Obama
I like him more than I did just a month ago, but I'm still skeptical. In my view, he hasn't gotten past essentially being Pro-Hope, Pro-Audacity, and Pro-Being-a-Good-Person. And his deliberate skipping out on the Kyl-Lierberman vote is a major WTF-moment. When he says, "The America people and the world will always know where I stand," he's bullshitting us, of course.
What's got me reconsidering though, are: 1) the Washington Square rally last month -- the sheer energy and the genuine rapt attention of the crowd was amazing, enough to temporarily neutralize my cynicism, not just about Obama, but about politics in general; and 2) Ryan Lizza's September GQ cover article. Which was ridiculously well-written and surprisingly critical in some ways.
Some thought-provoking passages:
As he listens to their concerns and gently corrects them, or offers a contrasting view, its apparent that one of the biggest challenges for Obama in winning over voters like these is that there isn't an ounce of populism in him. He is in many ways an antipopulist--measured and rational rather than fiery and demagogic. He never rails against big corporations or fat-cat lobbyists or George W. Bush, even though his stump speech is filled with critiques of all three... Obama seems to willfully resist the temptation to change his cerebral, sometimes off-putting style. [emphasis mine]
---"One of the things that I'm going to do when I'm in there...is to look at this faith-based initiative and see how it's worked and where the money is going. What you don't want it to be used for is a way of advancing someone's political agenda and rewarding friends and not rewarding enemies. Know what I mean?" The reverend tightens his lips, nods his head, and gives Obama a fairly unconvincing "mm-hmm." Obama revels in moments like these, when he has the chance to turn down an easy pander and tell a hard truth.
---"Movement without organization," he says, "without policy, without plans, will dissipate... One of the dangers of movements is that they always want to be completely pure and have everything their way. But politics is about governing and making compromises. And so sometimes folks who come into politics with a movement mentality can be disappointed....
But the flip side of it is, if it's all tactics and all politics, and there's not the idealism, if it's not touched by that sense of movement, then you actually never bring about change. Then it's just pure transactions between powerful interests in Washington."
What's got me reconsidering though, are: 1) the Washington Square rally last month -- the sheer energy and the genuine rapt attention of the crowd was amazing, enough to temporarily neutralize my cynicism, not just about Obama, but about politics in general; and 2) Ryan Lizza's September GQ cover article. Which was ridiculously well-written and surprisingly critical in some ways.
Some thought-provoking passages:
As he listens to their concerns and gently corrects them, or offers a contrasting view, its apparent that one of the biggest challenges for Obama in winning over voters like these is that there isn't an ounce of populism in him. He is in many ways an antipopulist--measured and rational rather than fiery and demagogic. He never rails against big corporations or fat-cat lobbyists or George W. Bush, even though his stump speech is filled with critiques of all three... Obama seems to willfully resist the temptation to change his cerebral, sometimes off-putting style. [emphasis mine]
---"One of the things that I'm going to do when I'm in there...is to look at this faith-based initiative and see how it's worked and where the money is going. What you don't want it to be used for is a way of advancing someone's political agenda and rewarding friends and not rewarding enemies. Know what I mean?" The reverend tightens his lips, nods his head, and gives Obama a fairly unconvincing "mm-hmm." Obama revels in moments like these, when he has the chance to turn down an easy pander and tell a hard truth.
---"Movement without organization," he says, "without policy, without plans, will dissipate... One of the dangers of movements is that they always want to be completely pure and have everything their way. But politics is about governing and making compromises. And so sometimes folks who come into politics with a movement mentality can be disappointed....
But the flip side of it is, if it's all tactics and all politics, and there's not the idealism, if it's not touched by that sense of movement, then you actually never bring about change. Then it's just pure transactions between powerful interests in Washington."