If that wasn't a mistake, then I've totally misjudged the President.

Good Point. It was the start of the trashing of the LEFT NETROOTS who energized Dem Party from the time Bush II Stole the Election and then our PUSH BACK against IRAQ INVASION!

We shoulda KNOWN...the DEM LEFT (used to be Mainstream) would be TRASHED for
our INSURRECTION: Al Gore, Howard Dean, Dennis Kucinich, John Edwards (Two Americas).....?????

And...we have been.

bonded with the past. With all the continuum that infers. Independents seem to be more in the moment, rather than either/or.

At this point and for elections, particularly 2016, a D beside their name and vote works for me. Sometimes the Big Tent does seem awfully sprawled out, however. But no chance of groups like the Tea Party regressives finding a place. There is a Big "D" Difference.

My take on Obama, I think he is ever conscious of his place in history as carrying the load of the first black American President. It has been frustrating for many of us, but history will judge him well, I believe. Also, he's got 3 more years yet to go.

just can't quite comprehend how awful and despicable the Repugs are. And who can really blame him? It is sort of astounding.

There was a post last week on DU in which a DUer said that someone he knew (either a staffer or perhaps he heard it from his representative) that Bohner was actually quite pleasant while out smoking or something and would joke around and stuff. Yeah, and Hitler was nice to his secretaries and dogs. Before anybody gets any ideas, I'm not saying Bohner is like Hitler, but the point is that as utterly disgusting as Hitler was, he didn't behave like a slathering monster all the time. He could play by the polite rules of society at times, when it served him.

I think that people sometimes don't realize that -- that people can be horrible and yet if you have a passing interaction with them (or even more than that - ifyou are 'on their side', they don't need anything from you, etc), you may not pick up on it. People were so shocked that monster Ted Bundy didn't look like ... whatever they thought a monster like that should look like. That's the point though -- REALLY bad, psychotic people can mimic "normal" behavior. So, why couldn't someone like Bohner and his ilk in congress come across as ok people when they want to?

So, I think that is probably the mistake that Pres. Obama (and Sen. Obama) has made -- thinking that because these people can be ok at time that they are somehow reasonable.

"Go Along to Get Along."

I think many of us have had to deal with that kind of set up somewhere along the line.

Who knows how we would and have reacted...but, if we were President and the weight of it is around our shoulders for our Legacy in History.

Or just wanted to believe the best in others. I'd rather think there weren't people as horrible as the Republicans seem to be out there.