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   Dan Savage, the brilliant and foul-mouthed sex columnist, has become one of the most important ethicists in America. Are we screwed?
 The federal government is supposed to issue new rules about debt levels for students in for-profit colleges. In the meantime, the states are working on their own regulations.
 Washingtons budget hawks want to decimate the federal workforce to shrink the deficit. It will have the opposite effect.
 There arent nearly enough counterterrorism experts to instruct all of Americas police. So we got these guys instead.
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March 20, 2010
'I AM BOUND TO BE TRUE'.... As scheduled, President Obama addressed the House Democratic Caucus today, making one final pitch and urging them to do the right thing tomorrow. This was supposed to be a closed-door meeting, but the White House provided a live audio feed online. I've heard a whole lot of Obama speeches on health care, and this one was a little different, perhaps because he was trying to persuade a much smaller audience than usual. There were far fewer rah-rah moments -- indeed, lawmakers were eerily silent for most of the address -- and much of the message was focused on appeals to members' sense of patriotism and civic duty.
Early on, the president noted an Abraham Lincoln quote, which he returned to throughout his remarks: "I am not bound to win but I am bound to be true," he said. It became the running theme -- policymakers who supported Social Security, Medicare, and the Civil Right Act weren't bound to win, either, but they were bound to be true. It wasn't all about appeals to principle. Obama noted that Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, and Karl Rove have been giving Dems all kinds of political advice, but they, the president reminded House members, may not have Democrats' best interests at heart. More specifically, Obama emphasized a wide variety of key new protections that would take effect "this year," probably as a way of reminding members about the popular advances they can point to in their re-election campaigns. He also noted that reform, as law, would debunk right-wing myths: "[I]t's going to be a little harder to mischaracterize what this legislation has been all about." But mostly, the president sounded sympathetic, acknowledging repeatedly that he recognizes the pressure lawmakers are facing and knows this will be a "tough vote." But Obama said it was imperative for members to have the courage to do the right thing. "Don't do it for me," he said. "Don't do it for the Democratic Party. Do it for the American people." Post Script: By the way, readers probably know that I like to listen to the president's speeches with the prepared text, checking to see when (and what) he adlibs. In this case, Obama just told House Dems what he was thinking, without a teleprompter and without a prepared text. —Steve Benen 5:15 PM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (19)
Comments
It sounded nice and conciliatory in there. But in the halls of the House office buildings and on the street outside, it got kind of ugly. Posted by: Mustang Bobby on March 20, 2010 at 5:22 PM | PERMALINKIn this case, Obama just told House Dems what he was thinking, without a teleprompter and without a prepared text. Please. The current president is the worst public speaker since Carter. He probably couldn't fill out his affirmative action application to the Harvard Law Review without a teleprompter. Posted by: Myke K on March 20, 2010 at 5:26 PM | PERMALINKIn this case, Obama just told House Dems what he was thinking, without a teleprompter and without a prepared text. Please. The current president is the worst public speaker since Carter. He probably couldn't fill out his affirmative action application to the Harvard Law Review without a teleprompter. Posted by: Myke K on March 20, 2010 at 5:27 PM | PERMALINKYou mean President Obama spoke from the heart, without a teleprompter or notes? I could barely contain myself I was so moved by his remarks. I guess that takes away a talking point for the Republicans and that quitter Sarah Palin. Posted by: Ladyhawke on March 20, 2010 at 5:28 PM | PERMALINKHey, Myke K, first, contact the Department of Redundancy Department to see about your habit of repeating yourself. Second, how nice to see you've recovered from the coma you were in between 2001 and 2009. Boy, did we have a president who had a way with words while you were out of it. Posted by: Mustang Bobby on March 20, 2010 at 5:30 PM | PERMALINKI saw the remarks. Thought he did well. Someone up thread is either cracking wise or is seriously impaired. This is a fine general purpose nice guy persona. I hope it is followed up with a private presence that has a bit of menace to it. It is good to do the right thing. And in a just world. Bad things have a way of happening to people who don't do the right thing. I'm just saying... Posted by: SW on March 20, 2010 at 5:36 PM | PERMALINK"Do it for the American people." I guess he really does hate us. Posted by: Tlaloc on March 20, 2010 at 5:38 PM | PERMALINKI guess he really does hate us. Just you, Tlaloc. Just you. Posted by: shortstop on March 20, 2010 at 5:40 PM | PERMALINKThis is indirect, but it shows why so many out there really don't like what Obama is doing. I was out biking a few minutes ago, and say a candidate for Mayor in my city out canvassing with a friend of hers (as I found after asking.) In this town Mayors can't run "as" members of a Party but people know who they hang with - in this case, Republican. Her opponent is well know as a Democrat, and is a black man. I met the [R] candidate a few times before and found her pleasant and reasonable. I can't say the same for her friend. This "friend", with a foreign accent, got into a conversation with me and kept asking me, with angst: "what country are we living in". It sounded like an odd question but I said "The USA." Then she said, "No, we're living in Africa." The candidate scolded her a bit and I rode on. I don't know how much was about Obama, or the black candidate, or both. It's clear, that's what's going on in the minds of many in the Republican constituency. They can deny it and it doesn't apply to all or them or maybe even most, but it's a factor. Posted by: neil b. on March 20, 2010 at 5:40 PM | PERMALINKWell, nice rhetoric. Of course it might carry more weight if a certain president were living up to the campaign promises HE made -- public option, no mandates, drug reimportation, etc., etc. Posted by: Tom Allen on March 20, 2010 at 5:42 PM | PERMALINK(PS - Myke K is a parody troll for Mike K. I love the smell of desperation that's seeping from the pores of the trolls and their masters. Posted by: Squeaky McCrinkle on March 20, 2010 at 5:44 PM | PERMALINKObama just told House Dems what he was thinking, without a teleprompter and without a prepared text.But I thought the President was rendered literally speechless and powerless without a teleprompter? Wait -- does this mean that Sarah Palin and Fox lied to me? Posted by: Bernard Gilroy on March 20, 2010 at 5:48 PM | PERMALINK Sounds like President Obama might be a Political Animal regular. His speech could have been written by Benen. Well done Steve. Posted by: Chris on March 20, 2010 at 5:49 PM | PERMALINK(PS - Myke K is a parody troll for Mike K. That's what I get for missing staff meetings. Posted by: Mustang Bobby on March 20, 2010 at 5:59 PM | PERMALINKWow, Steve. The President just ad libbed. Can you imagine that? Posted by: Pat on March 20, 2010 at 6:30 PM | PERMALINKIn this case, Obama just told House Dems what he was thinking, without a teleprompter and without a prepared text. -- Steve Benen I'm surprised at your naivete, Benen; we never saw what he'd written on the -- very large -- palms of his hands, so how can we be sure? You betcha! Posted by: exlibra on March 20, 2010 at 8:20 PM | PERMALINKDon't know if this link will work, but here's the entire address: http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/03/20/us/1247467407569/obama-pass-bill-for-the-american-people.html Posted by: Eric on March 20, 2010 at 9:22 PM | PERMALINK
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