Obama, The Great Uniter or Divider?

By Contributor Archive

Filed Under General on Jan 23 

For months we’ve all heard about how Barack Obama will be a great leader. He will unite this country and reach across the aisle to make policies that will strengthen this great country of ours. This morning in a meeting with House and Senate Republicans, Obama proved he is just like any other politician.

President Obama listened to Republican gripes about his stimulus package during a meeting with congressional leaders Friday morning – but he also left no doubt about who’s in charge of these negotiations. “I won,” Obama noted matter-of-factly, according to sources familiar with the conversation.

The exchange arose as top House and Senate Republicans expressed concern to the president about the amount of spending in the package. They also raised red flags about a refundable tax credit that returns money to those who don’t pay income taxes, the sources said.

Click here to read the rest.

Last time I read How to Win Friends and Influence People, it said to show respect for others. Somehow I don’t think telling his opposition ‘I won’ will do much to win them over to his way of thinking.

Comments

  • J

    The White House has agreed for the Alternative Minimum Tax, which would cost an estimated $70 billion, boosting the total current cost of the stimulus to nearly $900 billion, pushed by Republican Chuck Grassley.

  • J

    By the way, on the actual story in this post, it appears that after Obama said “I won”, people in the meeting laughed, as they took it as one of the more light-hearted moments in the meeting. So they didn’t take any offense to it and neither should the rest of the right.

    • Alaina Segovia

      I’m sure Harry and Nancy had a big laugh.

  • Troy La Mana

    What dream are you in? That hasn’t happened for 16 years and it isn’t about to start now. If I don’t agree with an issue I am not going to give up my principals to be bi-partisan.

  • Troy La Mana

    “Republican purposely alianated hispanic voters, the largest minority voting block in the country, with their anti-immigrant tone”

    Correction: Republicans had an anti-illegal alien tone. You should to if you want to save the country from a bloodless coup.

    • Brian H

      I dont disagree with you on the border issue, Troy. My criticism stems from the fact that the Republicans allowed a very negative tone to set in when discussing the issue. The fact is that hispanic voters associated the GOP as the party who wanted to ship them back home.

      • J

        Hispanic voters associate the part with the least understanding of the plight of illegal immigrants. The tone of the republican party on this issue is not really grounded in being empathetic to Hispanic families. In fact, sometimes the rhetoric is more offensive because of rash generalizations and blatantly racist statements said.

      • Troy La Mana

        Negative tone? Well why not? For all intensive purposes this country is being invaded and no one is doing a thing about it.. and liberals are actively trying to encourage it.

        • J

          “For all intensive purposes this country is being invaded and no one is doing a thing about it.”
          Like I said, you fail to understand what is really going on. The country isn’t getting invaded, and if we want true immigration reform there needs to be a consensus, and there are not enough hard line Republicans to push through your type of reform.

          • Alaina Segovia

            So then what’s your solution to immigration?

            • J

              I put my solution in another one of your comments above on accident.

              • Troy La Mana

                The one and best solution is to round up the illegals and throw them back over the border. Build a real wall on both Northern and Southern borders and triple security in all ports.

                You’d pay for it buy the savings of not having to care for their sick, pay them Social Security, house their criminals and educate their young.

                • J

                  As I have said, rounding up all the illegal immigrants is largely impractical and impossible. Not only is literally physically impossible, but you will meet resistant with citizens, interest groups, and political figures.
                  You will not any extra money from their removal their children from public schools. Removing their children will not decrease costs, as individual students do not make up the costs, but the students. That’s why when kids drop out, there is no monetary benefit to the government or public schools.
                  The important thing is to be realistic in our immigration reform. Current inefficiencies in our immigration system encourage illegal immigration.

                  • Troy La Mana

                    So you reward people for breaking the law.

                  • Alaina Segovia

                    Seriously? You don’t think illegal immigrants are a drain on the school system?

                    If it were only one student, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but there are thousands. That means the schools have to hire more teachers to teach more classes, they have to have teachers that speak Spanish since a lot of them speak little or no English, they have to buy more books and other teaching materials, they have to have larger facilities (therefore the additional expenses of utilities, land, upkeep, etc.), school lunches, and on and on and on.

                    • J

                      You over generalizing children of illegal immigrants. I don’t see how taking away a decent education from kids who did nothing wrong will benefit anyone. First of all, if they are born here, there are citizens are deserve the right to their education. If not then they should not be punished for the choice their parents made. Technically, they have not broken any laws, or if they have, it can be argued that they were coerced by their parents. Citizen children of illegals are still members of immigrant households while they are in school, but as U.S. citizens when they grow up and get jobs. When you look at it across a lifetime, there is a net gain on average from immigrants. In 1982′s Plyler v. Doe, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that denying education to children of illegal aliens violated the 14th Amendment’s equal-protection clause. The majority opinion was that laws apply to all people within a jurisdiction, whether they are citizens, legal aliens, or illegal residents.

                      Illegal immigrant workers in the United States are provide the Social Security system with a subsidy of as much as $7 billion a year, but do not collect any of it, contrary to conservative belief.

