Obama Is No Victim of the Right Wing

Alternet
July 25, 2011
by Jeff Cohen

In a campaign almost as frenzied as the effort to get Barack Obama into the White House, liberal groups are now mobilizing against the White House and reported deals that would cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits. They accuse President Obama of being weak and willing to “cave” to corporate and conservative forces bent on cutting the social safety net while protecting the wealthy. Those accusations are wrong.

The accusations imply that Obama is on our side. Or was on our side. And that the right wing is pushing him around.

But the evidence is clear that Obama is an often-willing servant of corporate interests -- not someone reluctantly doing their bidding, or serving their interests only because Republicans forced him to. Since coming to Washington, Obama has allied himself with Wall Street Democrats who put corporate deregulation and greed ahead of the needs of most Americans.

In 2006, a relatively new Senator Obama was the only senator to speak at the inaugural gathering of the Alexander Hamilton Project launched by Wall Street Democrats like Robert Rubin and Roger Altman, Bill Clinton’s treasury secretary and deputy secretary. Obama praised them as “innovative, thoughtful policymakers.” (It was Rubin’s crusade to deregulate Wall Street in the late ‘90s that led directly to the economic meltdown of 2008 and our current crisis.)

<snip>

Link: http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/151777/obama_is_no_victim_of_the_right_wing_--_he%27s_pandered_to_corporate_interests_for_years/

...like it or not. More often than not, it's true.

hush and eat their peas. :patriot:

saying about FDR when he could not deliver on EVERY legislative policy that liberals wanted pass on day one of his presidency...this is the norm for some liberals...they expect change to happen all at once...FDR had to explain this to his base that change takes baby steps...

before you can take "baby steps" forward?

get real....puhlease www.whatthefuckhasobamadonesofar.com

:eyes:

but are you saying that everything listed on the site I gave you is a lie? I know it goes against the obama narrative here but its fact....facts have to start to have meaning here at DU...can't just brush it off....

they don't fit your meme?

I would say change can happen very quickly. Look at deregulation, the economic policies, the destruction of the bill of rights which took place under Clinton and Bush. 12 years of digging produces a deep hole.

It took them less than a week to "Bail Out" Wall Street.
THAT was a HUGE step in the blink of the eye.
"They" can take BIG steps.....when they want to.

I disagree.

"the evidence is clear that Obama is an often-willing servant of corporate interests"

I was asking for you to be specific with regards to the criteria that the author laid out as evidence for his claim that Obama is an often-willing servant of corporate interests. Instead of refuting the specific arguments laid out, you provided a basic "how about the entire premise". Fail. Just because you don't like the truth, it does not mean that your simply saying it is "false" makes it so. Dispute the specifics, or simply state that while the specific arguments are true, you have no problem overlooking them.

Here is a list of the top campaign contributors to President Obama's 2008 campaign.

University of California $1,642,735
Goldman Sachs $1,012,841
Harvard University $862,604
Microsoft Corp $852,167
Google Inc $814,540
JPMorgan Chase & Co $807,799
Citigroup Inc $736,771
Time Warner $623,118
Sidley Austin LLP $600,298
Stanford University $595,716
National Amusements Inc $563,548
WilmerHale Llp $549,918
Skadden, Arps et al $543,539
Columbia University $536,202
UBS AG $532,674
IBM Corp $532,372
General Electric $528,180
US Government $517,908
Morgan Stanley $512,232
Latham & Watkins $502,045

Politicians dance with who brung them. Obama is a politician.

John McCain's contributor list:

Merrill Lynch $375,895
JPMorgan Chase & Co $343,505
Citigroup Inc $338,202
Morgan Stanley $271,902
Goldman Sachs $240,295
US Government $202,929
AT&T Inc $201,938
Wachovia Corp $199,663
UBS AG $187,493
Credit Suisse Group $184,153
PricewaterhouseCoopers $169,400
US Army $169,020
Bank of America $167,826
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher $160,346
Blank Rome LLP $155,226
Greenberg Traurig LLP $147,437
US Dept of Defense $146,356
FedEx Corp $131,974
Lehman Brothers $126,557
Ernst & Young $114,50

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=n00009638

This table lists the top donors to this candidate in the 2008 election cycle. The organizations themselves did not donate , rather the money came from the organization's PAC, its individual members or employees or owners, and those individuals' immediate families. Organization totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.

