A Civil War Rages in Obamaland

posted at 4:01 pm on July 19, 2009 by Michael van der Galien
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When it rains, it pours. It may be a cliché, but hey, it’s true. Here are some headlines from major newspapers and blogs:

“Centrist Dems talking health care coalition with Republicans” (The Hill)

“Alliances in Health Debate Splinter” (Washington Post)

“Obama losing some support among moderate Dems” (Associated Press)

“Democrats Grow Wary as Health Bill Advances” (New York Times)

“What’s next, Mr President – Cardigans?: Obama’s Domestic Agenda Teeters” (Washington Post)

“He Needs Some Serious Self-Reflection” (Commentary)

“Obama no longer stressing August deadline for passing health reform bill” (Politico)

From day one, Obama made one major mistake: he thought he could use his personal popularity to pull the country to the left. Sadly for him, however, America still is very much a center-right country. Americans voted for him last year, when he still was the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate, yes, but they did so because they thought he was actually a moderate.

It only took voters a couple of months before they realized they had made a tragic mistake. Obama is many things, but moderate is not one of ‘em. He was not only the most liberal member of the US Senate, he is also quickly becoming the most liberal president in history.

As a result his approval rating drops – fast. The latest Rasmussen polls show that only 52% of voters say they somewhat approve of his policies. That’s a reasonable score after five or six years in office, not after five or six months.

So voters rebel, and congressmen follow along. Career politicians care about one thing only: their jobs. Their future. Centrist Democrats know they can forget about reelection if they continue to support Obama’s far-left plans. So they turn against him with a vengeance.

And what does Obama do? Instead of reaching out and taking their concerns serious, he declares war on them. His political machine – originally designed to take on Republicans – is now used to target moderate Dems, who dare criticize his ineffective yet expensive health care plans.

Shorter: the coalition behind Obama is falling apart. We see it happening before our very eyes.

And the beauty of it? He only has himself to blame. Everyone knows that a Democratic president can only be successful if he governs like a centrist – like Bill Clinton did. Obama thought – him being the Messiah and all – that different rules applied to him. He came into office, and used his popularity to push one after another far-left plan to Congress. Sadly for him, fiscal conservatives and, yes, Independents paid attention. The result: civil war in Obamaland.

Mission self-destruction continues unabated.

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