I become. Why? I have been in a wait and see mode. Hold my opinion until his first State of the Union. Each day that goes by gives reason to not wait one year.
Since the election he and his team have been (as predicted) in the now manage expectation mode....with a message every single day that either paints things blacker (no pun intended) than they are....the economy is worse than feared....any fixes will take longer than expected....we might not be able to get out of Iraq as soon as promised...and on and on drones the negative catharsis.
Then yesterday he finally said the magic words "....we are just not going to be able to deliver on many of the promises made during my campaign...".
Maybe he is just setting up a sandbag stance....paint it worse than it is then any improvement that would have shown if no body was there can be claimed.
But I don't think it is that at all.
I reduce it to two causes. One most of the promises were just that...political rhetoric, never intended to be delivered upon in the first place (they all do it....what does the campaign have to do with anything after one wins??).
Secondly and maybe most importantly is, the closer he gets to the Office of the Presidency the more he and his team begin to realize the position of POTUS is not the all power, do anything I say and make it happen position expected. He and his team are learning that certain things just can and cannot be done as expected when the nose is only against the glass looking in.
Of course I did not expect everything to be fixed in one year. I do however expect to see progress enough to know he can deliver at least some of what was passed off to get elected.
My new conclusion after watching all the negative back pedaling is....it will be modus operendi for at least the first year, especially when he observes the stimulus checks and another bail out bunch of $$$$ do no more than the ones passed out under the Bush administration in 2008.
Then the political flip flop, to and fro, dodge and weave, lateral arabesque will be amazing to watch.

For the sake of the USA I do hope I am wrong, but I doubt it....first because he is a politician...second he is a lawyer (trained to use the letter of the law VS what is right)....third he is a neophyte going into a job that has daunted much more experienced President elects in the past.

I am truly disappointed at his strategy of backing off and negative preaching.

BTK

Originally Posted by Guest

I become. Why? I have been in a wait and see mode. Hold my opinion until his first State of the Union. Each day that goes by gives reason to not wait one year.
Since the election he and his team have been (as predicted) in the now manage expectation mode....with a message every single day that either paints things blacker (no pun intended) than they are....the economy is worse than feared....any fixes will take longer than expected....we might not be able to get out of Iraq as soon as promised...and on and on drones the negative catharsis.
Then yesterday he finally said the magic words "....we are just not going to be able to deliver on many of the promises made during my campaign...".
Maybe he is just setting up a sandbag stance....paint it worse than it is then any improvement that would have shown if no body was there can be claimed.
But I don't think it is that at all.
I reduce it to two causes. One most of the promises were just that...political rhetoric, never intended to be delivered upon in the first place (they all do it....what does the campaign have to do with anything after one wins??).
Secondly and maybe most importantly is, the closer he gets to the Office of the Presidency the more he and his team begin to realize the position of POTUS is not the all power, do anything I say and make it happen position expected. He and his team are learning that certain things just can and cannot be done as expected when the nose is only against the glass looking in.
Of course I did not expect everything to be fixed in one year. I do however expect to see progress enough to know he can deliver at least some of what was passed off to get elected.
My new conclusion after watching all the negative back pedaling is....it will be modus operendi for at least the first year, especially when he observes the stimulus checks and another bail out bunch of $$$$ do no more than the ones passed out under the Bush administration in 2008.
Then the political flip flop, to and fro, dodge and weave, lateral arabesque will be amazing to watch.

For the sake of the USA I do hope I am wrong, but I doubt it....first because he is a politician...second he is a lawyer (trained to use the letter of the law VS what is right)....third he is a neophyte going into a job that has daunted much more experienced President elects in the past.

I am truly disappointed at his strategy of backing off and negative preaching.

BTK

BTK...great post. I, also have tried not to be negative, but as I said before the election and recently...this is the perfect storm !!!

Remember, President elect Obama was trained at and successful at the community organizer. From all I read (and posted on here during the election) that training is pretty much telling folks how bad it is....make them feel desperate. I dont know that is what he is doing but it fits the mold perfectly.

We now will have a socialist leaning President, socialist leaning leaders in the congress and a majority of the congress leaning that way. Barriers are being lifted (fairness doctrine). We are learning that the President elect will play politics as usual (not a CHANGE) as in the ILL senate seat.

BUT he gives great speeches and it always strikes me when people on here mention that as if that was all we needed..a great speech.

There have been moments since the election that I felt like maybe I misjudged but every time I feel that way, it all comes back to the basics and the only way our new President knows. He has promised so much (both financially as well as mood) that many said all along was impossible but he said it so well !!!

I know you two old advisories don't want to hear from me, but can we give this man a break! He's not even in office yet. I really don't know where all this gloom and doom comes from when the media (YES! THE MEDIA! They can't all be wrong!) and the experts in each field (economy, etc.) seem to think he's exactly on track. Can his plans use tweaking? Probably. But let's just all take a deep breath and give him just a little time? Your future is in your hands too. And as President-Elect Obama stated, "for the ones that didn't vote for me, I will be your President too." Let's support our new President. Now that would be a refreshing change.

