Is Obama Really Moving to the Center?
With the president’s poll numbers plummeting, Peggy Noonan contends he “appears to be attempting to move toward the center, or what he believes is the center.” (Appears to be attempting . . . . hmmm . . . . that’s quite a qualification.) And while she is correct to note that in his jobs speech last week at the Brookings Institute, he did acknowledge the role of small business in creating the bulk of new jobs and that he propsed a new round of tax cuts for up-and-coming entrepreneurs, he remains addicted to government spending.
While the “stimulus” may not have created the jobs that he and his team promised it would, he has proposed yet another such program, spending even more taxpayer money (as well as that of our descendants) on “infrastructure investment” and “aid to state and local governments.”
Doesn’t sound like a move to the center. Sounds more like he’s standing firm on the left.
The president would show that he is really moving to the center if he vetoes the bloating spending bill that Congress just passed and abandons his support for a radical overhaul of the nation’s health care system. That bill increases federal spending at a rate far above inflation and includes “an estimated $3.9 billion . . . for more than 5,000” earmarks. Alas, that Republican legislators, apparently not aware of the election results of 2006 and 2008, have also included their pet projects in this budget boondoggle.
19 Comments
RSS feed for comments on this post.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Noonan really doesn’t understand this president, does she! Pssst, Peggy, he’s a liar!
Comment by American Elephant — December 13, 2009 @ 5:52 pm - December 13, 2009
The Constant Campaigner isn’t really showing us anything new. He ran his 2008 Campaign from the center because his polls showed that’s where the voters were. Now, because he’s slipping so much in the polls, once again he scurries back to shore up his standings.
This man who has never shown any real love of country nor strength of character can be expected to say whatever is expedient when he’s losing political favor. Expect more of that in the upcoming election year.
Comment by Man — December 13, 2009 @ 7:05 pm - December 13, 2009
Man and American Elephant have it about right. Obama’s speechwriters know how to make him sound like he’s speaking from the political center, some of the time, but he has no interest in governing from there, perhaps because his idea of the “center” is what most people would still consider a pretty far-left Democrat.
Comment by Kurt — December 13, 2009 @ 8:56 pm - December 13, 2009
Peggy, and many others, is searching for an absolution for voting for Obama. They were easily duped, and are now twisting themselves into pretzels to justify the absurdness of this man.
Comment by Michael — December 13, 2009 @ 9:06 pm - December 13, 2009
I heard somebody on the radio yesterday (ABC News). Don’t know who it was as I was half listening, but he seemed to be saying that the porkulus has worked because without it, the unemployment level would be 0.5% higher than it is.
I damn near drove off the road.
Comment by ThatGayConservative — December 13, 2009 @ 9:25 pm - December 13, 2009
Obama wouldn’t recognize the “center” if it jumped up and bit him in his “skinny boney ass.” To steal a phrase from “Working Girl.”
Comment by slimedog — December 13, 2009 @ 9:49 pm - December 13, 2009
Of course not.
Comment by Jeremayakovka — December 13, 2009 @ 9:59 pm - December 13, 2009
Expect more of that in the upcoming election year.
I certainly hope so.
Obama, having grown up among liberals, is used to making flat-out lies and then having sniveling liberal idiots like Tano twist themselves into pretzels to prove how the lie is truth, since to do otherwise would be racist.
Over the next year, we’re going to see how that plays with the non-brainwashed populace — and my bet would be not well. It’s only a matter of time before the infantile Barack has another screaming temper tantrum because these mean, evil, racist people are holding him accountable for what he does and says.
Comment by North Dallas Thirty — December 13, 2009 @ 10:02 pm - December 13, 2009
Peggy all but officially endorsed this President. What do you expect?
Comment by KevinQC — December 13, 2009 @ 10:49 pm - December 13, 2009
Whenever one of your people (Caucasian, White, European) utilizes “qualifiers” in their statements, it allows a “disqualification” at a later date. Since most of the readers here havent experienced governmental types like employees of the a Bureau of Indian Affairs, I will give you the benefit of the doubt.
Comment by Duffy - Native Intelligence — December 14, 2009 @ 1:00 am - December 14, 2009
Ouch, Duffy. Broad brush much?
Best wishes,
-MFS
Comment by MFS — December 14, 2009 @ 9:09 am - December 14, 2009
When Obama throws his advisors and Czars under the bus for being too whacky leftist, I will look for signs that he may be shifting to the center …….. of the whacky left.
Comment by heliotrope — December 14, 2009 @ 10:06 am - December 14, 2009
I don’t believe Obama is moving to the center. I don’t think he knows what the center is – except as that unexplored territory where the “bitter clingers” lives, like the blank “here there be monsters” area on some of the old-style maps.
I do believe Obama wants people to *think* he is moving to the center. His way is to deny the (bad) reality of what he’s doing by proclaiming a different set of (good) intentions. He is like the failing, party-hearty college student who, when confronted by his parents over his bad grades, tells them they have nothing to worry about because he has a “straight A policy”. Or if he didn’t have one, he’s instituting one now. Or something. Anything that will stall them another month, another week, another day.
Comment by ILoveCapitalism — December 14, 2009 @ 10:30 am - December 14, 2009
Hmm…. Is this a Clintonian “triangulation”? A Blairesque “third way”
Or just a downfield bob-n-weave with lots of fancy footwork that is for-naught when the play’s called back for offsides…and a 5-yard penalty? You look good, but it didn’t accomplish a d*mned thing and now you even farther from the goalposts
Comment by Ted B. (Charging Rhino) — December 14, 2009 @ 12:38 pm - December 14, 2009
#14.. Is that a football reference on a blog with “gay” in the address? Can’t be, simply can’t be. Next thing you know, we will have conservative gay people.
The only center Mr. Obama knows is center stage with spot lights glaring and people swooning.
Comment by TnnsNE1 — December 14, 2009 @ 1:38 pm - December 14, 2009
I got into a conversation with a left wing friend of mine and he said that he was a centrist and I was an extremist. His idea of the center is borderline socialism, it was very odd.
Comment by Dark Eden — December 14, 2009 @ 3:31 pm - December 14, 2009
So todays daily Obama dose of unreality is he is going to sell new lite bulbs and other weatherizing of our homes.
My new name for our young inexperienced President is….
Barack “Billy Mays” Obama. Always shouting, always selling crap people don’t want. The snake oil salesman. Barack BM Obama, fits too actually.
hehe So Independent pollster always on the cutting edge ahead of other pollsters…..rasmussen has our dear leader at minus 18. WOw a record for his Presendency.
Only 37% agree with Obamacare. Only 24% strongly AGREE with Obama. A whopping 42% strongly DISAGREE. The PEOPLE agree with Republicans not the liberals on the 10 most pressing issues.
You gotta admit this is fun.
Comment by Gene in Pennsylvania — December 14, 2009 @ 3:47 pm - December 14, 2009
Barack “Billy Mays” Obama…
what kinda crap is he gonna try to sell us today? hehe
Comment by Gene in Pennsylvania — December 14, 2009 @ 3:48 pm - December 14, 2009
Gene, one small problem,
Billy Mayes sold stuff that people wanted.
How about Barrak “Slap Chop” Obama.
Comment by The_Livewire — December 15, 2009 @ 7:25 am - December 15, 2009