                    • Alaina Segovia

                      If they are US citizens, then yes, they have a right to an education. If they are not, then it’s a pretty easy way to identify illegal aliens in this country and send them all back.

                    • J

                      14th Amendment:
                      “nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
                      This is known as the Equal Protection Clause. This is the main argument behind Plyler v. Doe. This is why children of resident aliens or legal immigrant children are afforded education despite not being citizens. Some fail to realize that for the most part, aside from voting and running office, the Constitution protects the rights of legal immigrants and resident aliens. That has been the tradition in America for a long time.
                      So the US Supreme Court and the Constitution declare that there are not just citizens and illegal immigrants, as you appear to suggest; rather, there are three group: resident aliens, citizens, and illegal immigrants. So if we have kids that committed no crimes or were coerced into committing crimes, they can’t be held accountable because they are technically resident aliens under the law.

                    • Alaina Segovia

                      I’m no lawyer, but it sounds like they’re entitled to lawyers, not necessarily an education.

                      Anyway, if the school system knows students are illegal aliens, then they should report them and they and their families should be deported.

                    • J

                      The reason why kids go to school is because of the law. Because the law protects our children’s education, so we are entitled to it. like I said resident aliens are entitle to most of the same rights as citizens.

                      And it’s not that simple and due to the previously mentioned Plyler vs Doe, they are not allowed to refuse service to illegal immigrants.

                    • Alaina Segovia

                      Fine. But it doesn’t mean they and their parents can’t be deported.

  • Gary Russell

    Updated press release from the Obama administration:

    “In response to anyone who has called me ‘partisan’ and a ‘divider’, I would simply like to quote the great statesman PeeWee Herman and say, “I know you are – what am I?”

  • J

    He is listening to Republicans. He’s having multiple meetings with the other side on this issue. But at the end of the day, he calls the last shot. By reaching out for their input which he did in that meeting, he is listening their ideas. He has made tax cuts a prominent part of this bill.

  • Patrick Keegan

    God forbid we actually try to work together and make something that most of us can agree on.

    Or would you prefer to sit back and snipe?

  • Patrick Keegan

    All of Brian’s crap aside, I do have to say I wasn’t a fan of the “I won” line. Not exactly a phrase that you want to hear when you are looking forward to a bi-partisan effort.

    That being said, Obama was right not to cave to GOP demands, and showed a bit of power. Maybe its a case of brandishing the stick, so that when the carrot comes out, it looks a lot more attractive than it did before.

    • Brian H

      Patrick. I am not one who believes that Obama needs to be bipartisan. The man won with a HUGE mandate. Although I disagree with him on most issues I inderstand that elections have consequences and that Obama has every right to govern as he said he would. Am I surprised by Obama’s first four days? No. The guy is doing everything he said he would do, which as I have said, is why I voted against him.

      He has no obligation to cave to Republican demands no more than they have an obligation to cave to his.

  • Gil Rice

    Contraceptives and the National Mall? How in Hades is either one of those going to help the current economic situation? And now the latest!!! Rebublicans in Congress should not listen to Rush (or else) Big Brother is now in the drivers seat and we will all pay!!!!

  • Brian H

    Elections have consequences. Republicans threw their temper-tantrum in 2006 that resulted in their loss of Congress. Republican purposely alianated hispanic voters, the largest minority voting block in the country, with their anti-immigrant tone (following the great success Bush had with that constituancy in 2000 and 2004).

    Obama is right….HE WON.

    Alaina is RIGHT. The Republicans in congress have also been elected by their districts to represent Republican positions, it should be their job to “obstruct” by any means what they feel to be bad policy. That is their elected duty. We live under s system of separation of powers and checks and balances.

    I am not surprised by the poor policies I have seen in Obama’s first two days, it is what I expected and anticipated which is why I voted against him.

    • Patrick Keegan

      Brian, just because you don’t agree with a policy, that does not make it “poor”.

      You can disagree with it, that’s perfectly fair, but calling it poor show’s you have absolutely no intention of giving anything Obama is going to try a fair shake.

      I think your own favorite word may start applying to you, with all of the inane and venomous rants you’ve posted here lately.

      That word, of course, is kook.

      • Brian H

        “just because you don’t agree with a policy, that does not make it “poor”

        Yes, in my eyes it does. If I thought a policy was not a poor policy I would not disagree with that policy. Because I disagree with a policy means I believe that policy to be a poor policy.

        Is this concept hard to understand?

        Please tell me what any policy you disgree with that you do not believe to be a poor policy.

        • Patrick Keegan

          I didn’t like the surge, but it worked, so it’s obviously not poor policy.

        • J

          A poor policy is poor because it is not effective, not because your own personal beliefs. Now disagreeing with a policy because it may fail would be disagreeing with what you consider poor policy. However, by nature many social and moral issues are subjective and thus it would impossible to call them poor policy.

  • Tobias

    Uhh, sounds like a uniter to me. He’s trying to help out the Republicans, reminding them not to be whiny obstructionists in the way of the clear mandate of the American people… If the Republicans continue to try to divide the country by being obstructionist, that is certainly their perogative. They haven’t shown much interest in helping the country thus far… but it won’t be Obama’s fault if they refuse to stand with the American people, he reminded them.

