Obama Press Conference
February 9th, 2009 by Jon Taplin
I was very impressed with President Obama’s first Prime Time Press Conference. His ability to answer complicated questions completely was quite amazing. Maybe after eight years of George Bush, the bar was set pretty low, but you couldn’t help seeing that Obama is a man of immense intellect and good sense. He pretty much jammed everyone of the insipid neo-Hooverite arguments into the wastebasket.
What a nice change.
My wife had it on while I sat here surfing.
He certainly isn’t Goober, I’ll say that. He got pretty long-winded on some of his answers, and quite frankly, dull. But I’ve thought every press conference I ever heard was dull. His opening statement was pretty effective; it was the rambling answers to the questions that were dull.
Dull maybe, but not infantile or insulting to the intelligence.
My wife had it on while I sat here surfing.
He certainly isn’t Goober, I’ll say that. He got pretty long-winded on some of his answers, and quite frankly, dull. But I’ve thought every press conference I ever heard was dull. His opening statement was pretty effective; it was the rambling answers to the questions that were dull.
Dull maybe, but not infantile or insulting to the intelligence.
Yes, but:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/02/09/state_secrets/index.html
My opinion of him as president (you know, that whole ‘protect the Constitution’ thing) just dropped a whole lot.
Yes, but:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/02/09/state_secrets/index.html
My opinion of him as president (you know, that whole ‘protect the Constitution’ thing) just dropped a whole lot.
In addition, he’s sold the DoJ to the RIAA. It’s doubtful that any meaningful or intelligent progress will be made on copyright reform now.
I get the feeling that Obama’s a great man with a great plan that’s been placed in a protective bubble and fed information that makes him think things are going according to his plan, but in reality the entrenched interests are doing what they will outside the bubble.
As soon as the election was over, the entrenched interests have been working to short-circuit every decent idea Obama’s had. Who the hell picked out this cabinet and staff for him? Either he’s been lying about “changing the way Washington works”, sadly betrayed by his closest allies, or victim of the same alien mind control that had ahold of Bush.
Great man, business-as-usual staff.
In addition, he’s sold the DoJ to the RIAA. It’s doubtful that any meaningful or intelligent progress will be made on copyright reform now.
I get the feeling that Obama’s a great man with a great plan that’s been placed in a protective bubble and fed information that makes him think things are going according to his plan, but in reality the entrenched interests are doing what they will outside the bubble.
As soon as the election was over, the entrenched interests have been working to short-circuit every decent idea Obama’s had. Who the hell picked out this cabinet and staff for him? Either he’s been lying about “changing the way Washington works”, sadly betrayed by his closest allies, or victim of the same alien mind control that had ahold of Bush.
Great man, business-as-usual staff.
Barack Obama, having personally authorised the murder of Pakistani nationals (by an act of war against the soveriegn nation of Pakistan – invading it’s airspace and using unmanned drones to drop explosives on people) is already guilty of crimes against humanity through ratified U.S treaties (thus constitutionally mandated U.S law).
The hope that he’ll imporve the lot of U.S citizens and mitigate U.S inteference and incompetence around the world still stands though – there’s a lot of room for improvement while still remaining, unfortunately, less than civil.
Barack Obama, having personally authorised the murder of Pakistani nationals (by an act of war against the soveriegn nation of Pakistan – invading it’s airspace and using unmanned drones to drop explosives on people) is already guilty of crimes against humanity through ratified U.S treaties (thus constitutionally mandated U.S law).
The hope that he’ll imporve the lot of U.S citizens and mitigate U.S inteference and incompetence around the world still stands though – there’s a lot of room for improvement while still remaining, unfortunately, less than civil.
Fentex-Get a grip.
Fentex-Get a grip.
I hope I keep a grip on reality.
Politicians are constrained by circumstance and the possible and it can’t surprise anyone that Obama cannot turn the U.S’s ship of state on a dime nor that in all matters he’s going to want to turn it as each of us might please.
But knowing that he’s not going to be different in all things (through choice or circumstance) does not change facts about his personal responsibility for his actions.
