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Michael Barone: Obama flails as Republicans stand firm on sequester
Washington Examiner ^ | March 9, 2013 | Michael Barone

Posted on 03/09/2013 5:49:21 PM PST by gusopol3

This comes amid stories that Obama's chief political goal is helping his fellow Democrats win a House majority in 2014 and as his Organizing for Action (formerly Obama for America) is still cranking out press releases about the dire effects of the sequester.

It's not unheard of for a politician to make public threats and private blandishments at the opposing party at the same time.

But it is sometimes awkward. Especially if the threats and blandishments are not entirely credible.

Democrats have some chance of winning the 17 seats they need for a House majority. But it's an uphill climb. Even though Obama won 51 percent of the vote in 2012, he did not carry a majority of House districts.

And there is some chance Republicans will capture the six seats they need for a Senate majority. Seven Democratic incumbents are running in states Mitt Romney carried.

And the retirements of incumbent Democrats in West Virginia, Iowa and, as announced Friday, Michigan may put those seats in play.

As for blandishments, Boehner is not the only Republican who has concluded that Obama is not capable of good-faith negotiating.

Republicans argue that revenues are approaching the norm of 19 percent of gross domestic product and that spending needs to come down more from its historic high of 25 percent of GDP.

They're making a little bit of headway on that by accepting the sequester. Obama's flailing seems unlikely to persuade them to change course.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: barackobama; budgetandgovernment; johnboehner; paulryan; republicans; sequester; whitehouse
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Paul's filibuster was bad timing; Obama was on the run after losing the eyeball to eyeball confrontation with Woodward. I hope cancelled school kids WH tours can help regain the momentum.
1 posted on 03/09/2013 5:49:21 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3

Paul has gained support of Dems and libs, who rallied to support his position on drones over America. I see that as just another front against 0bama. #IStandWithRand


2 posted on 03/09/2013 5:51:41 PM PST by tioga
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To: gusopol3

HUH?


3 posted on 03/09/2013 5:51:58 PM PST by Recovering Ex-hippie (Go Galt!)
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To: tioga

I agree. For all the blather about consensus building we get out of the RINOs. Paul actually does it.


4 posted on 03/09/2013 5:54:21 PM PST by cripplecreek (REMEMBER THE RIVER RAISIN!)
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To: gusopol3

Incorrect. Rand Paul exposed the GOPe. McCain and Graham used whatever influence they had left to commit political suicide.

The GOP may be fractured but the conservatives need to know who is willing to fight fascism. A united conservative party is one that will defeat the party of fascism and socialism.


5 posted on 03/09/2013 5:58:15 PM PST by eyedigress ((zOld storm chaser from the west)/ ?)
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To: tioga

A Dem nightmare would be someone like Paul riding into the White House on a squadron of drones.


6 posted on 03/09/2013 6:01:25 PM PST by muawiyah
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To: gusopol3

Oh, good grief.


7 posted on 03/09/2013 6:04:37 PM PST by Helen
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To: Helen

According to Gallup, he dropped 5 points from February 20 to March 1 when the sequester went into effect, reversed and is now up 2 points since. The focus needs to shift back to the sequester, it hurts Obama more than Paul did.


8 posted on 03/09/2013 6:15:56 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3

“Paul’s filibuster was bad timing....”
********************************************

Au contraire, Paul and his supporters doing something noble and principled while the weasel Obama was dining with his 12 “Republican” apostles was quite illuminating—and was PERFECT timing.


9 posted on 03/09/2013 6:20:56 PM PST by House Atreides
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To: gusopol3

Yes, I’m sure it helped 0bamugabe to be seen as unable to say whether or not he would kill Americans sipping lattes at Starbucks.


10 posted on 03/09/2013 6:21:05 PM PST by TigersEye (The irresponsible should not be leading the responsible.)
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To: TigersEye

According to Gaollup, it didn’t hurt him like lying about who was the father of the sequester did.


11 posted on 03/09/2013 6:34:52 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3

Yes, I’m sure that poll is very meaningful. /s


12 posted on 03/09/2013 6:37:32 PM PST by TigersEye (The irresponsible should not be leading the responsible.)
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To: TigersEye

I wish the election had been October 25 with Romney up in the poll 48-47 instead of November 4 with Obama ahead 49-46 in the poll.


13 posted on 03/09/2013 6:46:06 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3
Proving how meaningless poll swings really are.

I wish Romney had stayed out of the election and let someone who had a least
one conservative bone in their body become the Republican nominee.

14 posted on 03/09/2013 6:52:17 PM PST by TigersEye (The irresponsible should not be leading the responsible.)
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To: TigersEye

It was what it was, not my choice either; Sandy distracting and drowning out Romney’s message didn’t help. The poll, to me , showed the effect of not being able to stay on message over a stretch of only a few days. That’s my point about this past week, obviously not a popular one here. I’d like to see the sequester go back to the top of the news.


15 posted on 03/09/2013 6:58:40 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3
The focus needs to shift back to the sequester, it hurts Obama more than Paul did.

You are what is wrong with America today.

Protecting the Constitution is far more important than making some jackass politician (who will never face election again) look bad at every turn.

Good Lord, I despise party hacks of every flavor.

16 posted on 03/09/2013 6:59:20 PM PST by EricT. (The Second Amendment is Tyrant Control.)
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To: EricT.

And you’re just the fellow Adlai Stevenson was looking for so long ago, the thinking man. The problem was, he needed a majority.


17 posted on 03/09/2013 7:03:39 PM PST by gusopol3
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To: gusopol3

Standing up to Obama is never bad timing. This has been a long time coming and a breath of fresh air after watching all the RINOs act like loyal subjects of King Obama for years.


18 posted on 03/09/2013 7:25:09 PM PST by Tammy8 (~Secure the border and deport all illegals- do it now! ~ Support our Troops!~)
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To: gusopol3

The drone issue needed to be brought out, the timing was good for that. The problem is if we let Constitutional issues go by without bringing attention to them they become bad laws and nearly impossible to deal with later.

The firearms issue is also taking the sequester out of the news, but if we ignore the issue now and don’t defeat it politically the fight for the Second Amendment will make the rest of it pointless.

Timing may not seem good, but we can’t miss the forest here either.


19 posted on 03/09/2013 7:34:22 PM PST by Tammy8 (~Secure the border and deport all illegals- do it now! ~ Support our Troops!~)
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To: Tammy8

Well, except even the Rinos stuck with us on Obamacare and the sequester. Reagan’s rule of someone agreeing with you 80% of the time is still a good rule of thumb. I’m just glad the press is still covering the sequester, I think Obama will lose ground, which is the point of this piece by Barone. It won’t be lost on people that school kids are being turned away at the White House gates while Michelle is cavorting in a luxury resort. There’s no way his buddies can spin him out of that contrast.


20 posted on 03/09/2013 7:37:04 PM PST by gusopol3
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