These activists are “STARTING TO NOTICE that Obama is not about to do anything for them.”
So it seems that not all gay and lesbian activists are bowing and scraping to this Democratic President, some are speaking out about his inaction on issues near and dear to their hearts. According to Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin at Politico:
Gay rights campaigners, most of them Democrats who supported Obama in November, have begun to voice their public frustration with Obama’s inaction, small jokes at their community’s expense and deafening silence on what they see as the signal civil rights issue of this era.
Simply put, the White House prefers political expediency to principle:
The White House has been reluctant to spend its political capital pushing Obama’s highest-profile pro-gay positions believing, White House allies say, that it could detract from priorities like health care. And it may be even less likely to do next year, with midterms approaching.
With Barack Obama, it’s all about getting and retaining power for himself and his partisans.
Some new kind of politics. Kudos to those gay activists who are calling him out and taking him to task for his failure to follow through on his campaign promises.
Although an interesting point, it’s depressing: they’re either to the left of Obama, only concerned about themselves and their particular constituency, or both — all of which I find shameful. While it’s a bit enjoyable to see dissatisfaction among the left (particularly if it implies the political reality of a sizable minority who voted differently), it’s ultimately a spectator sport. Gay rights groups and other impotents do far better in a parliamentary system because they can pressure their fellow travelers with threats to form small parties. The Democratic Party can afford to ignore the promises they made because there is simply no other viable political alternative and the only thing worse than the mere fantasy of change under the Democrats is the reality of no such change under the evil Republicans.
So very funny to me…I am unsure of the exact numbers but it was 80+ percent of gays and 70+ percent of Jews and 99 percent of blacks that voted for Obama and thus far he has screwed all three voting blocs…you are probably wondering how he has screwed the blacks well a large number of those 9.2 percent unemployed are black and a lot of the auto workers who were laid off (lower rung workers) were black as well so they were screwed by not only Obama but the UAW you know the union that used their dues to help Obama get their vote…..but what the hell each and everyone of them will vote for him in 2012 because they are the most plantation thinking groups of people who believe in their heart of hearts that ONLY the Democrats can help them.
They will not look at a Republican/Libertarian small government candidates even though such candidates want SMALL GOVERNMENT (meaning out of your bedroom).
So to all those gays who are dismayed get used to it because the Democrats will be asking for your vote in 2010 and promising you the moon and you will fall in love all over again and vote thusly! Your anger is noted and is HILARIOUS to me personally
And this makes him different from other Democrats how?
You know, from a strictly gamesmanship perspective (which, frankly, makes my stomach turn), perhaps Cheney’s reiteration of his support for his daughter and her marriage this past week could give an edge to conservatives in the gay “community” by giving more conservatives cover to support same-sex unions.
If it were actually reported, that is…
I was just thinking Cheney would have made a more gay-sympathetic president than this thug in the WH.
I’m sympathetic to gay issues but I really have problems with the implications of this: “Gay rights campaigners, most of them Democrats who supported Obama in November…” The big issues straight conservatives have with most gays are not their sexual orientation and practices but their repugnant politics and in-your-face agenda. I know you know this but just know it’s stronger than ever among a lot of straight conservatives, including women.
I also am a huge supporter of Israel and Jews, an am appalled at the voting proclivities of Jews. There are a lot of groups who, as a whole, vote opposite their best interests. This might be a mental disorder of its own…
I think you’re absolutely right. Cheney has a gay daughter. He loves her very much, and if anyone tried to harm her, he knows how to use a shotgun. 🙂
Obama cares about one thing, and he sees it every day when he looks in the mirror.
To expand a bit on the subject Peg C. mentioned about Israel, what are the members of “Queers for Palestine” smoking? They’re demonstrating aganst the one country in the entire middle east that won’t kill them or throw them into the kind of prison that makes Abu Ghraib look like Disneyland. There are a number of stories I’ve read about Arab gays fleeing to Israel.
Maybe that’s why Jimmy Carter likes Palestinians so much….
I don’t recall the Messiah making any specific promises regarding gays and lesbians. I do remember him and Biden specifically stating that they did not support gay marriage (but did support civil unions-a stand no different than McCain/Palin). So I guess I am wondering why gays and lesbians supported him in the first place? What exactly did they hope to get out of this presidency?