I’d betray my own concience if I named Bush and Blair murderers and not others who make the same choices when given them.
Of course I can make a distinction between starting wars of aggression murdering tens of thousands and, perhaps temporarily, continuing policy murdering dozens.
But it’s a distinction of scale, not type.
I hope I keep a grip on reality.
Politicians are constrained by circumstance and the possible and it can’t surprise anyone that Obama cannot turn the U.S’s ship of state on a dime nor that in all matters he’s going to want to turn it as each of us might please.
But knowing that he’s not going to be different in all things (through choice or circumstance) does not change facts about his personal responsibility for his actions.
I’d betray my own concience if I named Bush and Blair murderers and not others who make the same choices when given them.
Of course I can make a distinction between starting wars of aggression murdering tens of thousands and, perhaps temporarily, continuing policy murdering dozens.
But it’s a distinction of scale, not type.
It occurs to me that there was room for misunderstanding in my first comment.
Someone might think that I held Obama responsible for actions outside his direct control, that I called him responsible for a decision made in the field by someone else.
I specificially mean that he made a personal decision to give presidential approval to actions (drone attacks into Pakistan) when authority was properly sought.
It occurs to me that there was room for misunderstanding in my first comment.
Someone might think that I held Obama responsible for actions outside his direct control, that I called him responsible for a decision made in the field by someone else.
I specificially mean that he made a personal decision to give presidential approval to actions (drone attacks into Pakistan) when authority was properly sought.
It occurs to me that there was room for misunderstanding in my first comment.
Someone might think that I held Obama responsible for actions outside his direct control, that I called him responsible for a decision made in the field by someone else.
I specificially mean that he made a personal decision to give presidential approval to actions (drone attacks into Pakistan) when authority was properly sought.
Wow, it appears people did not want a new President, they wanted a miracle worker. The man has just been in office three weeks. People now want him to turn around a country that has been driven in the ground for eight plus years in three weeks.
If we had been fortunate enough to have this much attention paid to Bush in his first term he never would have made it to the second disastrous term.
There has been lots of talk in the media about evaluating the first hundred days which some feel is putting too much pressure on an administration. I guess we have now succumbed to the firsts 21 days.
I have hope for this President if we just give him a little room to work and maybe a few months.
Wow, it appears people did not want a new President, they wanted a miracle worker. The man has just been in office three weeks. People now want him to turn around a country that has been driven in the ground for eight plus years in three weeks.
If we had been fortunate enough to have this much attention paid to Bush in his first term he never would have made it to the second disastrous term.
There has been lots of talk in the media about evaluating the first hundred days which some feel is putting too much pressure on an administration. I guess we have now succumbed to the firsts 21 days.
I have hope for this President if we just give him a little room to work and maybe a few months.
Wow, it appears people did not want a new President, they wanted a miracle worker. The man has just been in office three weeks. People now want him to turn around a country that has been driven in the ground for eight plus years in three weeks.
If we had been fortunate enough to have this much attention paid to Bush in his first term he never would have made it to the second disastrous term.
There has been lots of talk in the media about evaluating the first hundred days which some feel is putting too much pressure on an administration. I guess we have now succumbed to the firsts 21 days.
I have hope for this President if we just give him a little room to work and maybe a few months.
AMusing — “Change you can believe in.”
Short-change?
You don’t change a culture overnight, that’s for sure. But “change” in government is not like a sunrise, where everything gets illuminated and revealed all at once. It’s a stringing together of actions, that are driven and informed by certain principles and goals, keeping in mind that there’s a buttload of Red Fifth Columnists filling the high-middle and lower ranks after 30+ years of “becoming an Imperial government.” Most of whom will be fighting rear-guard actions, just like the Carterites I worked with at EPA when the Reagan people came in with their “smaller government” BS and the notion that the public treasury should be opened to Big Business, and that individual rights were “quaint notions” and the Constitution was merely a set of suggestions or considerations to be dismissed when inconvenient or invoked when it served some Imperial interest.
