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The Obama Administration : What Went Wrong
NRO ^ | August 17, 2009 | Victor Davis Hanson

Posted on 08/17/2009 9:16:58 AM PDT by RobinMasters

We are witnessing one of the more rapid turnabouts in recent American political history. President Obama’s popularity has plummeted to 50 percent and lower in some polls, while the public expresses even less confidence in the Democratic-led Congress and the direction of the country at large. Yet, just eight months ago, liberals were talking in Rovian style about a new generation to come of progressive politics — and the end of both the Republican party and the legacy of Reaganism itself. Barack Obama was to be the new FDR and his radical agenda an even better New Deal.

What happened, other than the usual hubris of the party in power?

First, voters had legitimate worries about health care, global warming, immigration, energy, and inefficient government. But it turns out that they are more anxious about the new radical remedies than the old nagging problems. They wanted federal support for wind and solar, but not at the expense of neglecting new sources of gas, oil, coal, and nuclear power. They were worried about high-cost health care, the uninsured, redundant procedures, and tort reform, but not ready for socialized medicine. They wanted better government, not bigger, DMV-style government. There is a growing realization that Obama enticed voters last summer with the flashy lure of discontent. But now that they are hooked, he is reeling them in to an entirely different — and, for many a frightening — agenda. Nothing is worse for a president than a growing belief among the public that it has been had.

(Excerpt) Read more at article.nationalreview.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Editorial; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 111th; bho44; democrats; discobama; lameduckobama; miserablefailure; obama; obamacare; obamalegacy; pelosi; third100days; vdh; victordavishanson; waterloo
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To: lionheart 247365
Having been asked/forced to wait for the ‘real’ Obama was in itself, a red flag that should have put everyone off this horse’s a^%!!

No legitimate and viable candiadate could or ever should be indulged the way “O” was indulged in the run-up to the campaign or during the campaign. I know more about the guy I bought my last car from than I know about this ‘President’. Just think about that for a moment.

21 posted on 08/17/2009 9:31:38 AM PDT by SMARTY ("Stay together, pay the soldiers and forget everything else" Lucius Septimus Severus)
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To: timetostand
"Epoch Fail!! Health care Waterloo."

Epic Fail.

Epic.

Sheesh,

AV

22 posted on 08/17/2009 9:31:46 AM PDT by Atomic Vomit (http://www.cafepress.com/aroostookbeauty/358829)
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To: RobinMasters
Hanson has an amazing talent for literate rants that hit all the points.

This is over-the-top (because McClellan is such a dolt), but it made me laugh:

"Press Secretary Robert Gibbs makes Scott McClellan sound like a Cicero by comparison."

23 posted on 08/17/2009 9:33:33 AM PDT by browardchad
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To: mosaicwolf
Clinton operatives will covertly start to clamor for the birth certificate

Covert? It's front page on all of the tabloids that the Clintonistas control. It alternates with Sarah Palin "divorce" stuff. Now, what do you suppose Sarah Palin and Barack Obama have in common?
24 posted on 08/17/2009 9:34:37 AM PDT by VisualizeSmallerGovernment
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To: RobinMasters

I don’t think he’s going to go quietly. I just had a truly creepy experience.

I was at a volunteer project when suddenly a group of strangely smiling, somewhat hyper people in their early 30s descended on us. My first thought was that they were Moonies or Hari Krishnas.

But they were worse: it turned out they were a crop of some 30 Americorps volunteers who had been “assigned” to my town and apparently are to be placed in each elementary school classroom. These people are absolute goofballs. They started gushing to us about how “the government” was going to do all these wonderful things and how they had been sent here to “help” us. Then they announced that they had one place left on their “team” and asked a couple of our volunteers if they wanted to “work in the community” and receive a salary for it.

I was stunned. I had no idea these people were fanning out across the country. This is one of the creepiest things I have seen yet. What exactly are they going to do sitting in our elementary school classrooms? Fortunately, I don’t think they can get into our Catholic school (a good argument for sending your kids there).

Even a rather liberal lady I was working with muttered “Hitler Youth” under her breath when they left. We were all very unnerved by this.


25 posted on 08/17/2009 9:35:00 AM PDT by livius
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To: Jess Kitting

I know my world is not that significant, but I can tell you that more and more people who used to not give a rats rear end about politics are sickened by what Obama and the democrats are doing to this country.


26 posted on 08/17/2009 9:35:11 AM PDT by b4its2late (Ignorance allows liberalism to prosper.)
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To: lionheart 247365

he was doomed from the get-go because of his arrogance and beligerance...

the fact is 58 million of us voted against chairman zero....there were almost as of us who voted against the heavenly president sent from above in ‘08 as those who voted against “evil” ticket of GWB/Cheney in 2004....

yet chairman zero and his beligerent administration treated us like the enemies from the get-go....his arrogance somehow thought we would follow in line....


