I could be convinced that this was some sort of meta-satire of the liberals who complain against Obama and what he's done. Really, the opening and closing paragraphs, juxtaposed, tell you exactly how senseless and silly this letter is. It opens with this:
First off, I want to tell you that despite the enormous landmines set in place by George W. Bush and the Republicans, you have accomplished amazing things in your first two years in office. You have saved the country from another depression, pushed through landmark health care legislation; you have slowed the downward spiral of job losses, ended the war in Iraq and cut taxes on most of the nation.
and the last paragraph begins like this:
So this is why I didn't go all out this year. I voted, but I'm dispirited.
I don't mean to get all 7th-grade English teacher on this clown (first and final paragraphs should be similar and express the overall thesis), but this is pretty emblematic of the incoherence of this entire piece. The gist of it is that the author, Stu Kreisman, seems to be really disappointed with the Obama administration:
your progressive base was asked not just to sacrifice time and time again, we were held up to ridicule and blamed by your administration for your shortcomings, of which there were plenty.
And so what are those shortcomings according to Mr. Kreisman? Well, here are his complaints listed in the order they appear:
you didn't know when to stop [reaching across the aisle]. You continued to pander to the right desperately searching for common ground.
you consulted with [Republicans] and watered [the stimulus bill] down
we on the left were disappointed by the number of Clinton re-treads you choose for positions in your administration
[Even though Republicans hate you] you continued to let them off the hook and pander to them at the expense of your base, the progressives.
you didn't fire (as was your right as President) all the Bush-appointed federal prosecutors
People needed to know what destruction Bush and the Republicans did in plain English rather than in polite, veiled references. Instead, you handed the right wing a stronger stranglehold of the judiciary as a peace offering.
By trying to let all sides be heard [on healthcare] (even after Sen. DeMint announced that Healthcare will be your Waterloo), you lost control of the narrative.
where was your FCC when it was discovered that Fox had contributed a million dollars to the Republican Governor's Association?
Your administration's communication skills are, to be honest, horrible. Would it have been so hard to put up a commercial with the jobs created/lost graph showing that just after you took office you stopped the hemorrhaging?
"No Drama Obama" didn't work.
You're mistake was being idealistic and naïve
Tacking to the center-right was a disastrous move on your administration's part.... By playing tough against the "lefties" you played right into the narrative of the conservatives.
Annnd that's it. Those really are all the complaints I find in the article directed at Obama. The rest of it is a borderline screed against the ignorance, dishonesty, hatred and blatant partisan games of the Republicans. There is not one complaint about substance, or policy other than incredibly vague notions of "compromise" and "watered down" and even things like that only appear a few times. (I suppose not firing all Bush DOJ appointees is kinda policy? But not really.)
What the fuck kind of political complaint is this!? Mr. Kreisman, at the start, gushes - to put it mildly - about how great Obama has been in terms of, ya know, doing things that help the country. And then spend the rest of the piece complaining about not "fighting" hard enough, and not showing graphs on television, and not playing smart political theater, and not pointing out how bad Bush was, and being too idealistic. This piece is total fucking bullshit.
A true liberal would have one substantive issue to complain about with Obama. How about no public option? How about continuing one too many (ALL) of Bush's War on Terror Policies like indefinite detention, how about not making the stimulus big enough or failing to include limits on executive bonuses? Christ on a Bronco, SOMETHING that is a complaint about a actual decision Obama made incorrectly according to you on matters of actual policy?
Mr. Kreisman seems to want to inject his letter with passion and emotion - which I will grant him, he does - but a cursory read reveals that all that anger is mainly directed at Republicans. He's oozing with disgust for these people (not that I can blame him) in a letter written to... someone totally different. Plus Obama didn't just cave to Republicans, he caved to corporate interests and lobbyists, but Mr. Kreisman conspicuously leaves that unmentioned, perhaps because that would be entirely Obama's fault.
It's exactly one of those awkward situations where you call out a close friend but you slather that point in tons of other praise or easy-to-agree-to points about a somewhat related topic. Mr. Kreisman can't bring himself to come down too harsh on the President, and he's got very little to complain about (he's the President's base, after all)so he's just going to say "Hey Obama! Republicans are total douche-scooters, Amuhright!?!?"
Not pointing to any substantive issue means Mr. Kreisman isn't trying at all. He reveals himself as someone who wants to be mad because his party lost, and his leader is beaten down, but not express his anger as actual criticism. This letter isn't an expression of dissatisfaction, it's a fucking pep talk appropriately delivered at half time with the home team trailing.
He also, sadly, reveals himself as someone who is an absurd product of our absurd media culture where everything is "messaging" and "strategy" and polls. Seriously consider it: What type of politically depraved individual would consider not voting for a politician whom they believed had accomplished "amazing things" and whose removal from leadership would be a "tragedy" to the country? What the fucking fuck, dude?
Stu Kreisman, ladies and gentlemen! A man who will not be satisfied with politicians who do things that he really loves IF they don't fight for them hard enough and sell them effectively!
Somewhere Obama is receiving this letter, reading it, and thinking, "geez my critics 'from the left' are hopelessly stupid... and they will totally vote for me no matter what. Yessss!"
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