I agree, but I also think it's important to understand what it means to run as a moderate. For me, a real moderate POTUS must be open to new ideas AND know how to separate the wheat from the chaff. To do that, the moderate POTUS must surround themselves with a great team, those team members must surround themselves with a great team, and…
I agree, but I also think it's important to understand what it means to run as a moderate. For me, a real moderate POTUS must be open to new ideas AND know how to separate the wheat from the chaff. To do that, the moderate POTUS must surround themselves with a great team, those team members must surround themselves with a great team, and so on.
The reason Biden's administration has been so successful is because he has injected his moral leadership throughout his administration, meaning he has everyone singing from the same "treat others the way you would want to be treated if the shoe was on the other foot" hymn sheet. And Kamala has the same hymn sheet.
The reason Trump's administration was such a disaster is because he injected his immoral leadership throughout his administration, meaning he had everyone singing from the same "do unto to others before they do unto you" hymn sheet.
That brings me to what I think of as the phony moderates, people who want to compare Democrats to Republicans and split the difference. That's what I see in people like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. That approach only makes sense when both parties are acting like grownups. If I was an elementary school teacher, and I realized one of my former students is now in a leadership role in the Republican party, I'd be embarrassed and asking myself where I went wrong.
Translation: The hard part becomes possible after you get the easy part right, and getting the easy part wrong makes the hard part impossible.
I'd like to see Buttigieg "groomed" to succeed Blinken for when Blinken is ready to retire, in 2034 or so. I love Pete - smart, well-spoken, thinks on his feet, always well prepared, decent family man, etc. And he gives off such a great vibe, whether he's serious or jesting.
Well, I am a phoney moderate in that I have had one foot on the liberal side and one foot on the conservative side. I do try to split the difference in many cases, trying to reconcile the two views into, hopefully, a new-and-improved policy stance.
Imagine yourself in a checkout lineup in the main isle of a busy grocery store. Every checkout is open, every line is long, and everyone's attention is on two people. One is a 5-year-old lying on the floor, arms and legs flaying in the air, yelling an screaming at the top of his lungs because he wanted a chocolate bar and his mom said no. The other person is his mother. Do you split the difference?
I see the other side as well. I remember reading a CNN article written by a reporter who visited with Congressional Republicans after their meetings with Pete Buttigieg soon after his appointment as Secretary of Transport to ask them how it went. They all said the same thing. They all said how refreshing it was to leave a meeting with a Democrat feeling like they were actually being listened to. I'd be shocked if I heard them say that about Bernie Sanders.
The problem is that the entire Republican party has adopted the 5-year-old's "I'm right, you're wrong, and this conversation is over" approach. They want their metaphorical chocolate bar and they have zero interest in splitting the difference.
The 5-year-old has already decided he's the most important person in the world. The only thing his mother can do is to agree with him while giving him the bad news, which is that he's tied for first place with everyone else, and she needs to give him a timeout long enough for him to recognize and accept that reality.
That mother has one foot on the child's side and one foot on the parent's side. Having one foot on the liberal side and one foot on the conservative side doesn't make you a phony moderate. A phony moderate is someone who refuses to acknowledge that all the grownups are on one side, and all the grownups on the other side have been purged from the party.
That's how I see it. If I'm wrong, then it's because of something I need to be made aware of because, at this moment, I can't see it.
James, well said. It doesn't work with people throwing tantrums, playing the victim, and insisting on having their way. Years ago I voted for certain Rs here in Oregon. Now I won't vote for any.
Agreed. Well stated and provoking a good chewing of the cud. Alas, I am a phoney moderate because my reaction to a toddler throwing a tantrum would be anything but moderate. 😉
James, I generally agree. One point: I see Senator Manchin as a moderate. While he supports regulations protecting the environment and mitigating human effects on climate change, he won't abandon his voters and stands in the way of policies that would curtail hydrocarbon-based energy mining faster than the economy and technology advances can absorb. To me that's common sense moderation.
Maybe I've misjudged Manchin, but why is he always playing the spoiler? You haven't said anything that makes me think badly of him. I think badly of him because he gives me the impression he wants the Biden administration to trust Republicans without seeming to be willing to acknowledge how much Republicans have proven themselves to be untrustworthy.
I think there's lots of evidence to support the idea that the Biden admin's success is due to their willingness to listen to the legitimate concerns of others, but that's a two way street. My bias is toward assuming Manchin's outlier status is due to his unwillingness to listen to the Biden admin's legitimate concerns.
I see Joe Manchin and his people still flattening mountains with no money being set aside for those people's future. When their pot becomes empty they won't have a pot to pee in. much less a window to throw it out fro,. I truly feel for all those people in their little part of America. Manchin country - Such a tragedy, and it's going to be born by every taxpayer. This won't be like the tobacco settlement. Screw joe Manchin an 'the company store'.
Jerry, if I read your comment correctly (¡an increasingly larger if these days!), then I agree with you. Senators Manchin and Sinema vote with the Democratic majority two-thirds of the time, at least in 2021. Much of politics is stake-holder management. NOT committing political suicide by accommodating the people who sent one to Congress, is NOT a betrayal.
Ryan, please look at Manchin's voting record and the range of issues with which he's been involved. He's no obstructionist. Just like classic Republicans should not buy the MAGA fearful message, Democrats shouldn't buy into the Progressive and undeserved disgust thrown at Manchin.
