- Tom

On ML: the Senate decides, not us.

I can hardly wait for the famous emptywheel time-line.

I use the Rope-a-dope analogy to describe Obama’s strategy:

”The rope-a-dope is performed by a boxer assuming a protected stance, in Ali’s classic pose, lying against the ropes, and allowing his opponent to hit him, in the hope that the opponent will become tired and make mistakes which the boxer can exploit in a counterattack.”

It is by vote within the caucus. The 58 Democrats plus Lieberman and Sanders.

Senority has nothing to do with it. Senators tend to support someone based on whether they believe a candidate will accomodate them — that is be sensitive to State or District matters that might require them to vote against the caucus from time to time, (As Patty Murray recently did on the F-22 matter, she is, afterall, the Senator from Boeing.) They look for someone who would be skillful in putting together majority coalitions on matters important to them. The look for someone who will defend the perogatives of the Senate, and of individual Senators. They look for someone who can do business with the White House, with other executive agencies. They also look for someone who when necessary can reach into the opposition for votes, or for support on unamous consent motions. They look for someone who once his/her word is given, sticks with it unless they come to you and personally beg off. And yes, the ability to do the Press Conferences, the Sunday Talkies, and the like — very important.

The term is for one congress. Reid’s current term began Jan, 2009, and ends January 2011. Normally if a change is going to be made, the Leader says nothing till after the election, and then resigns, or indicates he will not stand for another term. Then a leadership contest begins. The contests only last a few weeks — tiz settled by mid December. Actually Reid has said on several occassions that this would be his last term as leader.

Senatory McChinless — well he raises tons of money for Republicans, is an ideological conservative, and he looks like the White Southerner he is. He was born and educated in Alabama, then moved on to Kentucky. A sort of mix and match between Col. Sanders and Rhett Butler. I don’t know whether he is better or worse than Bill Fritz of Tennessee or Trent Lott. But it is a Southern White Male Regional Party, and they don’t want anyone to mistake their identity. But They do say he is a deep in the ***closet you know what, you know. He is also married cross racially — to a Chinese woman, who served as Sec. of Labor in the Bush II administration for 8 years, and managed quite well to not investigate mine safety for 8 years, even though Coal Mining Accidents and Kentucky sorta go together.

Why is it that Republicans get to have over-the-top right-wingers in high positions (i.e. Senator McChinless) but the Dems can’t have progressives there?

Just askin’

- Tom

Thanks for your kind words. I am probably one of the few progressives out here who is not disturbed by either Obama’s strategy on this, or by the mobs attacking the various town meetings around the country.

I think Obama is a big risk taker on things that are very important to him, and Health Care is probably the most important piece of his agenda. I think he intentionally put it out there and painted a target on it, because it serves him best to allow the “party of NO” and their Insurance Company Funders, tea baggers, and all the rest, to strut their stuff in ways that really turn the public off. and go first. Then, closer to the return to business after Labor Day, Obama can come back with his own public argument, his economic and highly rational arguments — and win the day.

I basicly see in Obama a very serious student of Gandhi — and Martin Luther King, in particular I see Obama as perhaps almost a Master of the art of Moral Ju-Jitsu. (The term is original with Gandhi), That martial art is based on “winning” by capturing the forward momentum of your opponent’s thrust, knowing the proper leverage point, and instead of falling to your opponent, you use that forward momentum to redirect, and thrown the attacker over your shoulder so that he lands inartisticly as a squish on the ground. Gandhian Moral Ju-Jitsu involves doing this at the moral level. Gandhi was always successful when he brought out the Colonel Blimp character in his British Raj opponents. Martin Luther King was always successful if one of his efforts put on display the profound ugliness of a Southern Racist Cop, or a loud and hatefilled mob. (Particularly if the networks cooperated, and were there to film things like setting the dogs on children.) As I said, I think Obama is a deep student of both Gandhi and King — and as I look at what is transpiring now, I would suggest it is at the core of his strategy.

Now I could be all wrong about this — but I believe it explains why Obama and the White House are seemingly so laid back in the face of the attacks from Palin, Limbaugh, Beck, and their juiced up mobs, particularly if the Insurance Industry and the Republicans actually loose control of the mobs and their visual and verbal message. But so far the mobs look downright ugly, and I think most people are very turned off by their nastiness, their negativity — so when the positive message from Obama eventually is laid — around Labor Day when people are paying attention again — you will see a major movement behind him, wanting to get major legislation moving coherently through the process. But watching Moral Ju-Jitsu being executed is like watching a tight rope walker doing tricks — what you are observing is less the steps, more the mental picture of risk. But Obama is very much a risk taker when the issue is core to what he is trying to accomplish.

You know during Civil Rights days each piece of it from Montgomery bus seating through Birmingham, to Leadership Conference consultations (Arguments) on lobby tactics to get a successful vote on this or that amendment — it was all a huge risk. If you were to be effective, you had to keep a solid stomach in the face of the risks, and learn to manage them properly. The ugly mobs, the Cops with their Ax Handles — we actually wanted all those pictures on the front page or on TV on a regular basis. We were delighted when Strom Thurmond took it upon himself to lead a day and night filibuster with Senators sleeping on cots in the cloak rooms and all.

I think the same thing is true with a major Health Care Reform. Be very passionate about it — but also enjoy watching it play out. Take an hour or so out to read Gandhi and MLKing on Strategy, and think about it. You know it works if it is done right.