Long and Deep
I’ve seen a certain number of news accounts trying to gin up basically fake tale of deep left-wing disgruntlement with the shape of the Obama transition. Other, more intellectually honest journalists, have written of their own personal frustration at the lack of awesome disgruntlement stories to write. To put that kind of thing in context, you just need to remember that ordinary people care more about policies than about politics and then read stuff like this:
Mr. Emanuel promised that a major economic stimulus would be “the first order of business” for Mr. Obama when he takes office Jan. 20. The focus of spending will be on infrastructure, specifically “green infrastructure,” which he said would include mass transit, upgraded electricity transmission lines, “smart” electrical meters that allow consumers to save money by using electricity at off-peak hours, and universal broadband Internet access, which he said would encourage telecommuting.
He stressed that the new administration would “throw long and deep,” taking advantage of the economic crisis to push wholesale changes in health care, taxes, financial re-regulation and energy. “The American people in two successive elections have voted for change, and change cannot be allowed to die on the doorsteps of Washington,” Mr. Emanuel said.
I think everyone understands that Emanuel isn’t the most liberal Democrat in the universe. And it’s inevitable that any Democratic administration will include some folks who are to Emanuel’s left. And here’s Emanuel talking about the need to “throw long and deep,” provide major economic stimulus, and to overhaul the energy system. And that was during a talk whose subject was the fact that incremental health care reform isn’t good enough! That’s a lot of bold, ambitious policymaking and as long as we keep seeing progress toward these kind of bold progressive measures of course liberals will be mostly happy with Obama.
46 Responses to “Long and Deep”
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November 19th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
well said. Some seriously big things can happen. We could literally save the planet. The Senate is our only impediment.
November 19th, 2008 at 4:26 pm
Some seriously big things can happen. We could literally save the planet.
Dude, we need to go a hell of a lot farther than a “green stimulus” to save the planet.
November 19th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
enough with “save the planet” — the planet will be fine. Different, but fine. focus on “save ourselves” or something less grand that “the planet”
November 19th, 2008 at 4:40 pm
This is a classic FDR move – state concern for balancing the budget, and then go big. Let’s hope they can pull it off.
November 19th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Other, more intellectually honest journalists, have written of their own personal frustration at the lack of awesome disgruntlement stories to write.
Ambinder? http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/11/reporters_looking_for_obama_v.php
“Reporters, and I can’t exempt myself from this, have been salivating somewhat voyueristically for a round of public fighting between the Left, broadly represented by the Netroots, and the Obama transition entity.”
November 19th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
The strangest thing about reading complaints like this is that it just presupposes that people are more important than policy.
I can see that there’s some truth to that, particularly if the administration is relatively weak (for whatever reason), but it seems to me we have not just Obama, but everyone who’s been named to a position, or in the transition team promulgating definitively progressive policies. If some of the old crew are going to make the enactment of those policies more likely, it seems to me that progressives ought to be pleased.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:07 pm
I saw the title and thought the article was about the recent photos of Sarah Palin poolside at the Republican Governors’ Convention recently. Then I scrolled down and saw Rahm’s ugly mug. No good, sir. No good at all.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
There’s no basis for any real “deep left-wing disgruntlement” until Jan. 21, when we will begin to see whether the rhetoric translates into substance. My intuition is that it’s not going to be a very long wait until there’s plenty of fodder for disgruntlement awesomeness commentary. The reason I say this is that I would like to see more think-tank personnel in line for the highest level positions, as opposed to career legislators. Those latter guys are real good at producing huge offal sandwiches with pretty flags thrust alongtop, with little else to say for it in the way of effective, efficient policy. Hopefully, the think tank guys will be writing the draft legislation — which is the way it normally has always been done — but the monied interests have also always found a way to screw it up with their draft versions before the final product is ready for the vote. My point is that I’m not seeing any real “change” here, it’s looking like “more of the same” so far. I hope I’m wrong.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Shouldn’t this include some links to Ezra and other lefty bloggers who thought that Obama wasn’t liberal enough.
Vision combined with ability trumps philosophical purity everyday!
November 19th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Jim – A historical note. FDR did not just talk about balancing the budget, he tried hard to do so in the first year of his presidency.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Unfortunately, there actually is some premature gnashing of teeth occuring among the “Netroots”. Just go over to Fire Dog Lake and read some of the comments threads:
http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2008/11/18/obamas-long-armshort-arm-stiff-of-the-netroots/
Over a hundred commenters basically agree that Obama is some kind of right winger in disguise as demonstrated by his reaching out to Lieberman and the Demon Hillary Clinton and employing the evil Rahm Emanuel.
Sadly, we have our own foolish dingbats on the left. We always have. These people are a minority, but they’re vocal. As long as Obama can be proven to be imperfect on some issue they care about, they will be willing to trash him as an evil corporate stooge. These people are out there. I don’t know why “intellectually honest” journalists aren’t finding them.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
OK, I’m starting to get excited.
It sounds like Team Obama is getting prepared to produce an economic plan that is substantially bolder in several areas than what was proposed during the election. Could Emanuel be signaling to these CEO’s that a big national health plan is coming, and that it is going to benefit them greatly in the end, but that the Obama administration will need them to get off their free market-loving asses and get out there to support it?
If the costs of benefits, esp. health benefits, are a serious drag on the flexibility and competitiveness of the auto industry and other challenged industries, then maybe it’s time for progressives to make a renewed pitch for removing the health care burden from companies, and for going to a more nationalized health care system?
