Good evening and welcome to the Daily Strike. Make sure you're all caught up in the week in politics by reading our Weekly Strike. Tonight's entry will be a quick one.
UNEMPLOYMENT: For a long time here at the Strike, we've lamented the fact that President Obama hasn't been able to make his message relatable to average voters. His speeches have often come across as professorial and abstract. We've also lamented his lack of focus and resolve on the issue of unemployment, which is the largest issue facing his Presidency. Today, he took a bold step at alleviating our concerns. In a morning address from the White House Rose Garden, the President lambasted the Republicans for blocking an extension of unemployment benefits. Instead of rattling off a series of numbers, he brought in real Americans who have been hurt by the Republicans' obstruction. Behind every political battle are people whose livelihoods, and often survival, are dependent on government action. Oftentimes we forget that, and seem to act like it's all just a game. Republicans certainly have done that these past few weeks. In an attempt to slow down the Democratic agenda and prove their faux deficit hawk bonfides, they have caused men and women to suffer immensely. Finally, President Obama conveyed that message forcefully to the American people. I thought it was very well done, and I hope it continues.
I also hope this effort doesn't come too late. The President has failed to create a compelling narrative for his economic policies, and people seem prone to blame the party in power for everything that's continuing to go wrong with the economy. For that reason, the fundamentals of the fall campaign seem pretty set. But at the very least, Obama is starting to make Republican obstruction feel real to the American people.
WEST VIRGINIA: It looks like we'll have another Senate election this year afterall. The West Virginia legislature approved a bill late tonight that will provide for a November election for the remaining two years of Senator Robert Byrd's term. The interim Senator, Carte Goodwin, will not run for reelection. The obvious Democratic candidate is Governor Joe Manchin, and since he was such a big part in calling for an election, I expect him to enter the race. The best Republican out there is Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, though she is somewhat less well known than the popular Manchin. Early polls have shown Manchin winning a hypothetical match up pretty handily, though West Virginia is an increasingly conservative state, so I wouldn't consider the seat safe for the Democrats by any means. I'll rate it as Lean Democratic.
That's it for tonight. See you tomorrow!
Showing posts with label Manchin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Manchin. Show all posts
Monday, July 19, 2010
Thursday, July 8, 2010
The Daily Strike-7/8/10-Depressing
Good evening and welcome to the Daily Strike. To understand why I'm depressed about politics tonight, I bring you three things I read today (with appropriate credit due to The Big Picture).
1. The first is this poll summary from Democracy Corps, which does polling for Democratic causes. Quite simply, the numbers are awful. Yes, Democrats trail in the generic Congressional ballot. Yes, Republicans are actually less disliked than Democrats at this point. None of that is particularly surprising in this political climate. Some of the other numbers are just downright depressing. More people, by far, have favorable opinions of the NRA than just about any other political actor, including President Obama. "Big Corporations" is rated more favorably than the health care bill. And by a disturbingly large margin, people think that "cutting government spending and lowering taxes" is a better economic stimulus than "investments in new jobs."
This represents a massive failure in the war of ideas. He hasn't properly identified the perpetrators of this economic crisis: big corporations and finance. He hasn't explained why we need to make long-term investments to spur job growth. When he has said some good things, he then undermines himself by feeding into the conservative narrative (remember the discretionary spending freeze?) Without offering that vision consistently and coherently, people are stuck with the general impression that things are bad, and that liberals are in charge, so therefore liberal policies are bad.
2. This piece pretty much speaks for itself. Basically, the recession has increased poverty and homelessness significantly, and has caused millions of people to suffer. I link to this also to make the point that when Republicans and Ben Nelson don't vote to extend unemployment benefits, they're not just hurting a bunch of lazy people who can't get their asses to a job interview. They're ignoring an all-out crisis.
3. Finally, there's this article by the nation's Eric Alterman, which argues that a progressive Presidency is pretty much impossible. He argues that while Obama certainly has disappointed in many areas, the real barriers to progress are ridiculous institutional obstacles. He covers pretty much everything: the undemocratic Senate, the right-wing media, the corporate buy-out of our politicians, the mainstream consensus around bad economic policies etc. It's very sobering, but it's an important reminder how much we truly have to change in this country before we can finally tackle our worst problems. I'm afraid some of these barriers may be too difficult to overcome in the forseeable future.
Have I depressed you enough yet? At least you can go to the TV and find out where LeBron James will play next year! T-Minus 37 minutes!
OTHER TIDBITS: Before I go, I should mention that West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin has inexplicably has arranged for the special election to replace Senator Robert Byrd to take place this November instead of 2012, as had been originally planned. Manchin clearly wants to run for the seat himself, and seems to think that running this year would be to his advantage. While Manchin is popular in the state, West Virginia is increasingly conservative, and this is a Republican year, so Manchin is anything but a shoo-in. It's possible that Manchin could potentially cost Democrats a majority in the Senate because of his selfish ambition. Let's hope not.
That's it for now. See you next Monday when Congress gets back into session.
1. The first is this poll summary from Democracy Corps, which does polling for Democratic causes. Quite simply, the numbers are awful. Yes, Democrats trail in the generic Congressional ballot. Yes, Republicans are actually less disliked than Democrats at this point. None of that is particularly surprising in this political climate. Some of the other numbers are just downright depressing. More people, by far, have favorable opinions of the NRA than just about any other political actor, including President Obama. "Big Corporations" is rated more favorably than the health care bill. And by a disturbingly large margin, people think that "cutting government spending and lowering taxes" is a better economic stimulus than "investments in new jobs."
This represents a massive failure in the war of ideas. He hasn't properly identified the perpetrators of this economic crisis: big corporations and finance. He hasn't explained why we need to make long-term investments to spur job growth. When he has said some good things, he then undermines himself by feeding into the conservative narrative (remember the discretionary spending freeze?) Without offering that vision consistently and coherently, people are stuck with the general impression that things are bad, and that liberals are in charge, so therefore liberal policies are bad.
2. This piece pretty much speaks for itself. Basically, the recession has increased poverty and homelessness significantly, and has caused millions of people to suffer. I link to this also to make the point that when Republicans and Ben Nelson don't vote to extend unemployment benefits, they're not just hurting a bunch of lazy people who can't get their asses to a job interview. They're ignoring an all-out crisis.
3. Finally, there's this article by the nation's Eric Alterman, which argues that a progressive Presidency is pretty much impossible. He argues that while Obama certainly has disappointed in many areas, the real barriers to progress are ridiculous institutional obstacles. He covers pretty much everything: the undemocratic Senate, the right-wing media, the corporate buy-out of our politicians, the mainstream consensus around bad economic policies etc. It's very sobering, but it's an important reminder how much we truly have to change in this country before we can finally tackle our worst problems. I'm afraid some of these barriers may be too difficult to overcome in the forseeable future.
Have I depressed you enough yet? At least you can go to the TV and find out where LeBron James will play next year! T-Minus 37 minutes!
OTHER TIDBITS: Before I go, I should mention that West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin has inexplicably has arranged for the special election to replace Senator Robert Byrd to take place this November instead of 2012, as had been originally planned. Manchin clearly wants to run for the seat himself, and seems to think that running this year would be to his advantage. While Manchin is popular in the state, West Virginia is increasingly conservative, and this is a Republican year, so Manchin is anything but a shoo-in. It's possible that Manchin could potentially cost Democrats a majority in the Senate because of his selfish ambition. Let's hope not.
That's it for now. See you next Monday when Congress gets back into session.
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