Maybe George W is leaving things worse than anyone could have imagiined but I know we will never hear that. I, for one thought he could turn it around before he got in office or certainly the first two weeks. Give me a break.

I, for one, think the President Elect is a very bright man. He is pragmatic enough to know the difference between getting elected and governing. Is anyone surpirsed that he is "delaying" some of his campaign promices? He is a politician, after all. I am hoping for the best.

A couple of posters above are critical of our yet-to-be inagurated President because he is describing the difficulties faced by the country instead of how he would make good on his campaign promises. Managing expectations they call it.

Lest we forget, the campaign lasted almost two years. As recently as three months ago President Bush and John McCain said that our econmy is strong. Then 10 days before the election all financial heck broke loose--the worst financial crisis in 75 years became evident. Fannie and Freddie failed followed by several big banks and America's largest insurance compay; the final debate was almost suspended because Congress was meeting to craft a bailout bill; our banking system froze up and remains frozen today; the U.S. auto industry declared that they will go bankrupt and had to be temporarily bailed out (another financial emergency involving them will happen 3 months into the new administration); Israel invaded Gaza trying to take advantage of political support from the outgoing U.S. administration; and just since the election over 2 million more people have lost their jobs and the economy has grown even weaker; and on and on.

Yet some people are critical because the President-elect is speaking to the public frequently--12 full blown press conferences and major speech just since the election--telling them how the situation is worsening and explaining the plans he and his administration are putting together to address the problems. I guess the critics would prefer the President-elect to tell the American public that everything is OK and all these problems being written aren't as bad as the media makes them out. Of course what Obama is explaining to the country is different from the campaign rhetoric--just as much as President Bush's agenda changed after 9/11. The only difference is the problems have cropped up just before the President-elect's inaguration rather than shortly after he assumes office.

I might say that this is a pleasant change from our current President, who went months between press conferences and "managed" the public's understanding of things by making sure that everyone in his administration gave out the same message, crafted by Karl Rove, every day. Do we remember "mission accomplished", "the economy remains strong", "Brownie, you're doing a helluva job", "we will re-build New Orleans", "waterboarding is really OK and not torture", and "Don (Rumsfeld), you've done a great job; we're sorry to see you go"? Would you rather have another four years of that, or a President who is willing and able to explain the problems and the alternatives for solving them to the people?

Some people only hear, see and interpret situations with pre-conceived conclusions. They mostly look backward and when they do look to the future, it's with negativity and no specific thoughts or ideas on how things might be done differently or better. They assume that their worst fears will be fulfilled. For me, I'm willing to give our new President some time to see if he can get things turned around. We'd all better hope that he can.

Let also not forget the economy was strong 6 out of his 8 years as President even though we had 9/11 and other major challenges. Who controlled congress the last two?

Yes - its a good thing he inherited a strong economy and a surplus before he drove the train over the cliff.

Republicans were in control of congress 12 of the last 14 years until January 2007. The quagmires that the Republicans created will take DECADES for the Democrats to fix. If you need a reminder of some of the wonderful things we can thank the Republicans for, try this:

Iraq war, record foreclosures, gas prices sky rocket, Katrina mismanagement, Enron (Bush's pals), Abu Graib, largest federal deficit in history.....

Originally Posted by Villages Kahuna

A couple of posters above are critical of our yet-to-be inagurated President because he is describing the difficulties faced by the country instead of how he would make good on his campaign promises. Managing expectations they call it.

Lest we forget, the campaign lasted almost two years. As recently as three months ago President Bush and John McCain said that our econmy is strong. Then 10 days before the election all financial heck broke loose--the worst financial crisis in 75 years became evident. Fannie and Freddie failed followed by several big banks and America's largest insurance compay; the final debate was almost suspended because Congress was meeting to craft a bailout bill; our banking system froze up and remains frozen today; the U.S. auto industry declared that they will go bankrupt and had to be temporarily bailed out (another financial emergency involving them will happen 3 months into the new administration); Israel invaded Gaza trying to take advantage of political support from the outgoing U.S. administration; and just since the election over 2 million more people have lost their jobs and the economy has grown even weaker; and on and on.

Yet some people are critical because the President-elect is speaking to the public frequently--12 full blown press conferences and major speech just since the election--telling them how the situation is worsening and explaining the plans he and his administration are putting together to address the problems. I guess the critics would prefer the President-elect to tell the American public that everything is OK and all these problems being written aren't as bad as the media makes them out. Of course what Obama is explaining to the country is different from the campaign rhetoric--just as much as President Bush's agenda changed after 9/11. The only difference is the problems have cropped up just before the President-elect's inaguration rather than shortly after he assumes office.

I might say that this is a pleasant change from our current President, who went months between press conferences and "managed" the public's understanding of things by making sure that everyone in his administration gave out the same message, crafted by Karl Rove, every day. Do we remember "mission accomplished", "the economy remains strong", "Brownie, you're doing a helluva job", "we will re-build New Orleans", "waterboarding is really OK and not torture", and "Don (Rumsfeld), you've done a great job; we're sorry to see you go"? Would you rather have another four years of that, or a President who is willing and able to explain the problems and the alternatives for solving them to the people?

