n/t

[madmax]

15. I'm with you on that - n/t

[MineralMan]

20. What makes you think he hasn't?

[BlueJazz]

12. "Reagan, who passed away in 2004 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease"

Yeah....He had a long battle alright...From 1980 >> 2004

[golddigger]

13. Didn't know Obama was into zombies.

[Kennah]

14. He should really read Reagan's autobiography

AKA "Seven Habits Of Highly Successful Sociopaths"

[MadHound]

16. I find this more than a bit disturbing,

Much like I found it disturbing when he expressed admiration for Reagan during the campaign:scared:

[BlueJazz]

17. Ain't that the truth. Does he even have a clue that Reagan is ranked near...

...the Top of "Worst Presidents"

[former9thward]

60. Not according to those who actually rank them.

Wiki has an article summarizing rankings of the Presidents and Reagan is in the top Ten or top half in 3/4 of the surveys. Not in the bottom 10 in any of them. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_rankings_of_Presidents_of_the_United_States

[DutchLiberal]

78. A real travesty!

[corpseratemedia]

18. because reagan was such a great democratic president

"freeing" the mentally ill and disabled vets so they could eat their own bootstraps and continuously cutting student aid to the point where we now have a student debt "crisis"


reagan = the best "democrat" president ever...:puke:

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

33. At least 11 regressive tax increases. But dividends caught a break.

[MineralMan]

19. At least he can read.

Seriously, though, I imagine most Presidents do some reading about others who have held the office, don't you think?

[WinkyDink]

41. I don't doubt it. But why especially Reagan, why now, and why publicize it? THOSE are the questions.

[Cirque du So-What]

21. Well, well, well...

Look at this contingent of wailers & gnashers of teeth who have gathered to denigrate & vilify. It would serve you well to remember the words of Sun Tsu, who recognized 2,500 years ago that one should 'know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster.' In the case of Barack Obama, it appears that not a mother's one of you 'know your enemy' - which in this extremely sad instance is the Democratic president - since you believe that he worships Reagan. The quote in the OP shows not a scintilla of evidence that Barack Obama approves of Reagan's policies, but rather his ability to inspire optimism and effect change.

[MineralMan]

24. Yes. As though that's the only book the President has read or

will read. Biographies of former Presidents are probably on most Presidents' reading lists, I'd think. And yet, his detractors find this remarkable and puzzling, for some reason I cannot understand. He's also read two biographies of FDR. A guy can search Google for President Obama's Reading, and find out about a lot of books he's read since becoming President. I did. It's very interesting.

[treestar]

35. Exactly, taking it as if it means something is really silly

And as for handling the Presidency, one could still learn something from any other, even those one does not politically agree with.

[PufPuf23]

56. Obama is handling the POTUS much like Reagan in economics

and foreign relations and having an administration that is a dishonest broker, foreign and domestic.

Social issues have progressed since 1980 (as they are such great wedge issues) but hey Reagan had an astrologer in the White House.

[Ramulux]

23. He is making it so hard to be on his side

What better way to spend the holidays than reading a biography about a twisted, criminal who destroyed our economy. For fucks sake does Obama literally not understand anything about all the horrible things Reagan did? I want to think Obama is a smart guy but if he actually thinks Reagan is a legitimate figure that deserves anyone's respect he is a dumbass. I am sure there will be some great tips about how to illegally sell arms to terrorist states and use that money to fund other terrorists in that autobiography, exactly the type of stuff Obama needs to be learning about.

[MineralMan]

25. Yes, yes...he's reading a book about a former President.

Did you know he's also read two biographies of FDR? You didn't? It's easy to find out what books the President is reading. Google will lead you to several lists. Have a look.

Do you suppose that Presidents are not interested in others who have served in that office? That would be really surprising to me. I imagine that most Presidents have read biographies of former Presidents. Seems like a good idea to me.

This is one book. He's read more than that, you know....

[Cleita]

27. First it was Lincoln and now Reagan?

What's with this Republican worship? He needs to read up on Harry Truman who did face his adversaries and told them the truth they didn't want to hear.

