No matter who wins Congress, Obama loses
Voters go to the polls today, and by nightfall the final judgment of President Obama will have been rendered. And that judgment will likely not be pretty.
In a fascinating piece by Dave Boyer of the Moonie-owned, right-wing Washington Times this morning, the dreary litany of broken promises and frustrated hopes of the Obama administration are delineated. Boyer cites everything from Obama's failure to close the Guantanamo gulag, to his putting off of “immigration reform” until after today's election, to the disastrous health-care roll out, to his Justice Department's refusal to go after the Wall Street banksters and financiers for bankrupting the economy, to his renewed imperial wars and confused response to the put-up Ebola “crisis” – all, and more, explain why today is not a particularly good day for the president.
Obama's continued low approval ratings, says Boyer, are explained by these failures. His now-routine heckling by the assembled masses indicates a disdain and tuning-out of his repeated platitudes and bromides as to what really ails America and what he has done over the last six-year period (or will do in his last two) about them. It's painfully clear now that most people are simply not listening to (or believing) this man anymore.
Indeed, he has become not simply irrelevant to anything people care about. Obama is not just the lamest of lame ducks; he is perceived by many as actually inimical to their concerns.
Interestingly, Boyer says the only reason Obama's numbers are not even lower is because of his rock-hard support among his most faithful base members – black people. Boyer shrugs that support off and implies that it is solely based on black folks' identification with Obama as yet another beleaguered brother who's been hamstrung by the “white power structure.” The problem with that, of course, is that Obama represents and promotes at every turn that white power structure – and to the detriment of black people. Yes, most black people see clearly that Obama's Republican and right-wing opposition and obstructionism are based in a never-say-die racial animus. And many black people do continue to rally to his side simply to spite that obvious, historical, tired and time-worn pattern.
However, black people are probably more disappointed and frustrated with Obama's performance than any other electoral block. Their continued support of him is therefore a function of that history more than anything he has done (or not done) to alleviate their always desperate social, economic and political positioning at the bottom of every single indicator.
Many black people are finally beginning to realize, for example, that in the unlikely event that the Democrats took control of both houses of Congress, Obama would not do anything of particular importance for them. On the contrary, he would immediately revert – once again – to his original “bipartisan,” "Grand Bargain"-seeking stance, which he demonstrated during his first two years in office when he, in fact, had both houses (more or less, Blue Dog Democrats notwithstanding).
Republican control of both houses or even just one will give us more of the same old, same old obstructionism we've witnessed over the last four years. Nothing will continue to be done to aid the masses of people who are practically begging for help.
So, has Obama's been a "failed" presidency? As far as most progressives (of whatever color) are concerned, yes! But, as much as we would like to believe otherwise, Obama was not elected to and never really vowed to pick up the progressive gauntlet.
None of this, however, signals Obama as a weak leader – as Republicans, conservatives, right-wingers and tea partiers would have it. No. The man is doing precisely what he was selected to do: Maintain the status quo.
Finally, as far as black people are concerned, Obama will be remembered not for any transformational policies or programs, no visionary ideas or ideals, no positive impact on our lives and life chances.
He will simply -- and only -- be consigned to the history books as just another black first.
