Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
According to forum liberals, President Obama is not a "true Liberal." I believe many people on the forum and in the general public would probably take issue with this assertion. By most measures, an ever-expanding Big Government into the lives of citizens would seem to be most commonly attributed to liberalism. Healthcare reform and its insurance mandate would be a good example of this.
So, a question to the forum liberals: What would make Obama a "true Liberal" if he indeed does not measure up to your standard of liberal ideology?
Since I'm often accused of being a liberal, (usually one post removed from being a lying right winger), I figured if this is the perception then might as well use it to advantage.
First I think its a miss-characterization to use terms like "true liberal" for the same reasons people use the term conservative to describe George Bush. I would point out that Obama is not a "Traditional Liberal", which I would consider to be something more like Dennis Kucinich or perhaps even Barney Frank or even John Edwards.
In the past at least, the far left liberal has been adamantly anti-war, pro-civil and human rights, more inclined to tax and spend - Keynesian economics, expansionist and interventionist foreign policy via diplomacy. (as opposed to Neoconservative/Neoliberal who favor this but with more emphasis on a military force component)
Even then, that isn't all of what makes a liberal as like any political philosophy there will be variations within it.
Obama has continued with things like rendition and the use of foreign bases for interrogation of prisoners outside the jurisdiction of US courts. Very much in contrast to a traditional liberals views on human rights.
The escalation of Afghanistan while being warned of the dangers of escalating a war without clear definitions. Very much in contrast to a traditional liberal view.
The continued emphasis on low taxation while implementing massive domestic spending items, continued massive defense and war spending. I would expect a traditional liberal to simply say, sorry folks, have to raise taxes if we want all these services and items. It is not only illogical but self destructive to engage in war without properly funding it and this is something we have been doing for years now and its insanity.
Obama's renewal of the Patriot Act and continuation of warrant-less wiretaps, is very much in contrast to traditional liberalism as I've known it.
I have no doubts some folks will disagree but that is what I grew up as seeing as the tenets of traditional liberalism.
So at least in some respects, Obama is hardly a traditional liberal, at least as I know it, but then again I could point out and have many times why most Republicans aren't very traditional either. Perhaps it is just the evolution of politics today, I don't really know.
He is the most radical far-leftist to ever sit in the White House...and people are finally coming to terms with that.
Liberals seem to embrace what us conservatives view as Obama's "far left" Agenda, so now i'm curious to know what they consider to be a "true liberal" if Obama doesn't fit that mold.
I would say Obama is 65% True Liberal and 30% Moderate Liberal and 5% Far Right... Overall, he is a true liberal with some shades of gray.. I think the liberals are angry that he isn't 95%+ True Liberal...
I dont care about Obama being liberal in terms of spending/fiscal. Of course haha.
What I do care about Obama is him being socially liberal. He got the pro choice part covered. He needs to be aggressive towards gay rights and marriage. I care about him sticking to the righties who ruined the country and now whine about him. They had their chance and they ruined it. Now let Obama try. However, they just shut him out yelling "no" like a 3 year old.
He needs to be more pro environment. I am not too happy with his response to the oil spill. Overall, would I vote for him again at this point? Yes. I am satisfied but think he could do more for the left cause.
He is from the extreme left of the democrtis party. There aremuchmroe liberal people tha he is tho. They go to comlete central control of social ;economic and foreign policy.The foreign policy especailly isn't what some people think a liberal policy is tho.
I don't know if he is a true liberal or not, but I do see him as liberal on the American spectrum of political ideology. What I don't think he is is a communist or a marxist or a totalitarian Hitler like some people on here ridiculously label him. To me, that is an indicator of someone who either lacks sufficient basic intelligence to even understand what the concepts behind those words mean or else is so policitally brainwashed that they resort to blatant intellectual dishonesty in an effort to prop up their opinion - not worthy of being taking seriously either way.
If he were a true liberal he would have fought harder for real universal health care. Hard to say how much he would have gotten, but there is no question that the proposal that Clinton tried to get through in 1994, and the proposal that Nixon tried to get through were both more liberal than what Obama accomplished. Dropping any fight for the public option, much less for a single payer system, makes clear that he is not a liberal.
Unlike conservatives, liberals are strongly in favor of civil liberties. Consequently, if Obama were truly a liberal he would be abolishing DADT and other anti-gay policies, as well as rolling back the anti-civil-liberties measures Bush got the Congress to enact, such as indefinite detention at Guantanamo and other government spying provisions of the so-called Patriot Act.
Liberals support the working people of the country. We would expect a true liberal to pursue a strong pro-union program.
If he were truly a liberal he would be moving more quickly to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
If he were truly a liberal he would be doing more for environmental protection and global warming than he is.
If he were truly a liberal he would be making liberal judicial nominations. The experience with Clinton and Obama has demonstrated that the two sides aren't even playing the same game: Democrats are still appointing moderats, as though the struggle over the compensation of the Court were not a political struggle, whereas Republicans appoint extremist conservatives.
Essentially post #5. Were Obama a True Liberal we would be out of both wars and UHC would not be the compromise disaster that it is. Gitmo would be closed, not closing. The minimum wage would be indexed to a cities COL. Social Security would be taxed to $250K. I could go on. Suffice it to say, with his many compromises to the reality of administering this fractious nation, overall Obama is neither Liberal nor Conservative. The only thing I can see to explain the completely over the top negative spin towards his administration by so many Liberals and Conservatives is that he is 50% African.
H
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