[Cirque du So-What]

38. What's your beef with Lincoln?

The party of Lincoln's day is not the Republican party of today - any more than the Dixiecrats of the early-to-middle 20th century are representative of today's Democrats (blue dogs notwithstanding).

[Cleita]

43. Lincoln did end slavery, which is what he is

written of in the history books. But he wasn't the painted saint everyone makes him out to be either.

[MilesColtrane]

28. I heard he read "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" once.

That proves that he's a Nazi.

[MineralMan]

29. LOL!

That's it. A man reads a book and that's who he becomes. I suppose for some, who have read only one book in their lives, that makes some sort of weird sense. Uff da!

[Scurrilous]

30. You win the thread.

:thumbsup:

[tammywammy]

37. Win!

[TBF]

40. While I agree with your premise MilesColtrane, I'd still prefer he take Marx on vacation

with him rather than Reagan.

[Hugabear]

62. Don't laugh, freepers might actually believe you on that

That's why Palin doesn't read anything.

[Buns_of_Fire]

32. "Know your enemy" and all that?

I've read "Final Exit" -- but that doesn't mean I plan on offing myself anytime soon. I've read "Helter Skelter" -- but I don't see myself as either Vincent Bugliosi or Charles Manson. I've read "The Joy of Cooking" -- but that doesn't make me either Julia Child or a plate of Coq au Vin.

Heck, I've even read "Steal This Book" -- and I paid for it!

So I'm just not all that upset at the President's choice of reading material.:shrug:

[GoCubsGo]

39. Well said.

All this trying place motives on the President's choice of reading materials is getting utterly ridiculous.

[AsahinaKimi]

36. Can You Imagine what Bush was reading? wait...

I was going to say, maybe his mother read to him, but Barbara Bush? Naw... probably not.

[WinkyDink]

42. The point is : WHY REAGAN, and why NOW? It isn't as though Team Obama is publicizng OTHER books he's

read.

[Octafish]

46. The only thing Reagan didn't get ... PRIVATIZING SOCIAL SECURITY

"Only Nixon could go to China..."

[WinkyDink]

50. Yes, that China thing has worked so well, too!

[DutchLiberal]

79. Who doesn't enjoy shaking hands with genocidal communist dictators?

(While at the same time sending young Americans to die in Vietnam to stop said 'evil commies'...)

[Overseas]

54. That's what I fear.

Only Clinton could undo FDR's financial regulations.
Well, being bipartisan with Phil Gramm.

[Octafish]

45. Here's what President Obama needs to know about Ronald Reagan.

The only course he changed was returning the national discourse to that of the antebellum South*.



He should be on the back of the dime, all right.

Don't forget how this guy said he believed in "State's Rights"
when he opened his campaign for president in Philadelphia, Mississippi,
a city where 16 years earlier three civil rights activists were slain.

He also conflated food-stamps, vodka and welfare queens.
Anybody wonder who he meant?

* Meaning: It's OK to be a racist, again.

[Overseas]

55. I'd forgotten where he started his campaign. //nt

Or-- TMTS-- Too much to say about what I have not forgotten.

[JDPriestly]

47. Obama should be reading about Franklin D. Roosevelt, not Reagan.

I have a feeling Obama wants to be a one-termer. His pseudo-Reagan bit isn't going to impress any Republicans, and it certainly is not going to impress the Democratic base. After all, we stayed with Democratic ideals in spite of all the false idols the Republicans put up for us to worship.

Sign me, a true Democrat, through and through who is very disappointed to see where Obama has chosen to go.

[WinkyDink]

49. Sign me likewise.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

82. He actually HAS read FDR books..

According to Paul Begala:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2008-11-19/paul-begala-on-what-obamas-reading/

and here:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-07-27/what-fdr-can-teach-obama/full/full/full/full/

[marlakay]

48. He was my gov as a kid

I can tell him he did a crappy job. Maybe Obama just wants to see how he got so popular...

