Is President Obama Fixing the Economy?? Yes, Maybe, No - weigh in here

[kenshirley]

It's any one's guess as to whether to methods our administration have chosen will work.
I see some signs of recovery but it's very early yet.
So far I like the current guy a lot better than the last one.

[jeb]

The Republican party has been known as the "party of millionaires", while the Democratic party has been known as the "party of billionaires".

Maybe right but it seems that millionaires want to put in place ways for them to get richer while billionaires appear to be happy where they are and give a lot of it away.

One thing to be sure of regardless of which party is in power, the rich get richer.

Sadly, so true.

He is pissing off our allies across the world trying to cater to our enemies

You can't be serious? Were you asleep all last week?


and we have every hostile foreign government in the world pushing their boundries with him to see how far he'll let them go.

As we have with every new President.

At home we have the stock market go into freefall every time the President opens his mouth.

Did I not just see that the stock market has had the largest gains since 1933?

I want to see a serious shift in Congress in 2010 to restore some semblance of balance.

NOW you want balance - where were you for the time period from 2000-2006?

Gridlock does more for the good of this country than anything else. If you have gridlock, you don't get so many pork filled bills.

In some ways, gridlock isn't all bad BUT stopping pork is not one of it's good points.

"You pass my pork and I'll pass yours." seems to be the single thing everyone in DC can come together on. - jb

[floridian]

How does the GOP which has been in the past, is at present and will forever be in the future the party of the rich, famous and large corps - how do they get the average working person to vote for them? - jb

things change.... when i was a kid, conservative southerners were democrats... the republican party was the party of abraham lincoln, william tecumseh sherman and the army of the patomic...

now that has pretty much changed..this could get politically incorrect, id better shut up...

[walkthaplank]

How does the GOP which has been in the past, is at present and will forever be in the future the party of the rich, famous and large corps - how do they get the average working person to vote for them? - jb

The Republican party has been known as the "party of millionaires", while the Democratic party has been known as the "party of billionaires". One thing to be sure of regardless of which party is in power, the rich get richer.

The problems we are having and will continue to have with President Obama is that he is weak and inexperienced. We have a democratically controlled congress that is running roughshod over him and the rest of the country. He is pissing off our allies across the world trying to cater to our enemies and we have every hostile foreign government in the world pushing their boundries with him to see how far he'll let them go. I would not be surprised to see China make their move on Taiwan in the next year or two. At home we have the stock market go into freefall every time the President opens his mouth. Worst of all it appears that the President actually believes his own press.

I want to see a serious shift in Congress in 2010 to restore some semblance of balance. Gridlock does more for the good of this country than anything else. If you have gridlock, you don't get so many pork filled bills.

[floridian]

when i was in public school, we were required to take "americanism vs communism"!
well, 20 years ago, i was bored and being a history buff, i took a tour to russia... sounds bizarre, but i wanted to see were all this stuff happened...

when i left, i realized that we got about as much propaganda in america as the russians got.

history has been so perverted by special interest, that its hard to believe any of it..it is deliberately distorted for political gain.... just my observation...

[OhioFiler]

How does the GOP which has been in the past, is at present and will forever be in the future the party of the rich, famous and large corps - how do they get the average working person to vote for them? - jb

Watch in 2010, you'll learn something.

[jeb]

How do they do it?

How does the GOP which has been in the past, is at present and will forever be in the future the party of the rich, famous and large corps - how do they get the average working person to vote for them? - jb

[jeb]

You speak of the "communist supporters". - ohioflyer

We see these and other terms thrown around by people that don't have a clue as to just what they are.

"Communist" Russia, "Communist" China, "Communist" North Korea - none of them are any more communist than we are a democracy.

There are many different types of "governments" that have been tried over time - each has some good points and some bad. As totally imperfect as ours is, it is probably the best of the bunch.

What is sad is to see the very people that profess to be so patriotic about our way of government see absolutely nothing wrong in wanting to prevent those that do not agree with them from having their rights.

I served my country to protect the rights of all - even ohioflyer - not just those that agree with me. That is the way it is suppose to be - the way it has to be if we as a nation are to survive. - jb

[jeb]

just like I occasionally listen to Rush. I usually turn it off when he says something so ridiculous that I can't understand how any intelligent american would believe it. - mgmadara

I like to watch, read and listen to all sides of an issue because, first, I might learn something but mainly because it gives you an insight into why they believe the way they do.

