Angriest Democrat in Congress pretty angry at Obama

We’re seeing a number of Democrats (and doubtless a couple of Republicans as well) preparing to pack up their things and go home when their current terms end. A variety of reasons are given, each valid in their own way. Some are getting on in years and looking forward to retirement and spending more time with their families. Others may wish to explore other opportunities in the private sector, while some may have released photos of themselves in Tigger suits.

But as Jennifer DePaul of the Fiscal Times points out, Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D-CA 18) has a somewhat different motivation. He’s angry, and he doesn’t care who knows it. The target of his wrath? None other than President Obama.

Cardoza, 52, recently announced he is retiring from Congress next year and says his decision partly stems from frustration with the White House and what he terms widespread government ineptitude in handling the housing crisis. “The housing crisis is our economic cancer,” Cardoza told The Fiscal Times during a recent interview in his office. “Until we fix that, cure that ailment, provide the right chemotherapy or radiation, we are not going to get out of the economic crisis that we are in. The president has been putting Band-Aids on the housing market instead of fixing the root cause.”

Cardoza complained that Obama broke his word by not keeping housing at the forefront of his agenda to jumpstart the economy. “I’m sorry, but you are President of the damn United States of America,” Cardoza said of Obama’s policies. “You have to do what is right for the country and not worry about the political ramifications. I don’t know how this president got so off kilter with the message. He did such a good job in the last election and he has been so tone deaf since.”

Mr. Cardoza is apparently upset about a promise Barack Obama made shortly after being sworn in, where he promised to dump $50B into helping underwater mortgage holders get a better deal. Thus far barely $2.6B of the cash has been doled out, and the congressman is clearly disappointed.

All the details are to be found at the Fiscal Times piece, but if I might make one suggestion to Cardoza? When referring to either the president or the nation at large, you might want to skip the “damn” as a preface for the United States of America.

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