Because of contribution limits, organizations that bundle together many individual contributions are often among the top donors to presidential candidates. These contributions can come from the organization's members or employees (and their families). The organization may support one candidate, or hedge its bets by supporting multiple candidates. Groups with national networks of donors - like EMILY's List and Club for Growth - make for particularly big bundlers.

Also, individual contributions made up 88% of the President's campaign contributions.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/summary.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00009638

The American people "brought" Obama to the White House. However, he has do dance within the boundaries of our Democracy.

Gives kind of a warm and fuzzy feeling. Unfortunately our 'representative' government has proven otherwise. I believe in the ideals of Democracy and our constitution. I also believe the current form of government is not a democracy. Corruption and election fraud, unrestricted access of lobbyists are just a few things which have thwarted the government 'of the people'.
As an example the 2008 crash was handled in this country by funneling over a trillion dollars of taxpayer money to the financial institutions. They are now on track to making record profits. In Germany the government allowed corporations/employers to cut wages, instead of a big giveaway to financial interests, they back filled the lost wages. Their economy recovered quickly, few lost jobs.
Which is a democracy and which is a corporate oligarchy?

people who don't think alike. It's a shame that so many work to erode confidence in Demorats vs. help more get elected so that we can boldly move the country leftward.

Regarding Germany - you're suggesting that the US Government stood in the way of corporations cutting wages? I think you're outing yourself. :rofl:

I am sorry you read that into what I wrote. I meant neither to imply or state that. What I was referring to is the Trillon plus American taxpayer dollars given to financial institutions vs. the approach Germany took to address the same crisis.
and what pray tell am I outing myself as?

;)

You're outing yourself ... as a person who believes that paying people less is a great idea.

As such, there's nothing to refute. Oh ... I suppose I could point out the fact that HCR faced unprecedented corporate resistance? Or, that Obama formed a Consumer Protection agency? Or, that Obama signed the most sweeping Wall Street reform bill since the Great Depression? But, why bother when some would rather pretend Obama is a stealth Republican.

...has stood up and said "NO" to the Big Corporate Interests?
.
.
.
.
.
I'll wait.
.
.
.
.
.

The Consumer Protection Bureau? Foreclosure prevention programs? Wall Street reform? Health Care? Trying to overturn the Bush tax cuts until Republicans refused to allow unemployment extensions, unless he did so? Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act? Increased funding for the EPA?

Here's more: http://obamaachievements.org/list (Pardon any duplicates)

BROAD POLICY:
Assigned a Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program Act of 2009.
Pension relief Act of 2010.
Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act.
Played a lead role in G-20 Summit re: financial crisis.
Reformed deferral rules to curb tax advantages for investing overseas.
Established new offshore investment policy that promotes in-sourcing.

FUNDING:
Cut salaries for 65 bailout executives (Pay Czar).
Banks have repaid 75% of TARP funds, bringing the cost down to $89B as of June 2010.
Closed offshore tax safe havens, tax credit loopholes.

TARGETED ACTIONS:
Created the Financial Stability Oversight Council to monitor stability of the financial system and individual firms (DF).
New requirements for reporting financial data (DF).
Created self-funded Office of Financial Research (OFR) to collect information from financial firms (DF). \
OFR employees must wait a year before working for certain financial firms.
Provided for orderly liquidation of financial companies (DF).
Limited trading activities of banks (Volcker Rule) beginning 2 yrs after passage (DF).
Swaps Pushout Rule prevented federal assistance to swaps (including derivatives) traders (DF).
Derivatives must be traded transparently through a clearing house (DF). ref
Defined the amount and nature of assets required to meet capital requirements (DF).
Originators of asset-backed securities must retain 5% ownership/risk (DF).
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (DF).
Stronger client fiduciary duty for broker-dealers (DF).
Higher standards for securities advertising and disclosures (DF).
Expanded “insider loans” (DF).
Higher standards for sytemically important ($50 billion assets+) institutions, including annual stress tests and restrictions on bank acquisitions (DF).
Executive compensation must be determined by an independent committee (DF).
Issued compensation guidelines for bank executive salary and bonuses.
Financial agencies must establish Offices of Women and Minorities to promote more diverse hiring (DF).
Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act.
Credit CARD Technical Corrections Act of 2009.
Established a credit card bill of rights.
Reformed credit card swipe fees.
Created new criminal penalties for mortgage fraud.
Congress pursued Goldman Sachs for securities violations.
Permanently extended Research and Experimentation Tax Credit for domestic investments.

