Aa
It's a 50-50 nation, give or take
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/new_with_new_subject?forum_id=621
Nov 7, 11:05 AM (ET)
By CALVIN WOODWARD
WASHINGTON (AP) - The election laid bare a dual - and dueling - nation, politically speaking, jaggedly split down the middle on the presidency and torn over much else. It seems you can please only half of the people nearly all of the time.
Americans retained the fractious balance of power in re-electing President Barack Obama, a Republican House and a Democratic Senate, altogether serving as guarantors of the gridlock that voters say they despise. Slender percentages separated winner and loser from battleground to battleground, and people in exit polls said yea and nay in roughly equal measure to some of the big issues of the day.
Democracy doesn't care if you win big, only that you win. Tuesday was a day of decision as firmly as if Obama had run away with the race. Democrats are ebullient and, after a campaign notable for its raw smackdowns, words of conciliation and healing are coming from leaders on both sides, starting with the plea from defeated Republican rival Mitt Romney that his crestfallen supporters pray for the president.
But after the most ideologically polarized election in years, Obama's assertion Wednesday morning that America is "more than a collection of red states and blue states" was more of an aspiration than a snapshot of where the country stands.
Compromise was a popular notion in the hours after Obama's victory and an unavoidable one, given the reality of divided government. But the familiar contours of partisan Washington were also in evidence, especially the notion that compromise means you do things my way.
As Democratic Rep. Steve Israel of New York put it, "If you refuse to compromise, we are going to beat you." Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said the election showed "if you are an extremist tea party Republican, you are going to lose."
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was grudging in interpreting the election as any kind of mandate for Obama, saying voters "have simply given him more time to finish the job they asked him to do together" with Congress, and did not endorse his "failure or excesses."
In New York's bustling Times Square, hope, skepticism and familiar polarities were all to be found when people talked about the president. "He may not have done a great job in my mind but I kinda trust him," said Jerry Shul. "I have faith he will get with the Republicans and get something done."
A less-flattering George Dallemand called this "a moment of truth" for the country. "I guess we have to wish for the best now, but I still think he is socialism."
In Miami, Karen Fitzgerald, 55, wore a black dress and said she was in mourning over Romney's defeat.
"It's an upsetting day," she said. But she took some comfort from her Democratic friends on Facebook, who have stopped chiding the other side in their posts. "Now they're all saying we need to work together and be united," she said. "Maybe we can."
In Chicago, Obama supporter Scherita Parrish, 56, predicted the president will reach out to Republicans but may not get much back.
"But the people have spoken," she said. "They need to lick their wounds, get on with it and start working with the president."
Indeed, unity is a challenge not just for Obama but for the Republicans, who won less than 30 percent of the growing Hispanic vote and not even one in 10 black voters. Obama built a strong Electoral College majority, if only a narrow advantage in the popular vote, despite losing every age group of non-Hispanic white voters.
Surveys of voters found Obama's health care law to be as divisive as ever, with just under 50 percent wanting it repealed in whole or part, and 44 percent liking it as is or wanting more of it.
But democracy doesn't care about exit polls, either, and the election almost certainly means Republicans can forget about trying to roll it back now.
In reaffirming divided government, though, Americans all but ensured colossal fights are ahead over the shape of government and Obama's agenda. He is out to break a wall of Republican opposition to tax increases on the wealthy - a move that about half the voters in exit polls thought was a good idea. And extraordinarily difficult negotiations are imminent as the president and Congress try to make a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff" - steep spending cuts and a variety of tax increases in January.
In the end, voters split about equally on whether Obama or Romney would be better at handling the economy.
Then again, they were divided down the middle on whether Obama or his predecessor, George W. Bush, deserves most of the blame for the economy's problems.
So it goes in the 50-50 nation, give or take.
---
Associated Press writers Christine Armario in Miami, Michael Tarm in Chicago and David Martin in New York contributed to this report.
Nov 7, 11:05 AM (ET)
By CALVIN WOODWARD
WASHINGTON (AP) - The election laid bare a dual - and dueling - nation, politically speaking, jaggedly split down the middle on the presidency and torn over much else. It seems you can please only half of the people nearly all of the time.
Americans retained the fractious balance of power in re-electing President Barack Obama, a Republican House and a Democratic Senate, altogether serving as guarantors of the gridlock that voters say they despise. Slender percentages separated winner and loser from battleground to battleground, and people in exit polls said yea and nay in roughly equal measure to some of the big issues of the day.
