Where the Hell Is Lyndon Johnson?
So Obama may be pushing for the most important Democratic reform since the Great Society, yet he is only somewhat like LBJ. He's got the whole Vietnam boondoogle thing going on with Afghanistan, but not the balls and/or political intelligence to get healthcare reform passed. The Democrats in Congress are a herd of cats. You have to have someone clever and tough to make them get in line. Do you really think LBJ couldn't have gotten Max Baucus doing backflips by May for the Public Option. Johnson would have co-opted him, cut off his support, taken his committee chairmanship, or even set up a primary opponent against him. There are benefits to supporting the President and serious cost to undermining his agenda. Neither LBJ nor FDR had a Rahm Immanuel fake toughguy. Just cursing doesn't make you or the administration respected or feared. Since nobodies scared of Rahm, nobodies scared of Obama, except for maybe Kanye West.
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posted by polar donkey at 4:59 PM
2 Comments:
Just so, PD.
Dude got affirmatively acted past his experience, connections, and intelligence levels.
At least he's slower than most to fight Israel's wars.
11:04 AM
LBJ would have likely had the bill passed, intact with a public option. He had the same battles with Medicare and Medicaid. He also had a tougher legislative battle with Ways and Means Chairman Wilbur Mills who was a longtime foe of Medicare.
In the end, he had Wilbur supporting it and let him take credit for it being his own idea.
1:02 PM
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