Quote:
Originally Posted by taxwonk
I don't think he does have to do this and quite frankly I think it's a major failure of his Presidency that he has chosen to do so. It's symptomatic of many of his other poor decisions. When confronted with the choice of his stated principles or political expedience, Obama has proven to be a Chicago pol in the spirit of Richie Daley. Take care of the money first, and then consider whether or not you can do the right thing.
He should have given the authorities in Florida the choice of moving forward and seeking an indictment or having the U.S. Attorney do so under the civil rights provisions of the U.S. Code.
His choice of trying to soothe the crackers is a political act. Upholding the law and using the powers of the federal government to enforce law when the state refused to do so is what the oath of office he took is what he was supposed to do and failed to.
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All very easy for you to say. But I think he'd like to get re-elected. And whether you believe so or not (or whether you think once he's President he's free to express outrage over racial issues), if he wants to retain his effectiveness as the President and wants a shot at re-election, he most assuredly can't appear to be taking the side of black people in this country. That's just the way it is.
It's not the outright racists that are the basis for concern. It's the nervous suburbanites he has to make feel comfortable. It's the voter in the swing states who is not entirely sure that Obama won't turn on white people somehow.
I'm sorry you look at Obama as some huge disappointment. I believe he would have done much better if he didn't have to overcome a completely obstructionist Congress. I also don't understand how you're so bitter about him trying to stay in a position to compete within a system that is built to make sure you have to compile a billion dollars to even run an effective campaign. To be sure, he has flaws, but he's a fucking politician. And the politician you're looking for either no longer exists in today's reality, or never actually did.
TM
