I came across this article written by Peggy Noonan on her blog and thought I would share a portion of it with you here.
Obama doesn't seem to have it in him to make a deal.
We're all talking about Republicans on the Hill and their manifold failures. So here are some things President Obama didn't do during the fiscal cliff impasse and some conjecture as to why.
He won but he did not triumph. His victory didn't resolve or ease anything and heralds nothing but more congressional war to come.
He did not unveil, argue for or put on the table the outlines of a grand bargain. That is, he put no force behind solutions to the actual crisis facing our country, which is the hemorrhagic spending that threatens our future. Progress there—even just a little—would have heartened almost everyone. The president won on tax hikes, but that was an emotional, symbolic and ideological victory, not a substantive one. The higher rates will do almost nothing to ease the debt or deficits.
He didn't try to exercise dominance over his party. This is a largely forgotten part of past presidential negotiations: You not only have to bring in the idiots on the other side, you have to corral and control your own idiots.
He didn't deepen any relationships or begin any potential alliances with Republicans, who still, actually, hold the House. The old animosity was aggravated. Some Republicans were mildly hopeful a second term might moderate those presidential attitudes that didn't quite work the first time, such as holding himself aloof from the position and predicaments of those who oppose him, while betraying an air of disdain for their arguments. He is not quick to assume good faith. Some thought his election victory might liberate him, make his approach more expansive. That didn't happen.
The president didn't allow his victory to go unsullied. Right up to the end he taunted the Republicans in Congress: They have a problem saying yes to him, normal folks try to sit down and work it out, not everyone gets everything they want. But he got what he wanted, as surely he knew he would, and Republicans got almost nothing they wanted, which was also in the cards. At Mr. Obama's campfire, he gets to sing "Kumbaya" solo while others nod to the beat.
Serious men don't taunt. And they don't farm the job of negotiating out to the vice president because no one can get anything done with the president. Some Republican said, "He couldn't negotiate his way out of a paper bag." But—isn't this clear by now?—not negotiating is his way of negotiating. And it kind of worked. So expect more.
Read the rest HERE, and leave your comments below. These are a few of the responses from her blog:
It's useful to look at Peggy Noonan's comments through the prism of Richard Miniter's observations from his book "Leading from Behind". Miniter's central thesis is that Obama himself is a rather disengaged agent who intervenes in delicate issues with confusing or regressive positions. Much of the President's strategic posture and tactical actions are set by Jarrett and Axelrod, who view politics as a zero-sum city street fight.
What America needs is more mysogyny!
He doesn't want big bipartisan victories that let everyone crow a little and move forward and make progress. He wants his opponents in disarray, fighting without and within. He wants them incapable. He wants them confused.
Peggy, please include quotes if you're going to say this. I don't believe that. Both Obama and Boehner want a deal, but there are people on the right who are against anything that does not fit their agenda. Remember Boehner's failed Plan B? That was a stillborn that never was. If he couldn't even get his side to agree on something he came up with, what hope is there for Obama?
All of this was documented by excellent reporting in the following article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/01/magazine/obama-vs-boehner-who-killed-the-debt-deal.html?pagewanted=all
In the end, the far right killed the deal.
This is another article that shows desire for a "Grand Bargain" by people on both sides, and yes Obama.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/01/us/politics/grand-bargains-give-way-to-legislative-quick-fixes.html
Two things are clear; Obama only knows how to campaign and the Republicans have no idea how to do so effectively. So, we go issue by issue with the same sideshow of arguments while accomplishing little. But, one thing we can be sure of; with the hapless Boehner re-elected, the Democrats will win the House in 2014.
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