The president's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, conceded in a statement to The Wall Street Journal that President Obama lost control of the stimulus bill debate:
Mr. Emanuel owned up to one mistake: message. What he called the outside game slipped away from the White House last week, when the president and others stressed bipartisanship rather than job creation as they moved toward passing the measure. White House officials allowed an insatiable desire in Washington for bipartisanship to cloud the economic message a point coming clear in a study being conducted on what went wrong and what went right with the package, he said.
President Obama has lost more than a singular message on one piece of legislation. He's dangerously close to outsourcing the power of his office to Capitol Hill. George W. Bush and Bill Clinton (Clinton learned the hard way) well understood the danger of unchecked power on Capitol Hill and labored to protect the power of the office of the Executive from the bureaucratic intrusions of the House and Senate.
President Obama will soon find that his biggest threat may come from Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid, both of whom are taking their party farther to the left than voters ever expected. If there are no signs of economic recovery in nine to twelve months the stimulus legislation will become a millstone around the neck of both Congress and the Executive, each of which will not have the excuse of bipartisan support to cover their political hides on 2010.
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Comments (10)
What is whining about? It ... (Below threshold)1. Posted by John | February 13, 2009 5:40 PM | Score: 7 (9 votes cast)
What is whining about? It was bipartisan! You had seven Democrats vote with the Republicans against the bill!
1. Posted by John | February 13, 2009 5:40 PM |
Score: 7 (9 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 17:40
2. Posted by GarandFan | February 13, 2009 5:48 PM | Score: 12 (12 votes cast)
"President Obama will soon find that his biggest threat may come from Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid, both of whom are taking their party farther to the left than voters ever expected."
You forget, the former most liberal senator is very comfortable with Pelsoi and Reid. To the detriment of future Presidents, Obama won't wake up until he finds the knife in his back. All bets are that Her Majesty Pelosi will be wielding it.
2. Posted by GarandFan | February 13, 2009 5:48 PM |
Score: 12 (12 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 17:48
3. Posted by ExSubNuke | February 13, 2009 5:49 PM | Score: 14 (14 votes cast)
The MESSAGE?!?! His buddy, the guy he guides and holds hands with in the halls of power is getting ready to sign into law the biggest spending bill crap sandwich in human history... and he's worried that they lost control of... the MESSAGE?!?!
The MESSAGE!?!?!
I'm thinkin' a grassroots move to impeach and remove most of these assclowns inside the beltway is in order. Both executive and legislative branches. I cannot believe the enormity of the irresponsibility being shown by our elected officials at this moment in history. The sheer incomprehensible stupidity.
Congress and the Executive are fiddling while the USA burns... and good ol' Rahm is worried about... THE MESSAGE?!?!
3. Posted by ExSubNuke | February 13, 2009 5:49 PM |
Score: 14 (14 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 17:49
4. Posted by John | February 13, 2009 5:51 PM | Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
Of course, should have been "What is he..."
Bottom line is Obama is not a leader, he's a campaigner and speaker (and a poor one without his teleprompter). Obama was elected to lead, instead he passes off his leadership to Reid and Pelosi, two of the most partisan asshats in office.
I take it back, Obama is a leader, only in the context of the blind leading the blind...
4. Posted by John | February 13, 2009 5:51 PM |
Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 17:51
5. Posted by Marc | February 13, 2009 6:04 PM | Score: 9 (11 votes cast)
Sorry Rahm, the message was lost on Nov. 23rd when he handed off to the two head assclowns in Congress.
5. Posted by Marc | February 13, 2009 6:04 PM |
Score: 9 (11 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 18:04
6. Posted by DaveD | February 13, 2009 9:04 PM | Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Actually, Rahm seems pretty darn arrogant himself. I'm not sure he's not a ticking bomb also.
6. Posted by DaveD | February 13, 2009 9:04 PM |
Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 21:04
7. Posted by Mac Lorry | February 13, 2009 10:13 PM | Score: 3 (5 votes cast)
They have a plan, but not a clue
That gem of wisdom is from the movie Oh Brother Where Art Thou and it seems to apply to the Obama administration. With a little morphing of Pappy O'Daniel into Obama you get the following: In the Obama administration, these boys is gonna be my brain trust.
No that explains a lot about what's going on.
7. Posted by Mac Lorry | February 13, 2009 10:13 PM |
Score: 3 (5 votes cast)
Posted on February 13, 2009 22:13
8. Posted by Pretzel Logic | February 14, 2009 9:27 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
"Actually, Rahm seems pretty darn arrogant himself. I'm not sure he's not a ticking bomb also."
Blago's gonna bring him down, mark my words.
8. Posted by Pretzel Logic | February 14, 2009 9:27 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on February 14, 2009 09:27
9. Posted by John S | February 14, 2009 10:54 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
President Obama [is] dangerously close to outsourcing the power of his office to Capitol Hill.
In 2010 the voters will throw the Democrats out of Congress and the last two years of Obama will become irrelevant.
9. Posted by John S | February 14, 2009 10:54 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on February 14, 2009 10:54
10. Posted by Ron Reagan
| February 15, 2009 1:52 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Have you noticed the minute something is said "negative" about Obama he has a legion of goof balls step up to give the "alibi?" If it weren't so funny it would be pathetic.. this President has the "thinnest" skin of any politician I have ever heard or seen..
Thomas Sowell quotes Eric Hoffer on the ALIBI.. this is really funny:
See link here: Eric Hoffer's definition of an Alibi fits the Bamster perfectly..
10. Posted by Ron Reagan
| February 15, 2009 1:52 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on February 15, 2009 01:52