Democracy doesn't care if you win big, only that you win. Tuesday was a day of decision as firmly as if Obama had run away with the race. Democrats are ebullient and, after a campaign notable for its raw smackdowns, words of conciliation and healing are coming from leaders on both sides, starting with the plea from defeated Republican rival Mitt Romney that his crestfallen supporters pray for the president.
But after the most ideologically polarized election in years, Obama's assertion Wednesday morning that America is "more than a collection of red states and blue states" was more of an aspiration than a snapshot of where the country stands.
Compromise was a popular notion in the hours after Obama's victory and an unavoidable one, given the reality of divided government. But the familiar contours of partisan Washington were also in evidence, especially the notion that compromise means you do things my way.
As Democratic Rep. Steve Israel of New York put it, "If you refuse to compromise, we are going to beat you." Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said the election showed "if you are an extremist tea party Republican, you are going to lose."
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was grudging in interpreting the election as any kind of mandate for Obama, saying voters "have simply given him more time to finish the job they asked him to do together" with Congress, and did not endorse his "failure or excesses."
In New York's bustling Times Square, hope, skepticism and familiar polarities were all to be found when people talked about the president. "He may not have done a great job in my mind but I kinda trust him," said Jerry Shul. "I have faith he will get with the Republicans and get something done."
A less-flattering George Dallemand called this "a moment of truth" for the country. "I guess we have to wish for the best now, but I still think he is socialism."
In Miami, Karen Fitzgerald, 55, wore a black dress and said she was in mourning over Romney's defeat.
"It's an upsetting day," she said. But she took some comfort from her Democratic friends on Facebook, who have stopped chiding the other side in their posts. "Now they're all saying we need to work together and be united," she said. "Maybe we can."
In Chicago, Obama supporter Scherita Parrish, 56, predicted the president will reach out to Republicans but may not get much back.
"But the people have spoken," she said. "They need to lick their wounds, get on with it and start working with the president."
Indeed, unity is a challenge not just for Obama but for the Republicans, who won less than 30 percent of the growing Hispanic vote and not even one in 10 black voters. Obama built a strong Electoral College majority, if only a narrow advantage in the popular vote, despite losing every age group of non-Hispanic white voters.
Surveys of voters found Obama's health care law to be as divisive as ever, with just under 50 percent wanting it repealed in whole or part, and 44 percent liking it as is or wanting more of it.
But democracy doesn't care about exit polls, either, and the election almost certainly means Republicans can forget about trying to roll it back now.
In reaffirming divided government, though, Americans all but ensured colossal fights are ahead over the shape of government and Obama's agenda. He is out to break a wall of Republican opposition to tax increases on the wealthy - a move that about half the voters in exit polls thought was a good idea. And extraordinarily difficult negotiations are imminent as the president and Congress try to make a deal to avoid the "fiscal cliff" - steep spending cuts and a variety of tax increases in January.
In the end, voters split about equally on whether Obama or Romney would be better at handling the economy.
Then again, they were divided down the middle on whether Obama or his predecessor, George W. Bush, deserves most of the blame for the economy's problems.
So it goes in the 50-50 nation, give or take.
---
Associated Press writers Christine Armario in Miami, Michael Tarm in Chicago and David Martin in New York contributed to this report.
...."start working with the President". That statement should be a 2 way street. Both parties need to open their eyes to what is happening here and get something done... something real. What about this economy? What about jobs? What about the banking industry? Pick something and get it handled....
So it goes in the 50-50 nation, give or take.
*give and take* it is true. Now that I am feeling less threatened, I feel much more open to the 50% who wanted Romney. They (the reasonable "they") need to be heard and hopefully the Administration will move forward with an attitude of inclusion.
As much as that is possible without compromising the basic platform they ran on.
I don't expect Dems to give in on what they want and don't expect R's to give in on what they want. But it can't be 1 sided like it was for the 1st 4 years. I think you will be hard pressed to actually find anything that the R's had major dealings in during the 1st 4 years. This is why I actually have little hope that anything gets done.
I have hope!
Me too!
"...Now that I am feeling less threatened..."
Why did you feel threatened in the first place?
Unless you drank the media-koolaide, in which case, I completely understand.
Why did you feel threatened in the first place?
Unless you drank the media-koolaide, in which case, I completely understand.
"...the notion that compromise means you do things my way..."
