The election of America’s first Black President was supposed to be a celebrated milestone. Now, after six grueling years into Obama’s presidency, the jury is in. It appears America was not ready for an African-American to take the highest office. Nor a woman.
What held Obama back? First and foremost is the Republican Party which embraced Karl Rove’s edict to be in a constant state of war against the Democratic Party, including all its elected officials. Rove poisoned American politics. No longer is there a time when Americans support the President in office no matter what stripe. Honeymoon period? Hell, no! Republican leaders met in private the night of Obama’s first inaugural in 2009 to plot his downfall.
Even critical foreign policy decisions are brought into partisan combat. What used to be forbidden is now fair game, including sending treasonous letters lambasting the President to the nation’s prime enemies. (How would have Republicans reacted if Democratic senators had written such an undermining letter to the Ayatollah when Bush or Reagan was in office at a time when negotiating an arms deal?) The “water’s edge” tradition has been forever shattered. There are now no limits to Rove’s war to construct a permanent Republican majority.
Another element holding Obama back is the Democratic Party’s misperception of the Republican Party. With all the intelligence at their disposal, why didn’t they recognize what the opposition was up to? The Republican Party is the Confederacy of the 21st Century. The sooner Democratic leaders acknowledge this, the better.
One-third of the nation remains obstinate in their narrow world view. No climate change, 6,000 year-old planet, racial superiority, anti-unionism, pro-gun, anti-gay, male dominance, birthers, all-Muslims-are-evil. They cuddle a belief system that nearly borders on medieval flat-earthism. Social conservatives and the religious right are Confederate descendants who will not and cannot evolve into conciliatory moderates. Red-State America has more latent racism than Afrikaners in South Africa – once immersed in apartheid. The advent of Hillary will only agitate similar predispositions. An easy prediction.
It’s not Barack Obama’s fault; it’s America’s fault-line. Obama was the innocent instrument that ripped the scab off America’s nasty old wound that most believed healed after the civil rights enactments of the 60s. Furthermore, most Americans believed the historic fault-line would remain dormant from Civil War days. After all, aren’t we in the 21st Century where demographics are rapidly revolutionizing the landscape?
America, obviously, is misread.
One-third of the country is still mired in images of racial and sexual superiority. While a significant majority elected Obama in 2008 and 2012, one-third of the nation stubbornly refuses to even acknowledge election results and, thus, issues followers license to undermine with no limits. FOX-Murdoch joyfully enable. The fault-line follows the traditional Mason-Dixon – with red pockets scattered over Midwestern and Mountain states.
It infects law enforcement. Not all cops are bad, but like America – it only takes a percentage, maybe mirroring the nation’s 1/3. A few bad apples spoil the barrel.
Baltimore is only one in a series. The inner cities are but kindling wood easily ignited by the next outrageous, unprosecuted murder. The videos of innocent African-American men shot in the back for a broken tail light, their spines severed for no reason, choked to death, or shot several times point-blank with their hands raised should have set off all kinds of alarms. But justice is not just. The one-third contaminates the legal system – just like it does politics.
A few looters burn 19 Baltimore buildings, and America again focuses on the “thugs” but ignores the root cause. And what is the source? One-third of white Americans see themselves as superior, as the super-race. The dial has not moved for decades. Some apes do not evolve.
Unfortunately, Democratic leaders continue to misread. They attribute the unrest to substandard education – as if it’s the panacea for all America’s ills…. An “education” that requires $300,000 post-high school, an enormous student loan unrepayable, and an “education” that offers no job opportunities equal to what the Middle Class earned decades prior. President Obama continues to push TPP – although it promises the next version of NAFTA, which moved one-million good-paying jobs out of the country.
When consuming wood, termites are unconcerned about undermining the big house, their food source. Same for America’s elite. They have no worry that America’s buying power is being eroded by their actions. Short-term profits are their only concern, not the welfare of the nation as a whole. Termites only feast on wood until their house comes tumbling down. Their avarice blinds them to the truth of inevitability. The greedy can only see green short-term.
And the one-third backs the 1% termite elite in its quest to outsource – the one-third consisting of Confederate, slave-loving tradition which admires the rich while holding utter contempt for the poor, especially the Black underprivileged. Few are “Christ-like” among the one-third, yet they claim to be the chosen guardians of the faith. “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” – paraphrased from Sinclair Lewis’ book, IT CAN’T HAPPEN HERE, 1935. (The writing has been attributed to Lewis, yet disputed as an exact quote; although Lewis did write similar throughout his 1935 book.)
Why Obama is falling for their ploy is a complete mystery. His naivety goes beyond not recognizing Republican intents from the get-go – or misreading Baltimore-Ferguson-Charleston-NRA-Newtown-Sanford; or failure to acknowledge a deeply embedded racial hatred among America’s one-third which is driving big-cities into shameful infernos.
Elizabeth Warren is right. If TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) is such a good deal, why can’t Americans see it? The tentative agreement can only be viewed by elected federal officials behind locked doors, and they are not allowed to take notes, make copies, snap pictures, or even talk about it after leaving the room.
Not only is the one-third greatly disturbing, but Obama’s misdiagnosis of America’s disorders. And if he can’t read enemies at home, he can’t read enemies abroad. Intelligence should have predicted Libya, Syria, Ukraine, ISIS, and Yemen with enough actionable information to allow the President to prevent much of the turmoil and international setbacks.
Same on the domestic front. Surely the White House was provided enough intelligence to prevent Baltimore’s burning. The average American has enough common sense to predict that if a video is downloaded by millions showing a young African American’s neck being snapped, violence would follow – no matter how much caution is issued by Black churches attempting to cushion the blow.
What is the cause of Obama’s blind-side? Can he not see the obvious?
No wonder Republicans question Obama’s negotiating abilities with Iran. They see how he misread their intent to destroy him for seven years, so they project that same gullibility upon nuclear talks. And to negotiations with Putin. It’s a vicious cycle. If he can’t read Republicans, he can’t read Russians.
Labor unions see similar with TPP; how the obvious is ignored – allowing the 1% termites to be the pied-piper leading the one-third to force their will upon the whole. America’s house is being undermined by termites. Is anyone paying attention?
Progressives feel their chance to change America’s course has been squandered by the Obama administration. It was our time and Democratic leaders blew it. America’s labor movement also feels let down. Thus, the 2010 and 2014 midterms materialized where progressives stayed home and the hateful one-third racked up huge majorities.
The squandered opportunities during Obama’s time could lead to the demise of Hillary Clinton’s chances – no matter how amateurish the Republican rival. Baltimore cannot help but put Republicans in the driver’s seat. Throughout history, burning cities only served to tip the scales for Republicans. The right silently rejoices as America burns.
Solution? What solution? If leaders put in power by progressives are unresponsive to the same people that put them in, there is no remedy besides letting events play out and acting at a more opportune juncture some time in the unpredictable, distant future. Too bad the country has to suffer until such time.
There’s no looking up until reaching bottom.