The Myth of a Liberal Break from Obama

[a kennedy]

by P.M. Carpenter

For some time now the media have treated us to the melodramatic plot of a major rupture on the left -- a rather lopsided rupture, that is, between America's liberals and the presidential personage of Barack Obama. The former are most unhappy with the latter, goes the story line, so both are bereft.

On the left there is great angst. You've read it. You've heard it. It's been vastly reported for weeks and months and it makes for a helluva story, such as Politico's June 7 piece, "Left to Obama: We're not happy," in which the left is defined as a "high-profile conclave of progressives," virtually all of whom harbor a "growing disenchantment" with Obama.

Five days ago, the NY Times' most recent conservative hire, Ross Douthat, summed it all up in "The Agony of the Liberals":

"They doubted him during the health care debate. They second-guessed his Afghanistan policy. They’ve fretted over his coziness with Wall Street and his comfort with executive power.

"But now is the summer of their discontent. From MSNBC to 'The Daily Show,' from The Huffington Post to the halls of Congress, movement liberals have had just about enough of Barack Obama."

Perhaps you noticed the almost unnoticeable shift in language in both pieces: from the "left" to a "high-profile conclave of progressives"; from "liberals" to "movement liberals." This is key, which we'll return to momentarily.

Then, in Douthat, it's back to generic "American liberalism," which, as he correctly noted, "has always had a reputation for fractiousness and frantic self-critique. But even by those standards, the current bout of anguish over the Obama presidency" -- given its accomplishments in "universal health care, the dream of liberals since the days of Harry Truman," as well as its "$787 billion exercise in Keynesian pump-priming" -- "seems bizarrely disproportionate."

Ross, you're darn right it does, but that's largely because your -- and the media's at large-- terminology is itself bizarrely distorted. For there exists an immense, earthshaking difference between "liberals" and "movement liberals," between "the left" and "high-profile ... progressives."

full: http://blog.buzzflash.com/carpenter/690

[WI_DEM]

1. Not only that but every single poll I've ever seen that identifies political ideology show liberals

to be among Obama's strongest supporters.

[mkultra]

14. thus the push to alienate Obama supporters as not "true" liberals

[Sebastian Doyle]

20. Are these the same polls that claim only 20 percent of Americans are "liberals"?

The right wing polls seem to change their definition of who is Liberal, and how many Liberals there are, depending on which particular lie they're pushing at any given moment.

[iamthebandfanman]

23. exactly

that poll was such a crock of shit and everyone on DU knows it.


mind you half of the people who identified themselves as Conservative probably were told that liberals came from nazi's.

the right is so good at repeating a lie over and over until people believe it. if there was an award for rewriting the meaning of words and history, theyd win the gold medal.

[Jennicut]

2. There has been very little movement away from Obama by liberal Dems.

"In Gallup's polling, the story, noted Cillizza, is roughly the same: "Obama's highest job approval score (92 percent) among liberals came in early May 2009. But, his current standing (77 percent) is at or above the average Gallup number over the past few months."

Cillizza's analysis is littered with the arrestingly thematic: Obama's numbers among liberals are "remarkably consistent," they show only a "very slight erosion," and there's "little evidence of an increased level of disapproval of late."

Damned facts. Those damned, damned facts. None of which, of course, will make much difference to the voluble liberal minority -- as expressed through "high-profile" voices on MSNBC or assorted liberal Web sites -- that somehow fancies itself the displeased majority."

The same 15% of liberal Dems that did not approve of him still don't approve of him.

[Whisp]

18. according to the TeeVees and here, everyone is running away from Obama

like they were on fire!!

:rofl:

and as polls show, thats bullpoopies.

the media skewed loudness on this and the unhappy 'Obama is worse than Bush!' crowd can scream and kick and threaten to threaten, and and... put up new avatars, and one line the Pug talking points all they want - the facts will not budge because of that.

[OHdem10]

3. My take--Liberals have more upset with HILL DEMOCRATS than

with Obama.

What people do not get: Liberals process more than one thought
one feeling, one emotion at a time.

As a Liberal, I see people as striving for perfection but
never perfect. Therefore, I must deal with imperfect people
all the time. Imperfect people will do and act in ways
which dissappoint from time to time.

It is when a Democrat goes right of Center on a consistent
basis that more than troubles me. The Republicans have
taken this country too far riaght. It is the responsibilty
of Democrats to putt things back to the center. When
the Congress is pulling the President to far to the right
and he is willingly following--a pox on both their houses.

The "Movement Liberals" were active in recent elections.
They were going after DINOs.

Are there times when Obama has disappointed??? Yes, Yes,
and yes. Liberals will always let it be known when
Democratic Ideals are not being upheld. Why be a Liberal
if you do not.

[treestar]

4. the media works so hard to make untrue things true

This is another one. Very clever.

