Posted on 07/14/2014 5:34:22 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
The unconstrained political warfare symbolized by House Speaker John Boehner's pledge to sue President Obama for allegedly abusing his executive authority pushes this presidency farther down a rocky road that Bill Clinton and George W. Bush would painfully recognize.
In one key respect, each president's tenure has followed a similar arc. Each initially sought the White House promising to bridge the nation's widening partisan divide. Clinton pledged to transcend "brain-dead policies in both parties" with his "New Democrat" agenda. Bush declared himself a "compassionate conservative" who would govern as "a uniter, not a divider." Obama emerged with his stirring 2004 Democratic convention speech, evoking the shared aspirations of red and blue America, and took office embodying convergence and reconciliation.
But by this point in their respective second terms, each man faced the stark reality that the country was more divided than it was when he took office. In 1996 and 1997, Clinton reached Washington's most consequential bipartisan agreements (particularly to reform welfare and balance the budget) since the early 1970s. But by 1998, House Republicans were moving inexorably toward their vote to impeach him.
Bush enjoyed some bipartisan first-term successes, particularly on education reform. But by this point in his second term, he was fighting with Democrats over the Iraq War and restructuring Social Security, and with House Republicans over reforming immigration. Obama, from his first weeks, has faced unremitting Republican opposition. And, as his shift toward unilateral executive action underscores, he's increasingly thrown up his hands at the possibility of finding any common ground with the GOP.
(Excerpt) Read more at nationaljournal.com ...
The Republicans had no power in Obama’s first year. It’s rewriting history to say otherwise. Most Republicans also signed on to almost all of his appointees. Some even supported the doomed ‘stimulus’. The first sign of opposition was the mortgage bailouts and auto bailouts....and the tea party speech from the floor of the Board of Trade. Things turned quickly when Obamacare was released that summer and showed the massive power grab.
Also, his rewriting of the early Bush years is wrong. The battles started before he was even inauguration with the ‘stolen election’ lunacy, and then the 50/50 Senate power share. The education bill was BUSH’s attempt at bi-partisanship by letting Kennedy remove a lot of the real reform and tack on tons of new federal money. He allowed a good proposal to get watered down in an attempt to show reasonableness. The left even jumped on him on the DAY OF 9/11 because he was in a classroom and was scared to come to Washington, ‘hiding’ in the air.
Repainting other terms as any different than Obama’s is utter bullsh_t.
Wonder what happened to those bipartisan agreements??? And wasn't something called DOMA part of that same bipartisan package???
And ... you’re going to find more of the same in the coming decades because of the basic division in the population of the USA. It is definitely a SPLIT COUNTRY!
Lying under oath to a grand jury will do that.
"Unconstrained political warfare"? Please. I often liken a fight between National Socialists and GOPErs as like a rich guy getting mugged in an alley bitching about the light as he struggles to consult his pocket copy of the Marquess de Queensbury rulebook (which he's never without), meanwhile the mugger's swinging for the cheap seats at the guy's kidneys with a lead pipe. Unconstrained warfare, please. He hasn't even refused to fund Obama's most tyrannical projects, nor introduced legislation to repeal any of The Won's XO's, which is within Congress's power to do.
All you have to be is lovable and stuff - the presidency is not based on knowledge or experience anymore. It’s like a rock star contest - Dancing With The President series or something ....
In 1996 and 1997, Clinton reached Washington's most consequential bipartisan agreements (particularly to reform welfare and balance the budget) since the early 1970s.
BUZZ! Clinton went kicking and screaming and vetoing bills passed by the REPUBLICAN House and REPUBLICAN Senate with no help from Dems. He finally relented under public pressure, but assured us "Minorities, the elderly and (wait for it) women and children will be hit hardest." He now claims those two bills as his only accomplishments.
Obama, from his first weeks, has faced unremitting Republican opposition...
BUZZ! Obama was gifted anything he wanted from a fawning Dem House AND Senate for his first two years. He cruised on Obamacare, The wise Latina, and the tubby dyke with no real opposition.
Ron Brownnose - Journo-list hack.
And Bush did make a good faith effort to be a uniter.
He was rewarded for his efforts by being called names and ridiculed by democrats in the senate and congress.
The truth is that democrats do not want Americans united.
Their entire strategy is based on identity politics - breaking us down into smaller and smaller groups and fomenting resentment and envy to keep groups pitted against each other.
RE: And wasn’t something called DOMA part of that same bipartisan package???
Yep, and so was RFRA. Ted Kennedy was its champion.
But now the Dems are trashing it.
Correction: it will be hard for anyone that resembles Barrack Hussein Obama to ever get the position of POTUS again.
Returning to a 10th amendment respecting federal government can fix this. Leave anything not federal with the states, and only do federal things. A lot of the arguing would clear up.
It agree with you. Even my Democratic colleagues at work aren’t supporting him anymore. Its awful quite on that side of the office.
One thing I hope that the black population understands is that calls for impeachment have very little, if anything, to do with his race. It’s really about him betraying the American people and aiding and abetting our enemies (I don’t think a list of his “crimes” are needed in this forum; it would take awhile to comple them; here’s a short list - http://conservativeamerican.org/official-obama-administration-scandals-list/
I think if you took a poll here with Romney, Paul, Cristie or Carson as presidential canidates, Carson would walk away with the bag in hand no contest. We need a patriotic American with cajones not a Manchurian sock puppet with Soros pulling the strings.
No doubt about it.
And that goes to the crux of the problem.
Today many American politicians as well as citizens in general rank loyalty to their political party and their political agenda far above their patriotism and loyalty to the country.
For many, especially liberals, any feelings of fealty to America and the US Constitution are far down the list, or don't exist at all.
In the past, presidents of both parties fostered patriotism and respect for the constitution and our traditions.
Today we have a democrat president and almost the entire cast of professional politicians on the democrat side who openly show their disdain and lack of respect for America and everything American - except the wealth they accumulate from their lofty positions.
It is too difficult for the present pee-poor excuse of a man.
Like Obama Ronald Brownstain is a wimp and a whiner whose diapers always need changing.
“One thing I hope that the black population understands is that calls for impeachment have very little, if anything, to do with his race.”
Too many of them know little else; thankfully they’ve been marginalized even further under his reign. Only a (half) black president could condemn them to such misery without repercussions.
Or wisdom or the ability to inspire. Very few get to even the level of US Senator or Governor who have the attributes to actually assess a situation and DO something.
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