Day: December 10, 2010

The Barack Obama-Bill Clinton Alliance: Good For The Democratic Party And The Nation!

Ronald Leave a comment

Former President Bill Clinton has shown true statesmanship and principle in coming to the support of President Barack Obama on the controversial tax bill negotiated between the President and the Republican opposition.

At a White House meeting and appearance before the news media, the two men united in support of the deal struck early in the week, pointing out that in many ways it is a second economic stimulus which has many advantages, although any compromise deal means both sides gain something and lose something.

Clinton became famous as a centrist President who “triangulated” with the House of Representatives and Senate, both bodies which were in the hands of the opposition from 1995-2001. Some good legislation came out of this “triangulation”.

This time, President Obama has the advantage of a Democratic Senate, so the dynamics of working together over the next two years will be different than it was in 1995, but the point is that it is better to have the benefits of the tax deal over leaving the issue to the new split Congress, and meanwhile denying unemployment compensation extension and action on some of the other important priorities that are being stalled by the Senate Republicans until the tax legislation passes.

Again, the deal that is on the table is not perfect, but it is better than sitting on one’s hands and doing nothing, and that is the message Bill Clinton joined the President in communicating.

Hopefully, over this weekend, the Democrats in both houses of Congress who are in revolt will come around to seeing things the way Bill Clinton and Barack Obama are portraying it.

And remember, Barack Obama has made it clear that he intends to fight over the next two years, and has stated that the Republican Party is holding the people of this nation as “hostages”, so no one should see the President as giving up the fight for progressive change.

Rather, he is recognizing the results of the midterm elections, and doing his best to make the most of it for his cause, within the limits of reality as it is.

Senator Bernie Sanders Of Vermont: A Truly Principled Progressive In The Vein Of Ted Kennedy, Paul Wellstone, And Russ Feingold! :)

Ronald Leave a comment

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is still in process on his personal filibuster of the Obama-GOP tax deal, which has caused a major split in the Democratic Party in Congress.

Sanders is an Independent Socialist who allies with the Democratic Party in the Senate. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1991-2007, and was elected to the Senate in 2006. He has the distinction of being the longest serving Independent member of Congress in American history.

While some would say, “but he is a Socialist!”, the answer is “So what!” There is nothing wrong with Sanders’s brand of Socialism, as it is in the tradition of great progressives of the past, including Robert La Follette, Sr, Robert La Follette, Jr., George Norris, Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern, Ted Kennedy, Paul Wellstone, Russ Feingold and many others.

He is the champion of the working man and woman, of the middle class, of the poor, of the sick, of the elderly, of the young, of ethnic minorities, of ALL average Americans who will NEVER achieve the so called “American dream” of becoming wealthy. All they want is a fair shake from their government, instead of a government that favors the wealthy and upper class and corporations that promote monopoly, greed and selfishness.

Sanders is to be applauded for his principled stand, his high moral and ethical beliefs, and his willingness to remind us of how desperate conditions are for millions of Americans, who cannot afford gasoline, food, rent, medical costs, clothing etc on their struggling low income jobs if they are fortunate enough to have one, and the millions of Americans who have no work, are losing their homes, and whose children are facing the scarring nature of economic deprivation. 🙁

Sanders’ filibuster speech, lasting seven hours at this point with no set end in sight, is a speech for the ages, a speech which should be honored historically as much as the speech of Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1963, along with the great principled speeches of the people mentioned above, and others not named.

If only we had one hundred Bernie Sanders in the Senate, or a combination of Sanders and the various progressive leaders mentioned above, who are part of our history, we would be a far better nation.

Instead, through the ignorance and fear of many poor and middle class citizens, plus manipulation by special corporate
interests in the recent campaign, and assisted by the Supreme Court Citizens United decision in January, the country is now faced with the reality of a Republican Party which is going to make the plight of the American people MUCH MORE NIGHTMARISH over the next two years! 🙁

They have Barack Obama and the Democratic Party in a tough position for the moment, necessitating, unfortunately, the striking of a deal just to accomplish short range goals.

But starting next year, Barack Obama and his party MUST fight the good fight that Bernie Sanders represents, and work to convince the American people that the Democrats are indeed the party of the people who have their best interests at heart, and deserve control of both houses of Congress and the White House in the 2012 elections!

The Bernie Sanders Filibuster Against The Obama-GOP Tax Deal: An Honest Expression Of Frustration, But Not Ultimately A Winning Strategy! :(

Ronald Leave a comment

As the author writes, Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders is conducting a filibuster against the tax deal negotiated by the Obama Administration with Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Senate Minority Leader, and others.

In an unprecedented move, Congressional Democrats are staging a revolt against what their own party’s President has done, and the anger and venom felt by many progressives and liberals seems to have no limit.

They feel that the President has surrendered to the GOP, and that the tax deal is unacceptable, but the Republicans are “holding hostage’ all action on other issues, and already have prevented a final vote on the DREAM Act, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, the START Treaty, and the September 11 First Responders Medical legislation.

As the author has stated before, there are many problems with the proposed tax legislation, but continues to feel that the shortness of time prevents a major rebellion against the proposal, as if it is not done, unemployment compensation extension will be prevented, along with failure on the above list of priorities.

So while the author is sympathetic to what Senator Sanders is doing, and what Chuck Schumer, Anthony Wiener, Gary Ackerman, Jerrold Nadler, Mary Landrieu, and numerous others in both houses of Congress are expressing, it seems an unwise action, and it is certainly unusual to see progressives and liberals utilizing the filibuster tactic!

Hopefully, some tinkering with the legislation can be arranged, but major change will have to wait for the election results of 2012. Meanwhile, President Obama is meeting today with former President Bill Clinton to gain advice as to how to deal with this messy situation, similar to what Clinton faced after the disastrous midterm losses of 1994.