I agree, but I also think it's important to understand what it means to run as a moderate. For me, a real moderate POTUS must be open to new ideas AND know how to separate the wheat from the chaff. To do that, the moderate POTUS must surround themselves with a great team, those team members must surround themselves with a great team, and so on.
The reason Biden's administration has been so successful is because he has injected his moral leadership throughout his administration, meaning he has everyone singing from the same "treat others the way you would want to be treated if the shoe was on the other foot" hymn sheet. And Kamala has the same hymn sheet.
The reason Trump's administration was such a disaster is because he injected his immoral leadership throughout his administration, meaning he had everyone singing from the same "do unto to others before they do unto you" hymn sheet.
That brings me to what I think of as the phony moderates, people who want to compare Democrats to Republicans and split the difference. That's what I see in people like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. That approach only makes sense when both parties are acting like grownups. If I was an elementary school teacher, and I realized one of my former students is now in a leadership role in the Republican party, I'd be embarrassed and asking myself where I went wrong.
Translation: The hard part becomes possible after you get the easy part right, and getting the easy part wrong makes the hard part impossible.
My hope is that Pres. Harris will keep Pres Biden’s appointees such as Blinkin, Austin, Buttigieg, etc.
I'd like to see Buttigieg "groomed" to succeed Blinken for when Blinken is ready to retire, in 2034 or so. I love Pete - smart, well-spoken, thinks on his feet, always well prepared, decent family man, etc. And he gives off such a great vibe, whether he's serious or jesting.
‼️THIS‼️
Well, I am a phoney moderate in that I have had one foot on the liberal side and one foot on the conservative side. I do try to split the difference in many cases, trying to reconcile the two views into, hopefully, a new-and-improved policy stance.
Imagine yourself in a checkout lineup in the main isle of a busy grocery store. Every checkout is open, every line is long, and everyone's attention is on two people. One is a 5-year-old lying on the floor, arms and legs flaying in the air, yelling an screaming at the top of his lungs because he wanted a chocolate bar and his mom said no. The other person is his mother. Do you split the difference?
I see the other side as well. I remember reading a CNN article written by a reporter who visited with Congressional Republicans after their meetings with Pete Buttigieg soon after his appointment as Secretary of Transport to ask them how it went. They all said the same thing. They all said how refreshing it was to leave a meeting with a Democrat feeling like they were actually being listened to. I'd be shocked if I heard them say that about Bernie Sanders.
The problem is that the entire Republican party has adopted the 5-year-old's "I'm right, you're wrong, and this conversation is over" approach. They want their metaphorical chocolate bar and they have zero interest in splitting the difference.
The 5-year-old has already decided he's the most important person in the world. The only thing his mother can do is to agree with him while giving him the bad news, which is that he's tied for first place with everyone else, and she needs to give him a timeout long enough for him to recognize and accept that reality.
That mother has one foot on the child's side and one foot on the parent's side. Having one foot on the liberal side and one foot on the conservative side doesn't make you a phony moderate. A phony moderate is someone who refuses to acknowledge that all the grownups are on one side, and all the grownups on the other side have been purged from the party.
That's how I see it. If I'm wrong, then it's because of something I need to be made aware of because, at this moment, I can't see it.
James, well said. It doesn't work with people throwing tantrums, playing the victim, and insisting on having their way. Years ago I voted for certain Rs here in Oregon. Now I won't vote for any.
Agreed. Well stated and provoking a good chewing of the cud. Alas, I am a phoney moderate because my reaction to a toddler throwing a tantrum would be anything but moderate. 😉
Ned, I am not good with just moderate kid screaming.
You put that so well. Thanks 🙏
James, I generally agree. One point: I see Senator Manchin as a moderate. While he supports regulations protecting the environment and mitigating human effects on climate change, he won't abandon his voters and stands in the way of policies that would curtail hydrocarbon-based energy mining faster than the economy and technology advances can absorb. To me that's common sense moderation.
Maybe I've misjudged Manchin, but why is he always playing the spoiler? You haven't said anything that makes me think badly of him. I think badly of him because he gives me the impression he wants the Biden administration to trust Republicans without seeming to be willing to acknowledge how much Republicans have proven themselves to be untrustworthy.
I think there's lots of evidence to support the idea that the Biden admin's success is due to their willingness to listen to the legitimate concerns of others, but that's a two way street. My bias is toward assuming Manchin's outlier status is due to his unwillingness to listen to the Biden admin's legitimate concerns.
I see Joe Manchin and his people still flattening mountains with no money being set aside for those people's future. When their pot becomes empty they won't have a pot to pee in. much less a window to throw it out fro,. I truly feel for all those people in their little part of America. Manchin country - Such a tragedy, and it's going to be born by every taxpayer. This won't be like the tobacco settlement. Screw joe Manchin an 'the company store'.
Jerry, if I read your comment correctly (¡an increasingly larger if these days!), then I agree with you. Senators Manchin and Sinema vote with the Democratic majority two-thirds of the time, at least in 2021. Much of politics is stake-holder management. NOT committing political suicide by accommodating the people who sent one to Congress, is NOT a betrayal.
Ryan, please look at Manchin's voting record and the range of issues with which he's been involved. He's no obstructionist. Just like classic Republicans should not buy the MAGA fearful message, Democrats shouldn't buy into the Progressive and undeserved disgust thrown at Manchin.
Just one of several websites:
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/biden-congress-votes/joe-manchin/