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Reactionaries on the Left are lining up to take shots at the latest news from the Obama Administration. Expanded offshore drilling along the East Coast and off the North Shore of Alaska. People are shocked, SHOCKED, by the about-face on this ("he campaigned against it, for the love of crepes!"). I, however, must offer up what I've been thinking we've begun to see in policy practice from the Obamanauts and assuredly see here.
Obama is more than just moving the goalposts - he's rolling out a plan to redesign the whole stadium. This is all part of a plan that was in place back during the campaign. Because every campaign had a plan of what to do if they won. And every campaign in the future will. Even Sarah Palin would put together a similar list of initiatives, albeit one with startlingly different aims.
Anyone who takes the time to ponder the field of play will recall that Bill Clinton did the same thing. So-called "welfare reform" being the bumpersticker example that to this day drives the GOP off their collective nut. But there was a whole host of plays that Clinton stole (for lack of a better word) from the traditional playbook of Republicans. Fast forward to Obama getting his big save with successful passage of health care reform. He then moves quickly to knock things off of what I believe constitutes their big ol' "to do, to them" list hanging on the fridge in the White House breakroom. Recess appointments. Talking tough publicly and privately with Afghanistan. Opening up energy exploration. Next up, I expect the list of Administration initiatives will cause even more heartburn for the Left. Social Security. Terrorism prosecutions. War powers undertaken in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and even along the border with drug lords from Mexico. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised by a very moderate pick to replace the soon to retire beloved lefty Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court - most likely a Senator or Governor meant to tie up those pre-ordained to object during confirmation hearings. Long story short, Obama plays 3D chess. The GOP, on the other hand, collectively couldn't look one move past yelling "King me!" after Scott Brown won a special election against one of the worst Senate candidates I've ever seen.
What we're seeing with this offshore drilling headline nugget is a long-planned move in a larger serious game. Can the GOP now take shots at Obama's energy policies, in anticipation of the climate change legislation debate about to heat up? Sure, but DAMN did the Obamanauts take the legs out from under that GOP position. Unfortunately, this "game" does have major impact on the environment and millions of jobs and just about every facet of our society. I say "unfortunately" only because it has to be played like a game in order to win anything worth claiming as a trophy. The truth is, I'd rather have Obama "playing" than any other leader in my adult lifetime. Because even while he's changing the rules and where the dugouts are and how many vendors can sell gawddamn redhots from the stands, I believe this guy is smart enough to be thinking ahead to a whole wide world of what's next. Obama says it himself - he's a better political strategist than his staffers tasked with that portfolio. And he's right.
Hope your own perception of crisis presents an opening for expanded opportunities today. Rock on.
The unintentional silence you might have noticed from these here parts over the last handful of days has a story behind it. Even if you don't care, I need to clear the drains. So to speak. My darling daughter pulled my Mac laptop onto the floor by the power cord. Shattered the screen. Made me realize how much I love my daughter because she both is fine and was utterly apologetic. But it also made me realize how much I loved my laptop. Do you know how much it costs to replace a LCD screen on a more than 3-year-old Mac? For me, $1240. Not much scratch if you're passing out loans to Wall Street or the auto industry. But serious cash for a piece of over-used electronics. So I've been pouting while I watch the news in the same fashion that you all have come to expect. Thereby, here's some overdue shots.
Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State has more strings attached than Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Will she work hard? Yup. Will she be almost impossible to clear from past controversies? Absolutely. Can Obama do better? I believe so. Will this mend some bridges with Hillary's supporters? Unquestionably. Should we be debating this as the world looks to us to make sense of what a sinkhole we're in currently? No gawddamn way. This one will make two months of transition into 2 years of investigative journalism. Cut the cord, Barack. I hate to say it, but you don't owe the Clintons anything.
Joe Lieberman is still a Democrat. For now. First sign of Iraq War withdrawal and that cat is over the fence.
Ted Stevens lost and Sarah Palin signed a $7M book deal. I'm willing to bet more ink has been spilled on Alaska politics this year since the aggregate timeline of inclusion in the Union in 1959. Expect that 50th Anniversary of Statehood to be Spring Break for Joe the Plumbers cast far and wide next year.
On a personal note - we're headed to Santa Barbara soon with the expectation of being stunned by the damage caused by the recent fires. Our family and friends are fine. But I'll update y'all with some pics and commentary when I get a better gauge of just how crazy it is to see that sort of damage.
Hope you get the chance to hug your own beloved electronics today. Rock on.
Nine days after the Election, Sarah Palin held her first news conference as a national political figure. She took 4 questions - under 10 minutes of weird smoke and dull-edged attempts to change the subject - before being shuffled off the stage by an especially uninspiring Texas Guv Rick Perry and the dozen of other white dudes surrounding her. The amount of media heat being generated by Palin is a disgrace. Why wouldn't she sit down for questions before she and McCain tanked like an even-more-uninspired Bob Dole campaign? My belief is she's now comfortable that the questions will be all about process. Before the election, some questions might have included actual policy considerations. And we all know how well she does with that sort of thang. This PR campaign after the actual campaign was obviously expected. I'm not surprised at all. It's as simple as considering whether a woman who claims to have only shopped at consignment stores in Anchorage (yea, right) would head back in that direction after getting 13 suitcases worth of high fashion freebies from high-end department stores. Or in less-concrete fashion, Sarah Palin is truly a diva. One of the worst. Just like Mariah Carey. And this election was her "Glitter". Thoughts of a comeback are all divas can focus on when they've been embarrassed by the amount of crap they spout. So I expect we'll see her out there making the same ol' digs at Obama while she frantically searches for a new producer to spin this mess into gold. Good luck with that, Guv. Especially if it continues to look like Ted Stevens will lose his re-election bid and she won't have anything to run for until at least 2010. I'd bet that winter forecast for Alaska would look especially far from that newfound heat right about now, even for a self-professed native.
Hope your own office offers not only a "present" button, but lots of "donation" buttons today. Rock on.
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