In his campaign, Barack Obama promised change in American politics. And over the first year of his presidency, he’s managed to provide some change that no one thought possible with the partisan politics of today.
The Sly Look - John Boehner
But is it realistic to believe you can negotiate with those who wish you to fail, at everything? When the GOP publicly displayed their willingness to “sit this one out,” how will the President persuade them to put the American people first? This is the question that has bothered me since the president was sworn in.
In his inaugural speech, President Obama said,
“On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics”.
GOP Senator Jim DeMint and the Republicans in Congress missed that message.
DeMint, when talking about the Health Care Reform bill being debated said,
“This Health Care issue is D-Day for freedom in America, If we’re able to stop Obama on this it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.”
GOP Chuck Grassley, while at the negotiating table for Health Care Reform, took the microphone at a Tea Party rally and proclaimed, ”We should not have a government program that determines if you‘re going to pull the plug on grandma,” although he knew no such provision is in the bill.
The Breaking of Obama
The campaign to break President Obama is on full throttle. It’s a full scale cooperative effort by these Republican Senators and right winged commentators like Rush Limbaugh who, before any policy of this administration was even implemented, stated that he “wants this president to fail.”
So why then, is the president so determined to work with Republicans when it is obvious they will not work with him?Why is he so insistent on bipartisanship, and trying to include them in the decision making processes facing this nation?
This is the fault of this administration, and it’s leading them to destruction. This is where this president should take a page from President Bush and push through legislations for the American people.
The GOP has no interest in working with this president. Their mission is to see him fail. Their mission is “his waterloo.” Republicans are only interested in the next election. With them it’s not “Country First”, its politics first. They think that the success of this president means they’ll be voted out of office by their constituents, so they’re out to make sure this administration fails, at everything.
In a perfect world, politicians will put aside their opposition. They would work together to make sure that the country moves forward. They don’t have to share the same ideologies of the president, or vote with him on every issue. What should be expected however, is that they come to table with substantive ideas and negotiate in good faith to produce problem solving policies that the American people deserve.
But this is not a perfect world, and the sooner this president realizes this and does what has to be done, regardless of his foes, the better off this country will be.
You simply cannot negotiate with those who wish for your demise.
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