But like the old ladies in the burger commercial, I have to ask, even after only 3 weeks, “Where’s the beef?” There have been enough actions now to start to get a disturbing picture of where “Hope&Change” might be taking us.
Along with AMusing, I am skeptical that the new guys and gals on the block are really either committed to, or able to, make things better for the average schmuck. Or even move “us” toward a sustainable, even meta-stable world. There’s already more of business-as-it-has-been done than appears consistent with all the hoopla about advance work and great plans and systems to undo the systems that were spelled out in such gloating and Macchiavellian detail in “Mandate For Leadership” and other holy texts of what we too respectfully call The Right.
“State secrets.” Wonder if we’ll ever really get to know What’s Up, or if it will just be “Wag The Dog” and “1984″ forever.
AMusing — “Change you can believe in.”
Short-change?
You don’t change a culture overnight, that’s for sure. But “change” in government is not like a sunrise, where everything gets illuminated and revealed all at once. It’s a stringing together of actions, that are driven and informed by certain principles and goals, keeping in mind that there’s a buttload of Red Fifth Columnists filling the high-middle and lower ranks after 30+ years of “becoming an Imperial government.” Most of whom will be fighting rear-guard actions, just like the Carterites I worked with at EPA when the Reagan people came in with their “smaller government” BS and the notion that the public treasury should be opened to Big Business, and that individual rights were “quaint notions” and the Constitution was merely a set of suggestions or considerations to be dismissed when inconvenient or invoked when it served some Imperial interest.
But like the old ladies in the burger commercial, I have to ask, even after only 3 weeks, “Where’s the beef?” There have been enough actions now to start to get a disturbing picture of where “Hope&Change” might be taking us.
Along with AMusing, I am skeptical that the new guys and gals on the block are really either committed to, or able to, make things better for the average schmuck. Or even move “us” toward a sustainable, even meta-stable world. There’s already more of business-as-it-has-been done than appears consistent with all the hoopla about advance work and great plans and systems to undo the systems that were spelled out in such gloating and Macchiavellian detail in “Mandate For Leadership” and other holy texts of what we too respectfully call The Right.
“State secrets.” Wonder if we’ll ever really get to know What’s Up, or if it will just be “Wag The Dog” and “1984″ forever.
AMusing — “Change you can believe in.”
Short-change?
You don’t change a culture overnight, that’s for sure. But “change” in government is not like a sunrise, where everything gets illuminated and revealed all at once. It’s a stringing together of actions, that are driven and informed by certain principles and goals, keeping in mind that there’s a buttload of Red Fifth Columnists filling the high-middle and lower ranks after 30+ years of “becoming an Imperial government.” Most of whom will be fighting rear-guard actions, just like the Carterites I worked with at EPA when the Reagan people came in with their “smaller government” BS and the notion that the public treasury should be opened to Big Business, and that individual rights were “quaint notions” and the Constitution was merely a set of suggestions or considerations to be dismissed when inconvenient or invoked when it served some Imperial interest.
But like the old ladies in the burger commercial, I have to ask, even after only 3 weeks, “Where’s the beef?” There have been enough actions now to start to get a disturbing picture of where “Hope&Change” might be taking us.
Along with AMusing, I am skeptical that the new guys and gals on the block are really either committed to, or able to, make things better for the average schmuck. Or even move “us” toward a sustainable, even meta-stable world. There’s already more of business-as-it-has-been done than appears consistent with all the hoopla about advance work and great plans and systems to undo the systems that were spelled out in such gloating and Macchiavellian detail in “Mandate For Leadership” and other holy texts of what we too respectfully call The Right.
“State secrets.” Wonder if we’ll ever really get to know What’s Up, or if it will just be “Wag The Dog” and “1984″ forever.
From these comments, I don’t think progressives understand what a profound change the Recovery Act is about to make in our country. When it’s all done I will try to explain further.
The Republicans understand they have already lost, as only 36 Republican Senators showed up for yesterday’s crucial vote.