McCain wanted to wreck the employer-provided health care system too. But he then wanted to throw everyone – strong and healthy, weak and sick alike – to the mercy of the private health care market, with an equal tax-administered subsidy in their pockets.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
I see the Obamabots – including Matt – are out in force today.
Never mind that Obama is going to start a war with Iran, expand the wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and probably continue to expand a “Cold War” with Russia, while selling out every so-called “liberal” – including Matt – to Israel on the Palestinian question.
US foreign policy – the one topic Obama was elected on to change – is going to remain exactly the same as under Bush. And Matt thinks this is just wonderful since it’s now HIS DEMOCRATIC asshole in the Presidency, instead of some Republican asshole.
Suckers. And hypocrites.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Meanwhile, Matt utters not word ONE about Lieberman being kept in his post despite essentially being a Republican.
Even Rachel Maddow was outraged. But not Matt.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
The context is important, too. This wasn’t red meat for a partisan crowd. This was a speech to the Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
*even* rachel maddow? is she too Rethug-like for you, Richard Steven Hack?
Obama isn’t going to start a war with Iran. Chill the fuck out.
November 19th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
“Never mind that Obama is going to start a war with Iran”
Yeah, yeah, yeah – even Bush, though he wanted to, didn’t start a war with Iran – it’s rumored that Paulson told him that a war with Iran would mean instant Great Depression and you think OBAMA is going to fight Iran? Like Obama can’t figure out Iran war equals $300/barrel oil and 15% unemployment minimum? Even Bush wasn’t that dumb (McCain might have been) and you think Obama is going to do something so stupid that Bush balked at it?
November 19th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
I guess the too-liberal-for-their-own-good lot aren’t only at FDL. I forgot about Richard Steven Hack. See, everyone. This is exactly the sort of thing I was talking about.
If Obama isn’t perfect on every issue, he’s an asshole. And it’s more important to punish people we hate than to get things done. Yeah, I’m not happy about Lieberman, but that’s inside baseball and if keeping Lieberman on makes getting universal healthcare more likely then I’m all for it.
And I’d really like to see RSH support his assertion that Obama “will” start a war with Iran when he ran forcefully against Hillary for taking too militaristic of a stance against Iran and, not incidentally, essentially promised to meet, without preconditions, with the leaders of Iran.
Sometimes I feel like people like Richard Steven Hack are too happy with their righteous indignation to actually want anything to get done.
Can we at least let Obama have maybe 24 hours in office before we start condemning the failures of his administration?
November 19th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Everyone remember when RSH guaranteed Bush attacking Iran to sway the election?
November 19th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
I’ll wager you five dollars that doesn’t happen.
November 19th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Everyone remember when RSH guaranteed Bush attacking Iran to sway the election?
Yes. In long, laborious, detail. RSH needs to take a valium or something.
November 20th, 2008 at 12:47 am
This sounds like good news. Rahm gets things done. Maybe not what we want…but overwhelming evidence shows that a Big Stimulus package is needed. However, if Obama goes for Republican’lite stimulus of something that Larry Summer’s proposed..of a mere 2-300 hundred billion it’s all over. Obama will be the new Hoover within a major depression. But cutting down the Medical/Insurance lobby and reinvigorating the middle class with an awesome middleclass stimulus of about 600 billion plus…maybe.
November 20th, 2008 at 2:39 am
basically fake tale of deep left-wing disgruntlement with the shape of the Obama transition
So it’s “fake left-wing disgruntlement” – honestly, Matt, this is insulting and you should retract and apologize:
Antiwar groups fear Barack Obama may create hawkish Cabinet
These are serious people with serious concerns (war, for god’s sake, it couldn’t be more serious) and I happen to share their concerns. So again, retract and apologize.
November 20th, 2008 at 4:05 am
I dunno. He left out “thick and uncut.” Still sounds kinda DLC to me.
November 20th, 2008 at 4:51 am
Look, FUCKHEADS! Try to get your heads out of Obama’s ass for just a moment and try to exercise some thought.
Obama has EXPLICITLY SAID that he will NOT allow Iran to have even one centrifuge!
Obama has EXPLICITLY SAID that he will NOT take military action against Iran off the table if they do not comply with his demands that they completely cease ALL enrichment and centrifuge activity.
Obama has EXPLICITLY SAID that he will NOT go to the UN for sanctions for military action against Iran.
What part of that don’t you MORONS comprehend?
So what do YOU think Obama is going to do about Iran? “Negotiate”? Negotiate WHAT? Iran can not and will not cease uranium enrichment. End of story.
Where does that leave Obama?
Exactly where Bush is – either attack Iran or give in and accept Iranian enrichment – or push the problem onto the next administration as Bush appears to be doing.
You morons have any other outcome that is even halfway possible? If so, lay it out!
Nitwits.
November 20th, 2008 at 4:53 am
Oh, and by the way, WHEN – not IF – the war with Iran starts, I want every fucking one of you – especially Matt – over to the house to suck my ass. I’ll make a special effort to have diarhea that day. too.
November 20th, 2008 at 7:33 am
I’ve seen a certain number of news accounts trying to gin up basically fake tale of deep left-wing disgruntlement with the shape of the Obama transition.
There was deep left-wing disgruntlement before the election. Since the election, he has done nothing to change that.
November 21st, 2008 at 12:26 am
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November 21st, 2008 at 1:34 pm
The sounds plausible to me. It would be a mistake for Obama to make any concessions on Iran’s enrichment program before negotiations have even started, but based on Iran’s past statements I think an agreement along the lines you outline is the most likely outcome.
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