[Dwencejed]

Most Americans Are Moderates -- and Thus Invisible
Mary C. Curtis
Most Americans want a compromise on the budget standoff, the polls say. They want strict controls to halt illegal immigration, but they want lawmakers to keep their hands off the 14th Amendment, which grants automatic citizenship to anyone born on American soil, including those whose parents are on that soil illegally. Americans hurting the most are the ones who see hope ahead, not surprising since they have the most to lose when hope is gone.

According to polls that measure such things, Americans want their politicians to work together and to listen to the voices and opinions of the people, including people with differing views on solutions to the nation's problems.

Full Article:
Most Americans Are Moderates -- and Thus Invisible

[Greapyjeory]

The silent majority is silent until elections.

[pupyississido]

The silent majority is silent until elections.

Yes. I believe Obama understands that, and is trying to meet the silent majority's preferences.

He has never been an extreme liberal, never been an extreme progressive, that is just an "urban legend" spun by Fox!

[Gedominew]

I'd say that trying to define "moderate" is part of the problem. There is no singular definition for moderate - there are a wide variety of perspectives where people aren't all the way on the left or the right on all the issues, so they're technically moderate.

One might also call that section of the political spectrum "rational."

[velichay]

Yes. I believe Obama understands that, and is trying to meet the silent majority's preferences.

He has never been an extreme liberal, never been an extreme progressive, that is just an "urban legend" ...

Yeah, it's an Urban Myth that he was part of the Trinity Church of Chicago ...
or that Black Liberation Theology is left leaning...
or that he voted with his party as senator 96% of the time...
or that he was the most liberal member of congress in 2007 .

[Khurlxgq]

Yeah, it's an Urban Myth that he was part of the Trinity Church of Chicago ...
or that Black Liberation Theology is left leaning...
or that he voted with his party as senator 96% of the time...
or that he was the most liberal member of congress in 2007 .

You should not confuse people with facts. It's bad manners!~

[Greapyjeory]

Yeah, it's an Urban Myth that he was part of the Trinity Church of Chicago ...
or that Black Liberation Theology is left leaning...
or that he voted with his party as senator 96% of the time...
or that he was the most liberal member of congress in 2007 .

I think Obama's actions show that he's less interested in pushing liberal agendas than he is in trying to create left of center policies.

He may come from a liberal background, but his policies are pretty moderate actually.

It's kind of like what happened with Bush. He ran on a small government platform in 2000. He even went into detail about being against nation building. Yet, he became the most prominent nation builder in modern American history.

His policies clearly did not support smaller government, but he did support right of center policies. The only areas he typically was far right on were social issues, and he was even moderate on a few of those (like illegal immigration).

The difference between a president's political background vs. his actual policies can be pretty significant.

[Khurlxgq]

Most Americans Are Moderates -- and Thus Invisible
Mary C. Curtis
Most Americans want a compromise on the budget standoff, the polls say. They want strict controls to halt illegal immigration, but they want lawmakers to keep their hands off the 14th Amendment, which grants automatic citizenship to anyone born on American soil, including those whose parents are on that soil illegally. Americans hurting the most are the ones who see hope ahead, not surprising since they have the most to lose when hope is gone.

According to polls that measure such things, Americans want their politicians to work together and to listen to the voices and opinions of the people, including people with differing views on solutions to the nation's problems.

Full Article:
Most Americans Are Moderates -- and Thus Invisible

Given the narrow margins the last few elections have had, I would say that the very small few who hover somewhere near the middle are calling all the elections. You can cancel out 1:1 the far leaning ones on either side. And that actually would leave a very small group in the middle calling all the shots.

[Khcyhshq]

Yes. I believe Obama understands that, and is trying to meet the silent majority's preferences.

He has never been an extreme liberal, never been an extreme progressive, that is just an "urban legend" spun by Fox!

ahoy Sadanie,

this be true, absolutely true. Disillusion_1 and RudeBoy hath been sayin' this fer almost 3 years, long before the rest 'o us on USPO saw the signs.

President Obama be a right leanin' centrist, not some kinda fire breathin' liberal.

aye.

- MeadHallPirate

[velichay]

I think Obama's actions show that he's less interested in pushing liberal agendas than he is in trying to create left of center policies.

They are left of center to pull the center of policies further left. The man isn't a fool despite his occasional seeming weakness.


It's kind of like what happened with Bush... He was a terrible conservative.

The difference between a president's political background vs. his actual policies can be pretty significant. True enough reality can supersede ideals.

[velichay]

ahoy Sadanie,

this be true, absolutely true. Disillusion_1 and RudeBoy hath been sayin' this fer almost 3 years, long before the rest 'o us on USPO saw the signs.

President Obama be a right leanin' centrist, not some kinda fire breathin' liberal.

aye.

