That said, this campaign season is defined neither by unreasonable petulance, as the White House asserts, nor by justifiable rage against the plutocratic machine. Instead, the moment is all about the more muted despondence expressed by that recent CNBC town hall speaker—the one who told the president that voters are “exhausted” and “deeply disappointed” in his administration.
The desperation is understandable. The Iraq War continues, and the Afghanistan War is intensifying. The Wall Street “reform” bill has been exposed as a sham, with The Associated Press reporting that banks are already planning to exploit the new rules for even more profits. Meanwhile, Obama aides admit that the new health care legislation coddles the industries it purports to regulate.
“During the campaign we fought against insurance companies,” White House adviser David Axelrod said about the Obama-crafted bill. “[But] after the deals with insurance companies, the deals with Pharma—all these people are supposedly our friends.”
As Axelrod’s comment implies, this is not “real change” or “yes we can”—it’s the demoralizing status quo of “no we won’t.” And few disappointments better underscore that reality than the recent non-debate over the Bush tax cuts.
No doubt, Democratic politicians would have us believe that Republican obstructionism makes a vote pointless and that those saying otherwise are back to “glass half empty” whining. This, of course, has been the same excuse on nearly every issue.
But who are the self-defeating whiners here—politicians who don’t even attempt to fulfill their own promises, or voters who expect those politicians to at least make a minimal effort? The honest answer to that question shows who is really responsible for the enthusiasm gap.
Read more at www.truthdig.com
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