[whatchamacallit]

5. Maybe you should have included this

From the Editor of BuzzFlash

Submitted by Mark on Fri, 06/25/2010 - 7:24am.
We love PM Carpenter's lucid, cogent writing. He should be a nationally recognized columnist. However -- as we have pointed out in the past -- as an editorial policy BuzzFlash and PM fall on two different sides of the fence. PM is an inveterate liberal "pragmatist": BuzzFlash believes that a "liberal" President should lead with a coherent progressive/populist vision. By that standard, we judge President Obama as a failed President. Yes, he has unceasing raw obstructionism and character assassination from the right, but as with Bill Clinton Obama has failed to offer an alternative vision in a compelling, "framing" fashion. He has also turned the cheek once too often when confronted with opposition. Either he is naive, elitist, or just incapable of fighting back, and he appears to believe in the Centrist myth propagated by the likes of Rahm Emanuel that only serves one constituency: the wealthy elite. Because given the populist backlash of the right and left and moderates at BP, there is no constituency for BP except wealthy corporations and Wall Street. There is no center in support of BC, and that is true of many other areas where Rahm and President Obama have staked out a mythical view of "the center."

We'd have to differ with PM's reading of liberals: labor is not happy with Obama, Jews who support Israel no matter what are not happy with Obama, People who believe in a two-state solution are angry because Obama is not pushing hard enough, Blacks are generally not happy with Obama because he has not done much for social network programs or inner city jobs but most support him because he is Black, Women are not happy with his compromises on issues like abortion, and the LGBT community has very mixed feelings about him to say the least. So then who is left in the remaining "liberal" community? Seniors have decidly mixed feelings about him. Obama certainly hasn't done much for youth who are experiencing the highest unemployment rate since 1948, when statistics were first gathered.

I talked to a leading progressive talk show host the other day and he/she mentioned to me that the tone on the telephone calls into his/her program could be described as "despair" the other day. That tells you something. It's not clear that Obama has a constituency left besides the mutli-national corporations and Wall Street, despite the "financial reform," which is mostly being moved by Congress, what there is of it.

So PM speaks for PM. We believe that he is a brilliant, well-researched counterpoint to Buzz's belief that Presidents can change political alignments, not be held hostage to them. After all, you run for president to solve problems, not to say that the problems are inherited and too big to handle. Then what's the point of being President?

We value PM and his point of view, always illuminating, even if we often fundamentally disagree with it, as with today's column.

As one BuzzFlash reader noted in the comments section, you may disagree with PM, but he is such a darn good essayist that he makes you think.

That's how we feel at BuzzFlash.

[a kennedy]

7. thank you for adding this.....

I should have. :fistbump: :patriot:

[Number23]

12. With statements like this, I'd say it was a good thing you didn't add this garbage to your OP

"Jews who support Israel no matter what are not happy with Obama, People who believe in a two-state solution are angry because Obama is not pushing hard enough, Blacks are generally not happy with Obama because he has not done much for social network programs or inner city jobs but most support him because he is Black,"

Take an untrue statement ("blacks are generally not happy with Obama") and then add another one right smack on top ("but most support him because he is Black").

:puke:

[depakid]

13. In other words- as should be obvious- PM is both tone deaf

and more than a bit dishonest. Perhaps even a touch delusional from the look of this piece.

[KoKo]

21. Buzzflash (from Chicago..huge Obama Supporter Early) started to have some criticism

a few weeks ago about what they saw as Obama's Policy veerying Rightward from what BuzzFlash thought it would be when they early supported him and threw Clinton/Kucinich supporters off their website.

I think Buzzflash is starting to think that Obama needs that "Pushback" he asked us on the LEFT to do to him when he veered off course.

Mark Karlin is starting to wonder about the Policy of Obama's Team and is trying to steer Obama in a direction away from the "Policy Handlers" that he came into office with...promoted by various Think Tanks on the Right and CAP on the Left.

It's interesting to see what's going on with this. I hope Obama is listening and his crew is also keeping tabs because of the November Elections coming up.

[unblock]

6. liberals could probably qualify for a patent on the circular firing squad

we've never met anyone we couldn't find something about to critique, because it's in the nature of liberalism to constantly question the status quo and to seek ways to improve things.

republicans, by contrast, resolve difference behind closed doors, usually with money or the equivalent, then present a gloriously unified front. they're brilliant at it, but then again, liberals might be too if we had the kind of money republicans can have -- not just campaign contributions, but also the promise of ridiculously lucrative post-political careers. liberal can't just win a vote in exchange for a future cushy gig as a do-nothing member of several boards of directors.

besides, that would be illegal, not that the republicans would EVER do anything illegal....

[SunsetDreams]

8. It won't let me rec,

I agree with this article, the media is working overtime to create the illusion that Obama has lost the left.

[hulka38]

9. Save this for November '12

[SunsetDreams]

10. Why?

[hulka38]

17. Why not?

[Number23]

11. Too late to rec but I can kick

"In short, there is no rupture, no break, no vast abyss separating liberals from Obama. One can freely rejoice in that fact or take deep sorrow from it. That's not the point. Nor is the point that one side -- movement liberals or liberals -- is politically correct and morally superior while the other -- movement liberals or liberals -- is politically incorrect and morally wrong. The point is the fact itself; and that the prevailing story line of a presidential/liberal break is, at best, an innocent myth."

Doesn't seem anything "innocent" about it to me, though...

[hulka38]

15. Believing that a liberal break from Obama doesn't exist

and then characterizing it as not innocent doesn't make sense. Describing something negatively or positively that you believe does not exist is irrational.

[suzie]

19. +1

[Uzybone]

16. MSNBC, TDS, HuffPo are the left in a conservatives eyes

they think the left is all about cable talking heads, Hollywood, lattes and wine tastings.

Totally out of touch.

[Number23]

22. kick