THE FAR RIGHT IS A BIT TOO COCKY ABOUT THEIR SUCCESSES WITH THE SENATE FILIBUSTER

It may be a bit too early for the Republicans to see real progress in their "Just say NO" approach to the Democrats.

...President Reagan was at the same level of popularity as Obama, after his 1st 500 days in office.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) declared last week that the GOP has gotten its "groove back" and is ready to reverse "the damage Democrats have done to the nation".

Now let´s really look at that so called, "damage" to which the Senate minority leader refers. And this "Obama damage" will be described and quoted below from a very prominent and conservative op-ed columnist, Mr. Charles Krauthammer:

Per Mr. Krauthammer:

"Obamacare alone makes his presidency historic. It has irrevocably changed one-sixth of the economy, [and] put the country inexorably on the road to national health care."

"There is major financial reform, which passed Congress. Economists argue whether it will prevent meltdowns and bailouts as promised. But there is no argument that it will give the government unprecedented power in the financial marketplace. Its 2,300 pages will create at least 243 new regulations that will affect not only, as many assume, the big banks but just about everyone, including, as noted in one summary (the Wall Street Journal), "storefront check cashiers, city governments, small manufacturers, home buyers and credit bureaus."

"[Then] there is the near $1 trillion stimulus, the largest spending bill in U.S. history. And that's not even counting nationalizing the student loan program, regulating carbon emissions by Environmental Protection Agency fiat, and still-fitful attempts to pass cap-and-trade through Congress."

"Obama's most far-reaching accomplishment is his structural alteration of the U.S. budget. The stimulus, the vast expansion of domestic spending, the creation of ruinous deficits as far as the eye can see are not easily reversed."

First of all, I find it interesting that Mr. Krauthammer, and other Conservatives have such serious concern today for "ruinous deficits" and Obama´s spending today. As compared to the Republicans, all of Obama´s spending has been on programs for helping in the nation´s recovery. All this being said, for their years in power, the conservatives had no problem with spending trillions on two wars, a poorly written prescription drug program and $750 billion for the TARP bail-out. And all of these Republican expenditures were made without any plans for how to pay for them. (BTW: Tell me what´s "conservative" about that kind of spending?)

As to the stimulus package, many economist such as the Nobel Laureate in economics, Mr. Paul Krugman, have said more than once that the stimulus package was actually "too small", (and that´s why the effects are taking so long to be seen). Also, that the stimulus should not have included any tax cuts. In other words, the good news is that the average tax payer today is currently paying equivalent taxes to those of the 1950´s. But what good are those lower taxes if the average American doesn´t have a job….?

"Obamacare", as Krauthammer calls it, is something that the most industrialized nation in the world has been needing for over 50 years. And the new financial and Wall Street regulations are just the beginning for hopefully keeping another disaster, such as that of the Financial & Wall Street Crisis of 2008, from happening again. Now, just why are those "damages"?

The reality is, these so called, "damages" as Mr. Krauthammer calls them, are really "needed changes"?

Yes, today the righties think that Obama´s current lower popularity today is a sign that his presidency is failing. They are dancing on Obama´s political grave and salivating about the November elections and how the conservatives could be coming back to power in one or both of the houses of Congress. (I hesitate to remind those from the right that Obama´s popularity after 500 days is about the same as that of President Reagan´s after his first 500 days, and he was also dealing with a Recession.)

And as to that "ruinous deficit", wasn´t it Ronald Reagan, the far right´s Patron Saint, that said he, "didn´t care about deficits?" (Don´t forget that Ronald Reagan used America´s credit card and ran up a deficit that was equal to that of all the previous US presidents, "Combined".)



But the historical facts are that FDR had a much higher ratio of deficits - to the nation´s GDP - than that of Obama´s. And FDR proved even back then that by using government spending for jobs and to get money moving in the economy, that was what it finally took to get the nation´s economy jump-started.

Back then, the growing economy then proceeded to erase those deficits very quickly. But that was also when the US was a manufacturing powerhouse. That´s the real issue today. A larger stimulus would have allowed the right jobs to start at a much faster pace. But the Republicans in the Senate have consistently vowed to make Obama´s presidency fail, regardless of the negative effect their failures are having on the American public. Now, just how smart and patriotic is that for the nation?

The Republicans are once again acting like little kids fighting on the playground. You know, those that argue, "If I can´t be the Captain, nobody is going to play with the ball." Yeah, that´s being real adult, and it´s been devastating for millions of Americans. And they are doing all this just so they can blame the lack of positive action in Congress on the Democrats. Also, a real adult attitude in a down economy…..NOT!!!!!!



Krauthammer is probably correct when he says, "The next burst of ideological energy -- massive regulation of the energy economy, federalizing higher education and "comprehensive" immigration reform (i.e., amnesty) -- will require a second mandate, meaning [Obama´s] reelection in 2012."

Yes, Obama is a bit down today, but it's very early in the play. Like Reagan, he came here to do things. And he's done much in his first 500 days. What he has left to do he knows must await his next "first 500 days", but that would come after his reelection. The real prize now is 2012. Obama is a strategist, not a tactician. He sees far ahead. Much farther even, than those in his own party.

If the Republicans underestimate him, they do so at their peril.

Copyright G.Ater 2010

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