Posted on Jun 21, 2015
President Obama seems increasingly resigned to spinning his wheels in Washington. Is his frustration justified?
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In a speech at a California fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee last week, President Obama offered a remarkably candid assessment of how he has tried — and failed — to change Washington. Two paragraphs, in particular, stand out.
“I am frustrated, and you have every right to be frustrated, because Congress doesn’t work the way it should,” Obama said, describing a conversation with a disenchanted voter. “Issues are left untended. Folks are more interested in scoring political points than getting things done, not because any individual member of Congress is a bad person — there are a lot of good, well-meaning, hard-working people out there — but because the incentives that have been built into the system reward short term, reward a polarized politics, reward being simplistic instead of being true, reward division.”
“And as mightily as I have struggled against that, I told him, you’re right. It still is broken. But I reminded him that when I ran in 2008, I, in fact, did not say I would fix it; I said we could fix it. I didn’t say, ‘Yes, I can’; I said — what? . . . ‘Yes, we can.’ ”
Obama’s comments in California were the second time in a 24-hour period in which he expressed resignation to the political realities of Washington, more weary pragmatist than an optimistic change agent.
Earlier Thursday, speaking about the killing of nine people at a church in Charleston, S.C., the night before, Obama started angry, but that emotion quickly faded to grudging acceptance.
“It is in our power to do something about it,” Obama said about the mass murders with guns in recent years. “I say that recognizing the politics in this town foreclose a lot of those avenues right now. But it would be wrong for us not to acknowledge it.”
Obama’s framing of his inability to change Washington is, not surprisingly, cast in the best possible light for him: I tried, but politics is so broken that not even I (and remember that Obama, like almost all politicians, has a very healthy self-regard) could fix it. I can’t make people do things they just won’t do. I can’t bend the system to work properly. No one can.
division.http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obamas-hard-lessons/2015/06/21/56c07130-181b-11e5-ab92-c75ae6ab94b5_story.html?hpid=z5
“I am frustrated, and you have every right to be frustrated, because Congress doesn’t work the way it should,” Obama said, describing a conversation with a disenchanted voter. “Issues are left untended. Folks are more interested in scoring political points than getting things done, not because any individual member of Congress is a bad person — there are a lot of good, well-meaning, hard-working people out there — but because the incentives that have been built into the system reward short term, reward a polarized politics, reward being simplistic instead of being true, reward division.”
“And as mightily as I have struggled against that, I told him, you’re right. It still is broken. But I reminded him that when I ran in 2008, I, in fact, did not say I would fix it; I said we could fix it. I didn’t say, ‘Yes, I can’; I said — what? . . . ‘Yes, we can.’ ”
Obama’s comments in California were the second time in a 24-hour period in which he expressed resignation to the political realities of Washington, more weary pragmatist than an optimistic change agent.
Earlier Thursday, speaking about the killing of nine people at a church in Charleston, S.C., the night before, Obama started angry, but that emotion quickly faded to grudging acceptance.
“It is in our power to do something about it,” Obama said about the mass murders with guns in recent years. “I say that recognizing the politics in this town foreclose a lot of those avenues right now. But it would be wrong for us not to acknowledge it.”
Obama’s framing of his inability to change Washington is, not surprisingly, cast in the best possible light for him: I tried, but politics is so broken that not even I (and remember that Obama, like almost all politicians, has a very healthy self-regard) could fix it. I can’t make people do things they just won’t do. I can’t bend the system to work properly. No one can.
division.http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obamas-hard-lessons/2015/06/21/56c07130-181b-11e5-ab92-c75ae6ab94b5_story.html?hpid=z5
Barack Obama
Office of the President (POTUS)
Congress
Politics
Leadership
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 20
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The President fails to understand something. The Constitution built our system to function not only slowly but at odds with itself.
"When it is working properly, it is not working at all."
Not to speak badly of the man, but I don't think he ever understood this fundamental concept of the Constitution. It's designed to have Government that CAN'T pass laws. If you look at the procedures for passing laws, it's built to be difficult. It's intentional. We aren't supposed to have "agents of change." We aren't supposed to be able to push through laws. They're supposed to logjam up.
All that said, his frustration is because he is expecting something he cannot have. He wants an efficient system for passing Law. Our Legislative Process is not that. It's like wanting a sports car that fits a family of 6, and gets 60mpg. You can want it all day long, but sooner or later, you need to face the reality of how cars are built.
"When it is working properly, it is not working at all."
Not to speak badly of the man, but I don't think he ever understood this fundamental concept of the Constitution. It's designed to have Government that CAN'T pass laws. If you look at the procedures for passing laws, it's built to be difficult. It's intentional. We aren't supposed to have "agents of change." We aren't supposed to be able to push through laws. They're supposed to logjam up.
All that said, his frustration is because he is expecting something he cannot have. He wants an efficient system for passing Law. Our Legislative Process is not that. It's like wanting a sports car that fits a family of 6, and gets 60mpg. You can want it all day long, but sooner or later, you need to face the reality of how cars are built.
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LTC Paul Labrador
I think it is more of a matter of not wanting to reach across aisle and do what it actually takes to govern: find consensus. Right now both parties are run by the ideologues. For them, negotiation and consensus are unthinkable. However, I guarantee you that most Americans, whether they be Dem or Rep, are for closer to the middle and are okay with finding consensus that both sides can live with.
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SrA Art Siatkowsky
the federal government needs only to provide a strong military and intelligence service and enforce the constitution. Protect the American citizens and ensure their rights under the constitution. Thats all. Thats how it was designed to be played out and obamas frustration is that he disagrees with the constitution he swore to uphold, he lied from day one and thank God our system of government has prevented him from doing more damage than he already has. If he was looking to fulfill the oath he swore to protect the constitution things would go alot easier.
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History tells us a lot. And n this case history tells us that many Presidents have had congresses from the alternate party and worked with them. It has only been the last 2 years President Obama has offered any type of cooperation. Remember "I won".....
This is a problem of his own making, or as we might call it lack of leadership skills.
This is a problem of his own making, or as we might call it lack of leadership skills.
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That depends. He has not gotten cooperation on his agenda. But, then he has not given cooperation either.
My way or no way seldom makes for gain.
My way or no way seldom makes for gain.
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SSG John Erny
For some reason Presidents tend to end up as a lame duck near the end of their term, the country tends to choose one party over another from election to election. The country moves to far to the right or the left and the ship tends to right it’s self and turn towards the center. This is perhaps for the best for all people. Go far enough to the left and you have a communist dictator, go too far to the right and you have corporate dictator. It is time for the pendulum to swing back to the right in my opinion.
The government gets more done when no one political branch is in power, they have to meet in the middle. I think that is what the founding fathers had in mind.
The government gets more done when no one political branch is in power, they have to meet in the middle. I think that is what the founding fathers had in mind.
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