Having patience and the ability to work from within the system doesn't make one lean right of center.

[nvideoe]

ahoy Sadanie,

this be true, absolutely true. Disillusion_1 and RudeBoy hath been sayin' this fer almost 3 years, long before the rest 'o us on USPO saw the signs.

President Obama be a right leanin' centrist, not some kinda fire breathin' liberal.

aye.

- MeadHallPirate

When the hell are you guys ever going to learn...the true political animal is neither "left" nor "right". They are populist. They make all of their decisions based on what they believe will give them the best opportunity to stay where they are. It was absolutely pathetic how so many otherwise sane Americans ended up in some kind of euphoric swoon of "hope and change". Hell, if pretty much anyone other than McCain had received the Republican nod it would have been President Hillary rather than Obama.

[Greapyjeory]

They are left of center to pull the center of policies further left. The man isn't a fool despite his occasional seeming weakness.

I can agree with that, but the same is true for a president of either party.

Yes, Obama is interested in swinging the pendulum to the left. Bush was interested in doing that toward the right.

Still, I don't think you can call Obama a leftist anymore than you can call Bush a rightist.

He was a terrible conservative.

I agree. My distaste for Bush stems from a combination of his social views and foreign policy. I actually didn't mind some of his economic policies, because they were more moderate.

[infelconi]

Hell, if pretty much anyone other than McCain had received the Republican nod it would have been President Hillary rather than Obama.

I don't know how you figure that. Wasn't that decided in the Democratic primaries, which if memory serves are separate from the Republican ones?

[Khcyhshq]

When the hell are you guys ever going to learn...the true political animal is neither "left" nor "right". They are populist. They make all of their decisions based on what they believe will give them the best opportunity to stay where they are. It was absolutely pathetic how so many otherwise sane Americans ended up in some kind of euphoric swoon of "hope and change". Hell, if pretty much anyone other than McCain had received the Republican nod it would have been President Hillary rather than Obama.

ahoy Lutherf,

i agree, me bucko. whether the "hope and change" be promised by President Obama, or members 'o the Tea Party caucus, only a rube would fall fer such rhetoric.

that bein' said, i'd say President Obama (by his actions, not his rhetoric) be a right leanin' centrist.

*bows*

- MeadHallPirate

[Greapyjeory]

When the hell are you guys ever going to learn...the true political animal is neither "left" nor "right". They are populist. They make all of their decisions based on what they believe will give them the best opportunity to stay where they are. It was absolutely pathetic how so many otherwise sane Americans ended up in some kind of euphoric swoon of "hope and change". Hell, if pretty much anyone other than McCain had received the Republican nod it would have been President Hillary rather than Obama.

I was one of the people who voted for Obama that wasn't enamored by him. Hillary was more qualified but less charismatic.

McCain would be better as president than Bush, but after he picked Palin as his running mate, that sealed the deal for me. Dan Quayle was bad, but Palin makes him look like a genius.

[Greapyjeory]

I don't know how you figure that. Wasn't that decided in the Democratic primaries, which if memory serves are separate from the Republican ones?

I think he's suggesting that a more conservative GOP candidate would have probably resulted in a more moderate Democratic candidate.

[Khurlxgq]

ahoy Sadanie,

this be true, absolutely true. Disillusion_1 and RudeBoy hath been sayin' this fer almost 3 years, long before the rest 'o us on USPO saw the signs.

President Obama be a right leanin' centrist, not some kinda fire breathin' liberal.

aye.

- MeadHallPirate

Liberals don't breathe fire MHP!~

They breathe bluebirds and fluffy little clouds!




Sorry, I couldn't resist!

[velichay]

McCain would be better as president than Bush, but after he picked Palin as his running mate, that sealed the deal for me. Dan Quayle was bad, but Palin makes him look like a genius.

I think the Republicans threw the election hoping to use the Obama administration to cleanse the American political palette to make future Republicans more tolerable after Bush ran the brand into the ground.

Dan Quayle was fairly intelligent he just didn't know when the hell to shut up, now imagine a v.p. not knowing when to shut the hell up who isn't all that bright... ego gets in the way a lot.

[vladekad]

I was one of the people who voted for Obama that wasn't enamored by him. Hillary was more qualified but less charismatic.

McCain would be better as president than Bush, but after he picked Palin as his running mate, that sealed the deal for me. Dan Quayle was bad, but Palin makes him look like a genius.

I was just saying to my wife yesterday how I really like Sec. Clinton but I just can't stand watching her speak. She always comes off as artificial to me. Pres Obama might be charismatic but he's just not an effective leader and I think it's really going to hurt him come election time.

I don't know what Sen. McCain was thinking in picking Sarah Palin. I understand he was attempting to appeal to his base but there were just better options. Realistically he could have thrown a dart at a board with Republican names and made a better decision.