If anyone thinks that anything more is going to get done in the next 4 years, than got done in the first 4 years, please pass me some of what you're smoking, as I'd like to think the same thing.
If anyone thinks that anything more is going to get done in the next 4 years, than got done in the first 4 years, please pass me some of what you're smoking, as I'd like to think the same thing.
Hoping is the easy part. Hell, I'm hopeful. Honestly, I'm not expecting much either, but any progress... anybody meeting anybody in the middle would be better than what we've got.
I've noticed this cycle, and especially here.... people need to be "right". That takes away any flexibility/opportunity to meet somewhere else.
Compromise.... it can happen. I remain hopeful but am not holding my breath.
I've noticed this cycle, and especially here.... people need to be "right". That takes away any flexibility/opportunity to meet somewhere else.
Compromise.... it can happen. I remain hopeful but am not holding my breath.
For those that are saying you don't think anything will get done, did you not listen to the Presidents speech last night? Were you not a little bit inspired. At least he is reaching out and saying he will work with the other side. That's a start in the right direction IMO...I mean have more faith. Congress does need to come together. If one side feels that they will still oppose then yes, NOTHING will get done but if both sides take a good look at last night's election and see that the majority has spoken clearly, they will both see that they have no choice but to come together. I'm going into the next 4 yrs with optimism and I have faith that both dems and repubs will actually focus on what's important to our country and just get thing done..Partisan aside...
Just realized that I messed up when I posted the link. Here's the right one.
http://seattletimes.com/html/politics/2019626024_apuselectionmood.html
http://seattletimes.com/html/politics/2019626024_apuselectionmood.html
He said we would work with the other side 4 years ago and he never did. So why believe him this time? He has given no reason to believe him.
"He said we would work with the other side 4 years ago and he never did. So why believe him this time? He has given no reason to believe him."
Well he did and the reason why he couldn't fulfill it 100% is because the republicans refused to work with him. We have provided all of you on the right links of the Speaker Mitch McConnell declaring that as his first priority..You can say what you want but the reality is the repubs in congress caused the stalemate and refused to work with the President..Why? Who knows. They just don't like or respect him....
Well he did and the reason why he couldn't fulfill it 100% is because the republicans refused to work with him. We have provided all of you on the right links of the Speaker Mitch McConnell declaring that as his first priority..You can say what you want but the reality is the repubs in congress caused the stalemate and refused to work with the President..Why? Who knows. They just don't like or respect him....
"If one side feels that they will still oppose then yes, NOTHING will get done but if both sides take a good look at last night's election and see that the majority has spoken clearly, they will both see that they have no choice but to come together."
No, not so........ from what I've been reading, both sides are interpreting the vote in different ways. The Republicans are seeing that 1/2 the country doesn't like Obama and are for them, so they should stay their course. Sounds like the Dems think the same way.
They need to look at it, not only from the standpoint of how many voted for each candidate, but, just as importantly --- how many DIDN'T vote for each candidate. Once elected, the President must represent the entire country, including those who didn't vote for him. Same with Congress.
No, not so........ from what I've been reading, both sides are interpreting the vote in different ways. The Republicans are seeing that 1/2 the country doesn't like Obama and are for them, so they should stay their course. Sounds like the Dems think the same way.
They need to look at it, not only from the standpoint of how many voted for each candidate, but, just as importantly --- how many DIDN'T vote for each candidate. Once elected, the President must represent the entire country, including those who didn't vote for him. Same with Congress.
"They need to look at it, not only from the standpoint of how many voted for each candidate, but, just as importantly --- how many DIDN'T vote for each candidate"
Agreed!
Agreed!
Can anyone honestly say that the lack of working together was entirely one parties fault, left or right? From where I am sitting, they both had a part to play in this, and keeping in mind that even politicians are still individuals, I'm certain they each had their own reasons for doing so. At the end of the day, the important thing is that both sides work on this issue and try to come together. Baby steps at first, but even baby steps are a step forward right?
Why do you continue to argue that point that he tried to work woth R's? That is just a lie. Telling then to get on board or go away is not working with them. When did Obama ever try to work with the R's. Tell me one time. What on healthcare? So you wanted R's to just give in and do something they don't want? That the people didn't want?
Thsi idea that Obama ever tried to WORK with R's is laughable.
Thsi idea that Obama ever tried to WORK with R's is laughable.