[PufPuf23]

58. Reagan was Governor when I was an undergrad at Cal.

I was a professional Fed (from a remote rural area with an 8th grade Dad, I started summer 1969 under YOC) and set my quit day in 1986 as to the contract I signed with the Feds for grad school as a GS-9/11 (for qualifying education in an engineer series not a degree). I was back at Cal when Reagan was still POTUS for an MBA post Fed. I "get" economics enough to have testified before Congress committees and to have lectured 3 years at a major university where I did not complete a free ride PhD associated with the employment back in the mid 90s. I "get" the mathematics of "free" trade and derivatives and was a M&A and policy consultant 1987-1994 and a "hitman" until 1999 for piecework for corporate to takeout bad managers and for work transactions on projects advised on when in the belly of the beast.

Reagan gave away the public commons to business and demonized and defunded working institutions. He oversaw Iran-Contra and his appointees such as James Watt told bold-faced lies in confirmation hearings. If our democratic republic survives (which I doubt, Obama will be recognized as a Reagan. I cannot foresee whether this will be in a favorable or unfavorable light as the USA pre-Reagan has become unrecognizable.

If Obama is seeing how Reagan got so popular, this does not bode well for the nation nor say much about Obamas character.

I support the Democratic Party. I supported Obama and cried on his election. I am waiting out the years until Obama is gone from Office and consider Obama a man of close to zero integrity surrounded by the same. Obama and entourage consider shit sandwiches "wins" and so do the neo-liberals and fools at DU and in our Party IMHO.

[Hannah Bell]

52. he should read up on reagan's tax hikes after his disasterous cuts.

[Overseas]

53. Hope he also listens to Mario Cuomo's 1984 speech about the Reaganite "Shining City on the Hill"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgIMIEXkcz8&feature=related

[ClarkUSA]

57. Pres. Obama is also reading a Clinton bio. Wisdom = learning from others' mistakes

[rasputin1952]

59. I read history all of the time...

In the case of Reagan, he was an actor; people handed him scripts, he performed. Some of those scripts were truly terrible, such as "Reagaonomics", to which Reagan, (or rather those that wrote the scripts), pressed hard on the greed button and got results with the sham of "trickle down". To this day, people believe in it because they want to believe in it, people want to get wealthy.

Th truth of the matter is, a rising tide does not lift all boats, those tied to the pier were swamped as the tide of riches lifted the bigger ships...the dinghy's and scows floundered...it's like this, they were tied to pier by wages that would not rise, and the worms in there hulls were the rising costs. Anyone who belevied in "trickle down", saw nothing other than "gush up".

This set the stage for bush's massive devastation of the economy...I think reading the historical Reagan is important...for that tripe still has a hold on many people in this country...:(

[Odin2005]

61. I think I'm gonna puke.

[Jamastiene]

63. I'm not sure why anyone would want to read about Reagan...

if they actually lived through his presidency. Geez, living it was horrible enough. I've spent the last 22 years trying to forget.

[coalition_unwilling]

64. Sloppy writing\thinking - Obama DOES NOT occupy the "opposite

ideological pole" from Reagan. They were\are both capitalists, for Christ's sake. That's the same ideological pole.

[StarsInHerHair]

65. Reagan, who sold our electronic manufacturing sector to Japan under the

mirage that the Japanese government would lift their restrictive trade policies and lower the horrendous tariffs? THAT Reagan? The guy who shut State Mental Hospitals, which is partly why we now have so many crazies roaming the streets-THAT Reagan? I anticipate more Thatcherism from him, then.

[mmonk]

68. On what planet is he

on an opposite pole? Oh yeah, the make believe rightey one.

[Better Believe It]

72. Well, at least he's not reading Krugman, Roubini, Reich, Herbert, Baker, etc.,

And others who are not tools of Wall Street.

[NYCGirl]

73. And how do you know that? NT

[DutchLiberal]

76. "despite occupying the opposite ideological pole"...

:rofl:

That's a good one!

[RegieRocker]

80. The best defense is to know thy enemy very well.

[old mark]

83. Reagan was a tool of the extremely rich....Oh, never mind....nt