I am a Democrat who supports Obama, and I'd like to tell you my side.

[LoZoccolo]

Obama's a pretty cool guy. Eh fights the reseccion and doesn't afraid of anything.

First of all I like being an Obama supporter because I am a liberal Democrat, and I feel at home and in the company of the 80%-85% of other liberal Democrats who support Obama. Even if I wasn't in a group of Democrats, but in a group of liberals like at Drinking Liberally, I would still be amongst a group that was 71% supporting of Obama! That's cozy. I like all the liberal Democrats who support Obama!

There's a big list of Obama's accomplishments, and I won't list them all here, but I don't think you'd see many of them done by a Republican. If I had voted for a third-party candidate in 2008, I think by now I would be feeling bad seeing all the people who have recieved some help from the Democratic administration and Obama, and thinking that I could have been a part of not helping them if Obama had not gotten elected. I'm a liberal, and I like to see people helped when they are in trouble. I might want people to be helped more, but I want to help who I can help now.

If I had gotten angry in the 2012 elections and voted against him and then the Republican won, I'd probably wake up the next morning and be like "what did I just do?". I'd probably feel like I'd want to do a barrel roll and become an hero. I'd feel sick, and I might try to deflect blame but internally I would probably seeth at myself. Or try to drown it out by reading sites like Fire Dog Lake, where I might not feel right, but I would not feel alone. It would be sad though. It would hurt a little if Jane Hamsher said that the Obama supporters were called after some name she had for them (I will not repeat it here) and I knew that that just wasn't true and she was calling them names that weren't true.

[gateley]

1. K&R! nt

[kstewart33]

2. Well said. nt

[banned from Kos]

3. Agree. I found this link to BlueOregon on Yahoo of all places.

http://www.blueoregon.com/2010/12/obamas-accomplishments/

Its the best list of what the President has accomplished.

[Rex]

4. +1

For actually posting something in the content area.

[springstreetbooks]

5. Well said

hey hey!

[gratuitous]

6. Ah yes, the "list"

Thanks for trotting that out again, if only in passing.

By the way, criticism of Obama is not equal to wanting a Tea Bagger to win the presidency. This may be news to some folks in the country, so I'll say it again: Criticism of Obama is not equal to wanting a Tea Bagger to win the presidency.

It might also be useful to explain what is meant by "supporting" Obama. Did you support his failure to appoint Elizabeth Warren as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau? Did you support his failure to put Godwin Liu on the federal bench? Surely California's gain is the nation's loss there. These are but two examples of disappointing performances by Mr. Obama; there are others. Many, many others. Does a failure to rein in torture and investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity ring a bell? I apologize if that question brings you discomfort; I am unable to trim my ideals to fit whatever is currently fashionable among the self-described liberal Democrats you reference in your post.

Or by "support," do you mean that Obama is preferable to the presumed actions of a hypothetical McCain administration? Yeah, I could envision any number of odious policy formulations that a President McCain might have enacted. Laid alongside that alternate universe, I would be in the "supporter" camp for Obama, too. But I'm a little more interested in reality and actual results, than in a comparison with things that never happened.

[AbortiononDemand]

13. Reality and actual results for me too!

"By the way, criticism of Obama is not equal to wanting a Tea Bagger to win the presidency. This may be news to some folks in the country, so I'll say it again: Criticism of Obama is not equal to wanting a Tea Bagger to win the presidency."

Maybe not, though in my experience I have seen some who become so opposed to all things Obama that they claim it doesn't matter if a teabagger defeats him they would be no worse. There are even some who advocate voting for the Republican to communicate displeasure with Obama and maybe punishing him.

I'm concerned with reality and actual results too. For that reason I want to see Obama win in 2012. You may say the comparison between what Obama has done and McCain would have done is an alternate universe but the universe I don't want and will do what I need to avoid is one where we have a President Romney or Perry.

Criticism of Obama is certainly not by itself a desire for a Tea Bagger presidency. But at some places I've posted at critic sm of Obama means not supporting him in 2012 or even actively desiring his defeat. I myself have been critical of him but still support him in 2012.

You put out a list of things you're disappointed with. You didn't mention any positives at all.

I will suggest a few. http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2011/08/wtf-has-obama-done-for-us.html

[undeterred]

7. With all due respect

...

[Obamanaut]

8. "...If I had gotten angry in the 2012 elections..." ? nt

[LoZoccolo]

9. Maybe a better way to put that is "if I were to get angry in the 2012 elections".

I can see where it's confusing; I actually did mean to pose a future scenario.

[Obamanaut]

25. No "maybe" about it if you wanted the future scenario. Otherwise it isn't the future. nt

[Wait Wut]

10. I can just see you at FDL.

:rofl:

K&R!

[Danger Mouse]

11. As mad as I get at Obama (and I get pretty mad at him a lot of the time)...

I could never NOT vote for him. I know it's kind of cliche to say 'think of President Bachmann or President Perry' but that's all it takes for me.

I don't really consider myself an Obama 'supporter' in that I support his policies...but I want him to do the right thing, and I think sometimes he does what's easy over what's right.

I don't think there's anything wrong with being critical of Obama or being supportive of him either. Some people on both sides take it too far though. I don't really think staying home or voting against Obama is really the answer...or a good idea. If that's what people want to do...I can't stop them. However, the potential consequences of a Bachmann/Perry presidency should be enough to make anybody think twice. They would do far more damage to this country than Reagan or Bush II could ever dream of doing.

Honestly, I do think that I read DU too much sometimes...it's entirely distorting my perception and lessening my objectivity.

+1 recommend for 'do a barrel roll.'

[AbortiononDemand]

16. Nice image!

Don't know about reading DU too much-I'm new to it. I know I've gotten sucked in at some other liberal blogs... Sometims the sectarian snark gets a bit much. So far DU looks pretty cool

[Ozymanithrax]

12. I read this whole thing as satire..

if it is, you should consider taking up the profession of satirist.
It reads like a leftbagger manifesto.
If it isn't satire, you have my apologies.

[AbortiononDemand]

14. Yeah I hear you!

I'm an Obama supporter too. I understand your need to give "your side" as it seems that those who are opposed to Obama don't want to hear that side. I've been there-at some liberal blogs you can't survive as an Obama supporter too long.

There is a list of accomplishments just to mention a few recent he's gotten a deal with the auto industry for a 55 mpg average fuel efficiency by 2025 and he negotiated for ACA to now provide birth control to women with no co-pays.

For more on this see http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2011/08/wtf-has-obama-done-for-us.html

[Whisp]

15. K&R

:hi:

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

17. If you really want Obama to win...

...stop posting.

[spanone]

18. positive Obama messages are frequently unrec'd to death here on democratic underground

this is another one

[William769]

20. Don't forget we have automatic un records on both sides.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=437x3777

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

24. ZING!

Good catch! :thumbsup:

[underpants]

19. I have no idea why this doesn't have 200+ Rec's

thank you for breathing sanity

[ThomWV]

21. I do.

[RaleighNCDUer]

22. Sanity and LoZo??

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Angry Dragon]

23. Is it wrong to find fault with his policies??

If I feel that the President is not promoting the Democratic agenda as much as I think he should, am I suppose to keep my mouth shut and just go along??

As of right now President Obama is the best candidate out there.
That does not mean that I agree with him.
I will vote for him over a republican.
I am angry with a great deal of his policies.
I feel he has made a great many mistakes.
I will keep fighting for what I believe is best for this country.