Some people only hear, see and interpret situations with pre-conceived conclusions. They mostly look backward and when they do look to the future, it's with negativity and no specific thoughts or ideas on how things might be done differently or better. They assume that their worst fears will be fulfilled. For me, I'm willing to give our new President some time to see if he can get things turned around. We'd all better hope that he can.

YES....I have pre conceived notions about the President Elect, despite what it says I will not apologize for them. I backed them up with good solid information during the primary and the election. I have NO problem with his speaking to all of us often....I actually think it is a good idea !!!!!

I simply agreed with BTK and noted that this kind of rhetoric is exactly what has been trained to do as a community organizer. Does that mean he is lying or doing something wrong....never said that or even implied it.

OF COURSE you have chosen to do what it seems like all Obama supporters do.......first IT IS NOT HIS FAULT..nothing ever is....AND.....bash Bush either implicitly or by inferrence...it absolutely never fails and I expect that from you we will hear this on and on for years to come....anything bad can be traced back to Bush !!!

As an American I will hope and pray that President elect Obama succeeds...of course, folks like you who worship him will not accept that...it is either all adoration or nothing, but to turn this thread into a bash Bush seems a bit out of line.

Record foreclosures were caused largely by people buying homes they couldn’t afford in the first place not to mention the total mismanagement of Freddie and Fannie (run by Democrats) forcing banks to make bad loans. Watch the hearings on YouTube, it’s all there.

For most normal people you can't buy a $500,000 home at market peek that sold for half of that a few years earlier with 100% financing, interest only payments and double the property tax and expect to keep the house.

Gas prices sky rocket - The President doesn't control gas prices. Who blocks drilling for new oil and building new gas refineries? Democrats

Katrina mismanagement - Katrina was mismanaged before, during and after by their own state also run by Democrats.

Enron (Bush's pals) - oh please.

Abu Graib - I agree, holding terrorists that want to kill Americans is a bad thing.

Largest federal deficit in history - Totally Bush's fault for sure, no question about that.....and Obama wants to make it even larger.

Don't forget the Jimmy Carter years of double digit inflation, unemployment, gas lines, etc. You remember? Democrats had the majority in congress congress for 30 + straight years.

My point has always been, Government generally makes a mess of things Republican or Democrat.

I don’t trust them with my money anymore and now they want another trillion. I’d feel the same way if Bush, McCain or anyone else was President.

I'll have no trouble developing some personal grades for President Obama. But I will wait until he's completed a few semesters instead of grading him before he's even enrolled.

Obama's long since been enrolled my friend. I've been listening to his plans for two years. F

Originally Posted by Villages Kahuna

I'll have no trouble developing some personal grades for President Obama. But I will wait until he's completed a few semesters instead of grading him before he's even enrolled.

Nobody graded him !!! Every criticism of him cannot be used to get on a soapbox and defend him just because he said it nice or because you want to bash Bush.

This thread is about what is going on now...and to insure my credibility which at times is very doubted....this is a post I made on OCT 27 2008....
__________________________________________________ __________-
"I, frankly, do not care what pundits say about his proposals versus Sen McCain because he is not going to do anything he promises except those that include bigger government. I wanted to make this post so that I can come back every 6 months or so and remind you of what you are reaping.

If you feel I am over dramatic, I ask you to stand back..ignore what his campaign says..ignore his slick commercials...ignore his website.....INVESTIGATE...there is so much out there..not opinions..FACTS and so much more. He and his backers are buying this election and as scared as I was of him a few weeks ago when I was posting regularly, I am even more scared now.

He has used, to perfection, all that Sal Alinsky preached. Make them all feel like they are being "screwed" and tell them how bad they have it...THEN promise them how you will make it better !!! Think I made that up....check it out. It ain't goin to happen folks."
__________________________________________________ ___________---

It was true then and it remains a fact !!! If I am wrong, I am a big boy...I will come back and admit it...actually thought this kind of politicing would wait until he was in office for a bit, but already it has begun. I hope I am wrong...will come back and say I am sorry if so...have done it in my life many many times but this President Elect is no secret...just read about him and his philosophies. We are going to spend money and hear excuses for 4 years !

The week before the election there were articles in the various media the subject of which was Obama's "team" was....in anticipation of winning the election they were busy developing plans to manage expectations established during the campaign. The thrust of their strategy was to temper "how much and how fast" promises could "realistically" be accomplished. By it's very nature, the subject was not front page or national network worthy.

Secondly, each to his own beliefs....the reality of the Office of POTUS is setting in.

I am a victim of my background, training and experience....I acknowledge accomplishment....and for newbies (which includes Obama) a wait and see approach is prudent only because all that is available currently are the words.

I can only measure going forward based on the available information which has nothing to do with partisan politics and it sure as has nothing to do with Bush.

BTK