The Atlantic, after charting the way that Congressional Democrats have been whining about the way that Obama has been using – and you may take that word to mean anything that you like – them since 2008, concludes:
There are signs that the president intends to run his second term differently than his first, perhaps less cautiously, or more liberally, or with less concern for transcendence. But the way he plans to do that seems to center around the bully pulpit and a push to create a standing grassroots army of activists. That means Congressional Democrats can probably look forward to four years of feeling unappreciated — and you can look forward to four more years of headlines like these.
(H/T: Instapundit) Two things about that: first, Obama’s ‘bully pulpit’ and ‘standing grassroots army of activists’ won him re-election. I freely admit it. But in terms of policy changes… eh. Obama has been most successful in reality via the use of executive orders and wholesale ignoring of law/tradition. Which is a functional enough strategy, sure… for as long as Obama’s actually in office. Once he’s out of office all of the stuff that’s inconvenient will last for precisely as long as it takes for somebody to find a cigarette lighter.
Second: I am looking forward to the headlines, thanks. Between retirements and losses, Barack Obama has had the same effect on the Democratic Congressional caucus membership as a grinding wheel has on soapstone*. Better yet, his policies are blighting Democratic prospects in state legislatures across the land; I quite like the idea of my political opponents deliberately keeping themselves rigidly inexperienced.
Moe Lane
*I need to make this point clear. The Democratic ideological position, such as it is, incorporates the thought that government defaults to being an optimal solution for a problem. Alas, this position requires that the government is not run by inexperienced, hidebound partisans. Thus, anything that encourages the Democrats to swap out a big-government liberal idiot with thirty years’ worth of practical experience with a big-government liberal idiot with no practical experience whatsoever is, all in all, a good thing from my point of view.
Long term I think O’bama is going to have the same effect on Democrats Nationally as Granholm had on Democrats in Michigan which to say like a wrecking ball. I think when his second term ends they are going find themselves far worse off than they ever were under Bush.
TRANSCENDANCE?? *BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAH* Thanks, I needed that.