    • Alaina Segovia

      Right… Democrats are not whiny obstructionists when they’re not running the White House.

      If he was a uniter, he would try to work with them. So far he hasn’t made much of an effort.

      • Tobias

        the Republicans would disagree. They said he has made unprecedented efforts at outreach. It doesn’t mean that he has to adopt their plans wholesale.

        • Alaina Segovia

          No, he certainly doesn’t have to adopt their plans wholesale, but he should at least listen.

          Tell me Tobias, do you think it’s reasonable to stick hundreds of millions of dollars in an economic stimulus bill for contraceptives? And if you do, I’d really love an explanation as to why and exactly how that will help the economy, particularly in the short term.

          • J

            He has been listening, or have you not been reading reports.
            You are incorrectly stating part of the plan as the millions would go to Medicaid family planning service, which will help families plan when the right time to have kids because this is hard economic times for many of them. Some of that will go to contraceptives, in order to plan the right time to have a family.

            • Alaina Segovia

              Got it. So we should all be responsible for paying for people to use condoms or get birth control because they’re having a hard time right now. That’s sure a great way to use our money when government spending is completely out of control and we’re in a global recession.

              • J

                If you don’t agree with family planning, that is fine. What the Republican leader of the House says is completely disingenuous to the work family planning does. Contraceptives, however, are a preferable alternative to getting an abortion, don’t you think? Because for many families, that ends up being their only option.

                • Red State Eddio

                  As opposed to accepting responsibility and having the child and loving him/her to being a healthy productive citizen despite not having all the trappings of rich folks? What about that option?

                  I thought that with the message of the new “Era of Responsibility” Obama could say that mantra starts at home. With each of us. Individually. As we make tough choices on the front end and accept responsibility for whatever happens. Sure sound consistent to me…

                  Contraceptives just don’t sound like the kind of “stimulus package” I am interested in seeing developed. A little less winkie and a little more workie is more like it. We need jobs and homes, not sex.

                  • J

                    Having a child is not that simple. Some people literally don’t having the money sustain a child. It’s not about the child living an affluent life; it’s about the child living. Maybe both parents are now working. Maybe they lost their home. Maybe both lost their jobs.

                    And the responsible thing for some people is to not have a child. But they might need some help, as all do time to time.

                    Contraceptives are a small part of the overall package.

                    • Alaina Segovia

                      If they don’t have the money to sustain a child, they shouldn’t have a child.

                      If someone can’t afford contraceptives and can’t control their libido, that’s their problem and I shouldn’t have to pay for it.

  • Shawn Naegle

    I disagree, Alaina, though I do understand your issues with Obama.

    He did win, though, and I don’t think it is out of line for him to remind Republicans who the President is and what party is in power.

    The idea that a political party should be bi-partisan is silly. They won, they should lead and govern as they see fit. That is why we elect them in the first place. If Republicans are worried about stopping Liberal policies, then they need to worry about winning next time.

    We should not judge Obama on his assertiveness but rather on what he asserts. That he is willing to push his agenda is not a bad quality and it is what his supporters expect from him. Why should he listen to Republicans? They have proven themselves adept at loosing, why should he trust their advice on policy?

    • Alaina Segovia

      I agree that not everything should be bi-partisan, but having mulitple parties (i.e. multiple opinions) is all part of the checks and balances.

      It’s not out of stubborness that the Republicans were questioning the spending in the bill. The Republicans were elected just like the Democrats and I would certainly hope that my Congressmen will speak up when they don’t think something is right… kind of like the millions of dollars for contraceptives that was included in the stimulus package.

      • J

        That is why he is reaching for their support and having a bipartisan meeting. Simply characterizing the improvement in Medicaid Family Planning Service as contraceptives is disingenuous to the what Family planning does.

        • Alaina Segovia

          He can have all the bipartisan meetings he wants, but what’s the point if he’s doesn’t listen to their concerns? So far his “bipartisan” meetings look like they’re just for show.

          • J

            33% is tax cuts. He is listening their concerns. Due to their negotiations, only about 9 is infrastructure spending. There is nothing to suggest he is not listening.

            • Alaina Segovia

              Only that not a single Republican proposal is included in the stimulus package.

              • J

                My solution is whatever can get passed. First, we need to fix the immigration bureaucracy in order increase the number of legal immigrants. We need to increase security at points of entry. We should crack down on employers for hiring illegal immigrants. We also need to make sure to come up with solutions to keep immigrant families together. I am definitely not for any type of amnesty, and they should receive no special privileges to allow them to obtain citizenship over other immigrants. I am not sure what type of punishment they should receive, perhaps some sort of fine or additional pay from income. However, deporting millions of illegal immigrants is largely impractical and impossible. That’s just off the top of my head, this is not a clear plan or anything.

              • J

                Tax cuts are something both sides agree on, as well as helping out home owners.

    • Troy La Mana

      Remember that the next time a Republican is in the White House. Every time Democrats tell us that we have to be bi-partisan and reach across the isle — until THEY are in power.

  • Fabs

    That’s a little third grade, don’t ya think. I might expect something like that from Hilary, but Barack??? Gosh!