But Rush - I don't think I have ever make it past 5 minutes of his show - and a show it is. Sadly, virtually 100% of his followers don't even recognize that. I don't think even he believes what he says.

But just like those high profile church leaders that stand up and preach and then do the opposite in their private lives, the followers believe it all without even thinking about questioning it. - jb

[Bandit]

He is a lazy soothsayer for politics. Reminds me of those hyped up preachers who do the prosperity preaching for getting wealthy by doing nothing. Very good at yapping his big yapper by telling you anything you want to hear. He is a way better speaker than bush was considering bush was clueless and wasted on alcohol during half of his speeches.

I lived 10 minutes away from them for many years and am very aware of how he operates while he did nothing in the Senate. He was too lazy to even vote on the issues, the very job he was hired for. Then a bunch of dumb sheep turn him into a messiah, a literal messiah. Moving his lips a lot appears to be his best attribute. Fixing things and doing work? NOT!

[jeb]

Great post, Irprn - too bad we don't have more voters in this country that has the ability to take an active interest in what is going on.

I enjoy having a good discussion - can usually take either side. But not after what has been happening in this country over the last 20 years or so.

The Republicans have been very, very good at dividing people up into little groups and appealing to a single issue to them - gun control to the NRA (BTW, I used to be a member there as well.), pro-live, church in government. They have been very good at getting each of these little groups to vote on a single issue and to totally overlook the big picture.

They should have been good at it - they have had the backing of some of the best PR firms in the world to help them.

That is what I find so amazing is to now watch as the GOP is totally falling apart now. One wonders what happened to the smart people running it - not that I will complain? - jb

[jeb]

I'm sorry -

I just can't help it.

It was reported that the top 8 states in porn are all red states. - jb

[mgmadara]

Stalin was referring to the left in this country. Keep looking. You'll find it.

Sorry, you quoted it as history you prove that it exists and place a link here. If you can't do that I'll have to assume that your "historical quote" was taken way out of context and has no bearing on the liberals of today.

I did not garner that info from Rush though I'm disappointed he took today off. Mark Stein is sitting in for him. You should listen.

Actually, I was listening earlier, just like I occasionally listen to Rush. I usually turn it off when he says something so ridiculous that I can't understand how any intelligent american would believe it. When a couple is divorcing there are 3 sides - his side, her side and the truth which is somewhere in the middle. The same goes with politics. You have the right and left wing extremists and their opinions, but the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

The left often uses quotes from our enemies as defense against GWB and other upstanding Americans.

So why is is wrong for the the left to do it but OK if you do it? That's what makes this entire thread so pathetic. Each party is loaded with hypocrites and nothing will ever get solved. The right wingers are whining about the same things the left wingers were whining about 8 years ago. It's ruining our country and it's childish.

Today's liberals are worse for this country than they were 50 years ago. In fact, 50 years ago most liberals would be considered conservatives by today's standards.

You speak of the "communist supporters". Who do you think they were? Who has supported communism for decades here in the USA? Who still supports communism and anti-capitalism? It is liberals. And that ain't laughable. It's disgusting.

More ridiculous generalizations. There is no doubt that there are some liberals in this country who support communism just like the republican party has the extreme evangelicals. That certainly doesn't mean that all liberals or conservatives are extreme or bad.

[OhioFiler]

Mea culpa - missed that - thanks for the correction.

Since there's been so much in the media since Obama's election, I didn't want to be insulting posting examples of his bipartisan efforts. However, since you appear to be residing in a carefully censored news world, here you go:
- Kept a Republican, Robert Gates, as his Secretary of Defense -
- Asked a Republican, New Hampshire senator Judd Gregg, to be his Secretary of Commerce. Gregg accepted then withdrew himself - http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/...rce/index.html
- Here's an excellent 2/17/09 non-partisan article from Forbes (a conservative publication) that brings balance to the "Is Obama bipartisan?" discussion. Even this writer recognizes that Obama was trying to reach across party lines but was being rebuffed by the other side over ideology differences - http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/17/dem..._gerstein.html

"Obama knows as well as anyone that America is facing a profound crisis of confidence--not just in our economy, but even more so in our political and business leaders. And he knows that to get through this tenuous period whole, we can't afford to have half the Congress opposing him at every step and half the country questioning the legitimacy of every solution that moves on the Hill. Forget about gridlock--that's a recipe for meltdown.

