The latest Washington Post poll is full of terrible news for congressional Democrats, but also a reminder of Barack Obama’s fundamentally strong political position:
My prediction is for huge Republican gains in the midterms followed by lots of talk about conservatism on the upswing and Obama’s need to readjust followed by a bunch of gridlock and Obama cruising to re-election.
That said, the other thing we see here is something that those of us who think Obama is too conservative don’t like to confront. You see a lot of talk about “guts” and being “tough” and “brave” and “bold” but fundamentally we’ve done a terrible job of persuading people in the public that we’re right and there are many issues on which Obama should be more progressive. As Chris Bowers likes to point out, the most credible most beloved messenger on the left is—wait for it—Barack Obama, which tends to make Obama immune to criticism from the left. This is a fundamental problem for shifting the country in a progressive direction. Indeed, in a lot of ways it’s even a problem for Obama himself. But it’s fundamentally a problem of persuasion rather than a problem of Obama’s character.
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