Posted on 01/03/2007 2:39:26 PM PST by SmithL
WASHINGTON -- Weakened by election losses and hemmed in by time, President Bush is using what he's got left — a bully pulpit, a veto threat and a sudden interest in working with Democrats.
With two years to go in his presidency, Bush likes to talk about a sprint to the finish. One goal of that race is to remain relevant, and he tried to demonstrate Wednesday that no one should count him out.
"The Congress has changed. Our obligations to the country haven't changed," Bush said from the Rose Garden, backed by his Cabinet. On the eve of a new Democratic Congress, Bush's intended image for the cameras was clear: My team is ready to act.
He challenged lawmakers to control spending — targeting their own pet projects as never before. Then he touted other familiar priorities: making tax cuts permanent, defeating terrorists, reforming behemoths such as Social Security.
No slowdown here.
To assert his voice, Bush went so far as to spell out an entire agenda for Congress. It came in the form of an op-ed column in The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, just before Democrats assumed power on Capitol Hill. The headline: "What the Congress can do for America."
"He wants to regain the initiative and put them on the defensive," said Norman Ornstein, an analyst at the American Enterprise Institute who specializes in the presidency and Congress.
"He wants to create a sense in the country that he still has a substantial role to play in setting priorities, and that he's on his toes moving forward, not on his heels moving back."
The president has a lot of forces working against him. For the first time in 12 years, Democrats control both chambers in Congress.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
You would see how relevant he was if he voted everything.
Sorry. "Vetoed" everything, I meant.
He is the president of the United States and he is irrelevant? That's just ignorant.
However if the only thing that made him relevant was the use of his veto power, he'd be irrelevant.
Regards.
A sudden interest in working with democrats? When did he stop being interested in trying to work with democrats, it's the dems who have not been busy demonizing the president and not showing much interest in working with the reps.
Clinton wasn't relevant at all after the '94 elections. It was only his smarmy personality that kept enough people in love with him to give him the appearance of a presidency.
Amnesty for all. Now that's relevant.
Bush can emphasize what the liberal democrats want to do and lead the house and senate in opposition to it. He cam make it clear to Americans that Democrats are out of the main stream.. by organizing the opposition to what the liberal Democrats want to do.
The media would cooperate by giving a lot of publicity to his effective opposition to liberal bills. The media believes the liberal stance on issues are popular and will publicize his effective opposition leadership. That will, much to the media's surprise, improve the Bush Job rating.
The Democrats do not have anywhere near the 60 votes in the Senate that it takes to pass a liberal bill. They do not have anywhere near the 60 percent of the house votes to override a presidential veto.
What Bush is saying to the liberal Democrats is cooperate with me or I will destroy you with your base. They have painted Bush as a dumb ineffective leader. Getting beat by a dumb, ineffective Republican leader does not cause liberal voters to be pleased with their congresscritters.
The Media paints the Bush request that Democrats cooperate with the president as a show weakness. It is anything but a show of weakness. It is a threat of strength. Strength in the knowlege that a Republican minority can stop every liberal attempt to enact their agenda. Bush will lead it, but the fights will take place mostly in the Senate.
The Democrast understand the Repubicans had a much larger majority in both the house and senate and were stopped by the Democrats obstruction tactics. This time the Democrats will face obstruction tactics in both houses of congress as well as the presidency.
The Unions and the leftists expect the Democrats to produce. They will not be able to produce passage of the liberal agenda. They can not get what they want passed in the Senate. The Democratic party will face in 2008 the anger of liberals that will be identical to what the Republicans faced from their base in 2006.
Uh, okay...
Very simple duties, veto everything and focus on the one thing he has total control over, the WOT including Iraq.
Oh, so the new slogan for Bush is: "I want to remain relevant."
Nice that the Marxists at AP have decided what the president's goal is.
Here's a new slogan for AP: "The day we write the truth, monkeys will fly out of our communist butts."
Wonder what 'obligations' he's referring to?
Why do we see on Free Republic, threads that tear down our President, our Troops, our Country?
I thought we were to build up, to give strong ideas of how to improve, don't we see enough of this tearing down stuff on CNN; ABC; NBC; MSNBC and the rest of the MSM?????
If we are a Republican site, then let the libs post their tearing down things on their site, but keep ours for our postive, strong ideas of how to better our Government, support our President and support our Troops.
Which FR is not.
Best post I've read today. Thank you!
How refreshing. Pardon me for a moment while I inhale the clarity that filters from your posts.
Don't know but it has become very tiresome.
If we are a Republican site
We are not a Republican site, but a conservative site.
Standing with President Bush, our Troops and our Country is the right thing to do, especially today in a time of war.
This guy has a little different view than you do, randog:
There's always a certain percentage that will sit home or go another way. No biggie. My advice is to ignore them. Concentrate on recruiting those who see the larger picture and will help us hold the White House in '08 and win back the majority in congress! We must continue destroying the tyrants and terrorists wherever they rear their ugly heads and we must contine rebuilding the Judiciary. We know that our country and our Liberty itself is at risk if RAT Hillary or Benedict Arnold McCain wins the presidency, especially if they have a RAT congress behind them.
It's a site that is supported mostly by REPUBLICANS, because no other party can mount any kind of challenge to the Democrats.
To those of you all who insist on tearing it down, be careful what you ask for; you're getting ready to get a real good look at hell on earth for the next two years.
Some day maybe you won't be so damn picky about your canidates.
Bumparooooooooniiiiii!
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