From these comments, I don’t think progressives understand what a profound change the Recovery Act is about to make in our country. When it’s all done I will try to explain further.
The Republicans understand they have already lost, as only 36 Republican Senators showed up for yesterday’s crucial vote.
Ha, business as usual….the king has no clothes.
Ha, business as usual….the king has no clothes.
Ha, business as usual….the king has no clothes.
I’m with you Jon. There is this current school of thought among liberals (and I think encourage by conservatives) that if Obama doesn’t effect immediate and sweeping change in every facet of life, then he has failed. That anything other than total and overwhelming victory is a defeat. And that is a patently ridiculous notion.
We’re about to pass one of the most progressive spending bills since the New Deal. And this isn’t his budget: this is a special allocation, much of which is going towards progressive aims. Is it perfect? Not even close. But it represents such a sea-change from where this country stood only months ago, that I don’t understand the wailing and rending of clothing.
Does it suck that there are many members of Congress who put partisanship and electoral maneuvering ahead of what is actually good for this country? Completely. But how is that Obama’s fault? Despite the last 8 years, we do actually live in a democracy. Obama is going to push this bill through and in the end it will have far more good than bad in it. It is a start. And a start that is firmly in the right direction, even if it isn’t all the way to where most of us want.
This is a long term struggle. An attempt to rebuild this country after forty years of concerted conservative efforts to tear it down.
I’m with you Jon. There is this current school of thought among liberals (and I think encourage by conservatives) that if Obama doesn’t effect immediate and sweeping change in every facet of life, then he has failed. That anything other than total and overwhelming victory is a defeat. And that is a patently ridiculous notion.
We’re about to pass one of the most progressive spending bills since the New Deal. And this isn’t his budget: this is a special allocation, much of which is going towards progressive aims. Is it perfect? Not even close. But it represents such a sea-change from where this country stood only months ago, that I don’t understand the wailing and rending of clothing.
Does it suck that there are many members of Congress who put partisanship and electoral maneuvering ahead of what is actually good for this country? Completely. But how is that Obama’s fault? Despite the last 8 years, we do actually live in a democracy. Obama is going to push this bill through and in the end it will have far more good than bad in it. It is a start. And a start that is firmly in the right direction, even if it isn’t all the way to where most of us want.
This is a long term struggle. An attempt to rebuild this country after forty years of concerted conservative efforts to tear it down.
I’m not so confident that that the Recovery Act is going to make a dramatic difference — and of course it will be impossible to know for sure. We don’t get to do a controlled experiment in which we pass the Recovery Act in one parallel world and don’t pass it in another world.
But it is very clear that Progressives are in a stronger position today than at this time in 1993. Back then a much more modest stimulus was a political “bridge too far”. We should acknowledge that bit of ‘progress’. You could make an argument that President Obama has managed this stimulus bill better than President Clinton did. But of course, the economic situation is worse too.
Also, please be careful about your choice of language in naming Obama’s critics on the ‘left’. Call them Liberals too often and you’ll reinforce the High Broderist “centrism = wisdom” meme that empowers the Rump Republican conference (chairman Rush L.)
Be clear that people who make very forceful objections to a very narrow policy position aren’t automatically speaking for some big movement called “Liberalism” or “Progressivism” etc. They are simply trying to put an idea into greater currency. They are playing the ‘bad cop’ in our national debate with the right. It’s smart politics to position yourself in support of Obama as the ‘good cop’ who “isn’t so obsessive about civil liberties” or whatever the issue. But don’t throw the whole of “Liberalism” under the bus when you distance yourself from someone who lets out a Cassandra-esque cri de coeur. That’s Rush Limbaugh’s job. Don’t do it for him.
Regarding drones bombing in Pakistan – new information casts new light on the situation.
Where it appeared befroe that the U.S was invading Pakistan soveriegnty with the drones Diane Feinstein has let it slip that the drones operate form bases within Pakistan.
Suggesting cooperation and private permission from Pakistan authorities even while they posture publically about U.S aggression.
In which case Obama does not appear guilty of authorising assaults on Pakistan soveriegnty.