That's why Obama continued to reach out to Republicans even when it appeared that almost all of them would vote against the stimulus bill. He knows that he can't close the trust deficit outside Washington if it persists and possibly worsens in it. And he knows that changing the hard-dying habits of hyper-partisanship, as he suggested at his prime-time press conference, will be a long-term proposition."

Hmmmm....not correct. Quoted from the Congressional Quarterly's 'Republicans Urge Obama to Amend Stimulus Plan' on Jan 27, 2009 *BEFORE* the stimulus plan went to a vote:
"House Republican leaders, who earlier blasted the $825 billion stimulus package the House is about to tackle, emerged from a meeting with President Obama on Tuesday praising his willingness to consider their ideas for changing it.

Their Senate counterparts, always less vociferous in their attacks on the plan, also welcomed Obama's efforts to court the minority. He met with them for nearly an hour after a 75-minute session with House GOP members."

Obviously Obama did not (as you put it) "refuse to consider any Republican proposals". Obama listened. Some Republican suggestions from the meeting actually were included in the stimulus plan - the tax cuts for 95% of Americans, for example.

Proof to you and extreme right-wing conservatives, perhaps. Still don['t see any collaborative, independent sources that support your opinion. Of course, you are entitled to believe whatever you wish. Just don't jump to the conclusion that because you believe it, it must be so.

For me, your points of view are just more mouthing of Republican right-wing extremist talking points that are, at best, carefully edited and scripted exaggerations, and at worst, deliberate, deceptive lies to maintain the status quo of destructive partisanship.

A conservative who just happens to state a belief in many of the same talking points that right-wing Republican extremists believe fervently too. Hmmmm....walks like a duck, talks like a duck....all too often it's ends up being a duck

On this we agree. The problem is that the original conservative priniciples we were founded on have morphed into the 'conservative principles' the Republican party touts now. The current conservative movement in the US started as a political ideology in the early 1950s, not in the 1790s. Read all about the history of the conservative movement in this country across many parties and changes in beliefs over the last 200+ years here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conserv..._United_States

It's never too late to learn that things are not always exactly as we would like them to be. I do my very best to be open and pay attention to opposing views to mine, even when it's hard to do so. I dislike the false comfort of cementing my beliefs to the point that when legitimate, objective proof does present itself that my belief is flawed or my opinion not correct, I'm so shut down I'm not willing to listen.

I've listened respectfully to you, OhioFiler, agreed with some of what you said, and provided proof that some of your beliefs are not correct....now have you listened as respectfully to me?

And you know, sometimes it's just fine to agree to disagree and move on too

Bipartisan "efforts" are not bipartisan. Window dressing doesn't qualify as bipartisanship. Obama refused to bend on his stimulus plans and asserted he won the election and didn't have to bend.

I am not in favor of bipartisanship at all. I find it distasteful and fraught with surrendering one's ideology. Why would anyone do that? As an example, why would I vote to support federal funding of abortion if my core beliefs are pro-life? That would mean I have no core.

History will prove me correct as it proved Ronald Reagan correct.

I'm happy to agree to disagree. One thing I'm passionate about is politics yet I have no problem setting politics aside when it comes to anyone. I don't hold one's political opinion against them. I merely recognize that as liberals they are wrong in that regard. I can sit and have a beer with anyone, including those I find their politics scary. I'd sit with anyone on this site and enjoy a beer and enjoy their company regardless of their politics.

[OhioFiler]

OK, since you claim this to be "history" please show me Stalin's quote calling liberals useful idiots. The only thing I can find is that Stalin called the communist supporters in the west, useful idiots. How you can equate communist supporters from more than 50 years ago with liberals today is beyond me. It's a huge generalization and laughable. My question is are you the one that made this ridiculous generalization or was it Rush? If it was you, and since this isn't name calling, your thought process is laughable. Besides, using quotes from Stalin against liberals is as ridiculous as using quotes from Bin Laden against Bush.

Stalin was referring to the left in this country. Keep looking. You'll find it. I did not garner that info from Rush though I'm disappointed he took today off. Mark Stein is sitting in for him. You should listen.

The left often uses quotes from our enemies as defense against GWB and other upstanding Americans.

Today's liberals are worse for this country than they were 50 years ago. In fact, 50 years ago most liberals would be considered conservatives by today's standards.

You speak of the "communist supporters". Who do you think they were? Who has supported communism for decades here in the USA? Who still supports communism and anti-capitalism? It is liberals. And that ain't laughable. It's disgusting.