Shodan, your opinion is based on conjecture stemming from your cynically never being able to give Obama the benefit of the doubt on anything at all. It is merely your opinion, and it is not particularly credible.
You don’t know to what degree Obama is sincere. It is pure speculation.
I agree that Obama is going to time carefully when he supports something and when he doesn’t. That’s pragmatic, and not necessarily cynical at all. There are plenty of scenarios where Obama is sincere and still times his statements as did. Cynicism is not required to explain his actions.
I don’t care if he’s sincere or not. It’s the right thing to do. I’m happy when people do the right thing even if it’s for obnoxious or insincere reasons. Whine all you want about “But he doesn’t really meeeeaaaan it.” He can not mean it all he wants, as long as he gets it done.
No, actually it is not “pure speculation” at all. I have given the reasons I believe that what I have said is true. Some have even agreed with me, even if they voted for Obama. So my opinion is a little more credible than you would like. So it goes.
And you have not addressed the basic issue - if Obama is so all-fired sincere about repealing DOMA, why did he wait until after it was clear that he was not going to be able to bring it off?
Waiting until circumstances make it impossible to do something is “pragmatic”? You have a unique understanding of that term.
Well, isn’t that the point? Obama has waited until it is pretty clear that he will not get it done. Back two years ago, maybe. For the next two years, probably not.
I am a life-long Democrat, and so is half our family, (the other half is ‘misinformed’).
Frankly, give LGBT whatever they want. Their agenda is a simple request for the rights every citizen is guaranteed. I think we are all tired of talking about it. I am happy DADT is repealed, we have a family member that was very affected by the whole mess.
The New Deal began a series of legislation from Social Security to Medicare and Medicaid, and finally to The Affordable Care Act. I will vote the straight Democratic ticket because there is no where else for me to go. I am a party person, the candidate does not matter as long as they tow the Democratic line.
President Obama’s actions regarding “modification” of the BIG 3 are all wrong. These issues should not even be on the table. If Obama fucks with these programs, he is going to get a fight in the 2012 primary. I understand Hillary Clinton might be available.
I have stopped sending money to the Democratic Party, and I have plastered my reasons in giant letters on two of their recent fund raising surveys. As I have said before, I may be ‘too busy’ on election day in November to remember to vote.
I think this is what people are talking about when they say you would never give Obama the benefit of the doubt. He has said for some time that he’s had mixed feelings about gay marriage and that his feelings are evolving with time.
While I’m certainly not going to claim I know what’s going on in his head, isn’t it possible that he announced it when he actually felt it? Even if the timing happens to suck with relation to his being able to do anything about it?
He couldn’t have passed it back when the Democrats were in charge of Congress either. There are enough anti-gay Democrats to have kept it from happening. The circumstances have been impossible the entire Obama administration. The Democrats are pushing it now because when it fails they can blame the Republicans, and meanwhile push the ball further along.
A similar act was brought up in the House in 2009. It got 91 cosponsors, but they didn’t push for it because they didn’t have the votes. Obama had nothing to do with it. He did things that were in his power, such as providing benefits for same-sex spouses where possible, and including children of same-sex couples as family members for various purposes. And he dropped the legal defense of DOMA in the courts. Which are pragmatic steps to advance the cause of gay rights.
Nothing Obama could have done would have resulted in DOMA being repealed by now. Several things he has done have probably made repeal more likely to happen than if he had done nothing. There are probably things he could have done that would be even better. Meanwhile, support for same-sex marriage has been rapidly increasing during the Obama administration. He’s certainly not the primary cause for the increase, but I think having him in office has been helping it along.