Don't you think that perhaps it's a matter of perspective rather then a lie? I think both sides could make an argument that they tried to work with the other side, and that the other side refused to work with them. This is because both had their own agenda, and they are so far apart in even understanding what compromise means. Finger pointing doesn't resolve it - they are both right and both wrong. The point is, unless both of them learn the meaning of compromise, it's just going to get worse. Arguing who is more at fault isn't solving a thing, and it's what they both are doing. Or at least have been.
I think the situation is such that it would be beneficial for both sides to figure out the solution. No more do they have to try to make Obama a one term president and if they want a political future, I think they will see it is in their best interests to get the job done. We can only hope.
"Well he did and the reason why he couldn't fulfill it 100% is because the republicans refused to work with him. We have provided all of you on the right links of the Speaker Mitch McConnell declaring that as his first priority..You can say what you want but the reality is the repubs in congress caused the stalemate and refused to work with the President..Why? Who knows. They just don't like or respect him.... "
Just because Mitch McConnell declared that his first priority was to make Obama a one term President, doesn't mean the entire Republican Congress agreed with him......... you're back to lumping everyone together again. A Republican is a Republican is a Republican... not the least bit true.
Maybe the President "did" try to work with Congress - you see it that way, I don't particularly, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. If he were such a great leader, he would have been able to find ways to work the obstinate group of people he had to deal with. If Romney had won, he'd have had to contend with a Democratic Senate, who probably would have fought him at every turn, as well. If he weren't able to work them and get things done, I'd say he wouldn't deserve a second term either.
Barack Obama is the President of the Untied States for a second term. He campaigned vigorously and paid a lot of money, for the position, twice; he knew full well what he was getting into, both times -- it's time for him (and his supporters) to stop blaming other people and truly believe that the "buck stops with him".
Just because Mitch McConnell declared that his first priority was to make Obama a one term President, doesn't mean the entire Republican Congress agreed with him......... you're back to lumping everyone together again. A Republican is a Republican is a Republican... not the least bit true.
Maybe the President "did" try to work with Congress - you see it that way, I don't particularly, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. If he were such a great leader, he would have been able to find ways to work the obstinate group of people he had to deal with. If Romney had won, he'd have had to contend with a Democratic Senate, who probably would have fought him at every turn, as well. If he weren't able to work them and get things done, I'd say he wouldn't deserve a second term either.
Barack Obama is the President of the Untied States for a second term. He campaigned vigorously and paid a lot of money, for the position, twice; he knew full well what he was getting into, both times -- it's time for him (and his supporters) to stop blaming other people and truly believe that the "buck stops with him".
Here's hope for you. I am home today with a sick child (not serious, just pink eye). He's napping, so I turned on CNN and caught Bohners speech. It was really really good. He talked a lot about compromise, working together and how that is what the people want. And his tie was...PURPLE! It sounded to me like he is committed to assisting in leading the Republican politicians more to the middle. Hopefully the left is committed to the same. Bohner came across as sincere and I hope people will give both sides a chance, no matter whom you tend to stand with. It was really really good and very positive.
Well put....
'Untied States"........... sorry, that should "United States", of course, but sometimes I feel like we have become *untied*......... lol
"Just because Mitch McConnell declared that his first priority was to make Obama a one term President, doesn't mean the entire Republican Congress agreed with him......... you're back to lumping everyone together again. A Republican is a Republican is a Republican... not the least bit true."
It is true. He is the speaker. He speaks for the republican party in Washington...You don't have to believe it, but it is true. that was their position and it failed.....
"Maybe the President "did" try to work with Congress - you see it that way, I don't particularly, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. If he were such a great leader, he would have been able to find ways to work the obstinate group of people he had to deal with."
I'm not going to go back and forth. I believe what I believe and you believe what you believe. We'll just have to agree to disagree...
It is true. He is the speaker. He speaks for the republican party in Washington...You don't have to believe it, but it is true. that was their position and it failed.....
"Maybe the President "did" try to work with Congress - you see it that way, I don't particularly, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. If he were such a great leader, he would have been able to find ways to work the obstinate group of people he had to deal with."
I'm not going to go back and forth. I believe what I believe and you believe what you believe. We'll just have to agree to disagree...
About McConnell..... that would be like you saying you speak for the whole democratic party. (I didn't elect McConnell and I sure has hell didn't appoint him! He doesn't speak for me, and I bet there are some republicans out there who feel the exact same way....)
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