27 posted on 08/17/2009 9:35:38 AM PDT by God luvs America (When the silent majority speaks the earth trembles!)
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To: RobinMasters
And it's too bad there is no other party to exploit this turn of events.
There is no Republican leader to lead the counter-offensive into the shattered front of the Demoncrats.
Just McAine/Schmidt kow-towing to the homosexual lobby, Tom Delay on Dance Fever, Steele looking more clueless every day.
Sara could, but the "Machine" just continues to slap her around.
We're screwed.
28 posted on 08/17/2009 9:36:48 AM PDT by Psalm 73 ("Gentlemen, you can't fight in here - this is the War Room".)
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To: Jess Kitting
Nothing is worse for a president than a growing belief among the public that it has been had.

And this foreign joker tries to rub the public's nose in it by arrogantly reminding everyone that "he won".

29 posted on 08/17/2009 9:43:14 AM PDT by The Sons of Liberty (DON'T TREAD ON ME!!!!! Just say NO to the Evil Kenyan witch doctor - FUBO ---)
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To: John123
Maybe not, even rabid dogs turn to eat their own eventually.

I see the Pelosi / Read crowd as rabid in every sense

30 posted on 08/17/2009 9:45:19 AM PDT by BornToBeAmerican (We the people, ..... never)
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To: RobinMasters

If McCain had done his JOB and told the American people who BO really is/was... he might have won the election.

But, we had to play nice.


31 posted on 08/17/2009 9:47:53 AM PDT by Reagan69 (The only thing SHOVEL-READY since BO's stimulus has been MICHAEL JACKSON (tammy bruce))
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To: RobinMasters

This is what happens when radical left liberals think they are in the drivers seat....America rejects them!


32 posted on 08/17/2009 9:48:27 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
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To: RobinMasters

there’s no there, there.
the left wants the government to run everything but they picked a guy who hasn’t run anything in his life.


33 posted on 08/17/2009 9:50:26 AM PDT by ari-freedom (Obama acted stupidly...and that's after knowing all the facts.)
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To: pburgh01; All
Read DU today, meltdown like I haven’t seen since 2004 election.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4018655

seabeckind (124 posts) Mon Aug-17-09 12:09 PM Response to Original message 14. I agree, O is cutting his own political throat It's probably that f'ing Rahm -- dlc stooge. If they ram this thing thru he's going the LBJ route and there'll be a very serious primary challenger. And believe me, I'll be scraping the Obama off my sweat shirt and writing the other guy's name on it. In fact, maybe it'd be good to do that now to send a message. So far (you Obama people can flame all you want) he has done around 4 things that I did NOT vote for. Iraq, Geithner/Summers, and ... oh f' it. I'm too pissed to think straight. And yeah, Dennis was my first choice. Only statesman in the crowd. I'll be doing an email/call to Inslee later today. Probably letter to the local paper, too.
34 posted on 08/17/2009 9:51:11 AM PDT by TSgt (I long for Norman Rockwell's America.)
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To: RobinMasters
I got somethin' special for you over here...


35 posted on 08/17/2009 9:51:27 AM PDT by khnyny ("Giving government money and power is like giving car keys and whiskey to a teenage boy")
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To: RobinMasters
The Obama Administration : What Went Wrong

That implies that there was something right with it to begin.

36 posted on 08/17/2009 9:52:47 AM PDT by Joiseydude (I'd rather die on my feet, than live on my knees. Live free or die.)
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To: Brookhaven

right, it’s bad but not ridiculously bad. and if it gets ridiculously bad, Obama won’t be able to blame that on Bush anymore.


37 posted on 08/17/2009 9:53:47 AM PDT by ari-freedom (Obama acted stupidly...and that's after knowing all the facts.)
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To: Brookhaven

Very good analysis, BrookHaven. I couldn’t agree with you more.


38 posted on 08/17/2009 9:54:09 AM PDT by RobinMasters
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To: lionheart 247365

It means the average schmuck who voted against the POS because they could tell he was a ...POS....has more political acumen than Noonan, Parker, Brooks, Powell, and most of the NRO staff.


39 posted on 08/17/2009 9:55:11 AM PDT by silverleaf (If we are astroturf, why are the democrats trying to mow us?)
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To: RobinMasters
Sixth, there is a growing fear that Obamism is becoming cult-like and Orwellian

Becoming cult-like? Huh? It has been since the beginning...didn't the little symbol tip you off?

Hitler had his own symbol too you know?

40 posted on 08/17/2009 9:56:34 AM PDT by NMEwithin
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