RESULTS:
(Treasury) Sold 1.5 billion shares of Citigroup at a profit.
G-20 summit produced a $1.1 trillion deal to combat the global financial crisis.
Negotiated deal with Swiss banks to permit US government to gain access to records of tax evaders and criminals.
Financial reform has ‘strongest consumer financial protections in history.’

or coupled to Big Corporate Give Aways that more than counter balanced the Little People crumbs that were showcased in your List.

The Great Wall Street Reforms do not even impose the level of accountability and regulation that were the norm before Clinton undid them (Glass-Steagall), and even the authors of the bill admit they will NOT prevent another heist and meltdown.

Through out the much ballyhooed Credit Card Reforms, the ONE thing that was causing the majority of the problems were the usurious interest rates, which remain un-capped.

As for the rest,
well the proof IS in the pudding:



Cheers.



Who will STAND and FIGHT for THIS American Majority?
You will know them by their WORKS,
not by their excuses.

:eyes:

Well then, Citizens United will not matter, will it? After all, the Koch Brothers and their ilk would obviously love to see Obama re-elected. That's very reassuring, thanks.

Corporate profits are not something that Obama is responsible for, or able to quell. Such profits, are also not a measure of his efficacy in advocating for the rest of us.

Perfect timing.
He did an assessment of the effectiveness of Wall Street/Banking "Reform".
I was much kinder than Jon when I called it Ineffective Window Dressing.

but I tape the show. I'll have to catch it later. :hi:

Mandating that we buy the same old crap from the same old crooks is health care reform?

There is nothing in the Health Insurance Profit Protection Act that guarantees that we'll be able to access care - it only guarantees that the insurance companies will be able to continue to rob us blind.

one is denied. HCR also increases access to medicaid, by upping income limitations.

You're mistaken about HCR not guaranteeing access. We've been over this, however.

...by now. basic hate and the pinched-mind narrative style used to back it are pretty familiar.

54% from McCain's deluded following.

Nope, not the same "Corporate bird".

Although individual contributions sound like a populace movement facts remain the majority of money backing presidential candidates comes from corporations, PACS and the individual doners are those affiliated with said corporations. The Obama campaign spent 750million dollars to get him elected. If each person in the US gave a dollar where did the other 420 odd million come from. The larger the donation the more the voice.

It's working out as best it can, in a democracy that involves Republican representation, as well.

Lastly, who said anything about giving one dollar? :eyes:

But I still contend...Big money big returns. Small money, no returns.
If this is working out 'the best it can' then you accept the artificial/economic limitation of the new American Democracy. If you think this is a government of the people then where are the peoples representatives?
This is not a personal attack but I must say this is a pervasive attitude which has allowed real democracy to be hijacked and manipulated by monied interests.
Popular funding of candidates at the national level can be equated to taxpayer funding of the illegal invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq. Although the former is voluntary the results are the same. There is no benefit to the average American and you get to pay for it. Those in power pick your candidates and once a year or every 2 or 4 years you get to vote for them. This is not a representative democracy. It is the illusion those who believe 'it is working out the best that it can' have bought into.
Ask yourself why the most expensive costs in a campaign is media? Who owns the media (for instance GE owns NBC)and who's interests are they looking out for? Why do you go to Democratic Underground?

Senators had a median reportable net worth of $1.79 million in 2008, the last year such data were available, down from $2.27 million in 2007. House members' median net worth was $645,503 in 2008, down from $724,258 the previous year.

While about 1 percent of Americans are considered millionaires, 44 percent of members of Congress were in that category. Fifty members had wealth topping $10 million.

democracy. I oppose rulings like Citizens United. But, unlike you, I realize that Obama isn't the problem. He's a victim, just like the rest of us.

In a government of, by and for the people we have all had something to do with monied interests taking over. Obama is not a victim nor are the rest of us. The victim is our democracy.

corporate interests. Unfortunately, the President IS included in the list of victims.

x

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It is a fully bought out and paid for shill for the TBTF's.

cause I hoped for change. I should have looked into who his friends where in Chicago, i.e. Geithner, before getting to hopeful about economic change.

My bad.

Peace,
Tex Shelters

I didn't support Obama in the primary. But alas, the two party monopoly won again.


Peace,
Tex Shelters