August 11, 2017

"Obama to re-emerge in ‘delicate dance’ with Dems."

Speaking of alliteration...

This is what "one aide" says, according to The Hill.
Aides will huddle with Obama...
... hubristically huddle?...
...  in the coming weeks to plot out what shape the former president's fall schedule will take....
A tremulous triangle?
But advisers to the former president acknowledge he also doesn’t want to be “a foil” —as one top ally put it — for President Trump and the Republican leadership.
A furtive foil.
“He would be the target against which Trump would direct his fury,” added Cal Jillson, a professor of political science at Southern Methodist University. “From Trump’s perspective nothing better could happen.” 
Fury... and fire.
“He’ll tread lightly because he is not going to be the face of the party when it actually counts in 2020 and 2024,” Jillson added....
Lilting and lovely, delicately dancing.
Democrats are feeling angst about Clinton’s reemergence, worrying that it will point to a party looking backward instead of forward.

“It’s wise for both Clinton and Obama to hang back at this point,” one Democratic strategist said. “Otherwise our party will have an even harder time rebounding.

“We already lack a party leader, we lack a vision, we lack an identity,” the strategist said bluntly. “We can’t remain stuck in the past.” 
But Clinton is the more past past than Obama. Obama, the more up-to-date person of the past, can get the party closer to the present. From there — past, present — it's on to the pfuture. 

44 comments:

Kevin said...

Maybe he should just stay where he is and use his pen and phone.

It would be just like he was President again.

exhelodrvr1 said...

Aluminum foil, for the Democrats' hats.

Matt Sablan said...

The problem is that Obama *will* be the face of the party, because he can't not be the center of attention any less than Trump, though Trump is a bit more crass about it. Even when he was president, Obama needed to make every cultural touchstone as much about him as possible. March Madness? "Watch me fill my bracket." "Let me go on late night TV." "Let me slow jam the news."

The best thing for the Democrats to do would be to tell him, "Hey, why not follow the Bush trajectory and just... like, be relatively uninvolved and focus on philanthropy?"

Hell, it worked for Carter.

Matt Sablan said...

Though, as a Republican-ish person, the more time Democrats spend trying to revive Obama or Clinton, the less time they're focusing on what they need, which is to massively change their congressional leadership teams.

But, hey, if they want to bring back Obama, who couldn't save Clinton, instead of giving Pelosi the heave-ho, well, it's nice that Republicans aren't the only ones snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

LilyBart said...

Ah, yes, the guy who said, "at some point, you've made enough money", back from his $60 million book deal, $400 thousand speeches, and back-to-back vacations with billionaires. Obama will be back to tell upper middle class people that we need to have our income redistributed. Obama is just a garden variety limousine socialist.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

I notice the Bush family exited the spotlight.

The Clinton Crime Machine rolls on, endlessly in our faces.
Persisting to piss us off.

exhelodrvr1 said...

"Hell, it worked for Carter"

Yeah, Carter's approach has been such a blessing!! Thank God he got involved with North Korea!! And Venezuela!!

Bob Ellison said...

Pure marketing is not enough. You gotta have a product people want. The Dems are bereft.

There's an inverse relationship between marketing folks who know this and the power/revenue level at which they practice their arts.

David Begley said...

Will Obama answers questions about his failed policies regarding North Korea, Iran and Syria?

This guy has already been President and it wasn't so great.

David Begley said...

Obama's ultimate goal is to copy the money-making Clinton Foundation. That may require his wife to run for Senate. The Greens really owe him so he should be able to collect.

traditionalguy said...

I pity the Dems. They are still providing a cover story for the Marxist Muslim Destroyer of the USA to finish us off. And that is all they have got to offer.

At least Maxine Waters is an American.

tcrosse said...

I see an Obama-Clinton 2008 cage-fight rematch for the threadbare soul of the Party.

stevew said...

"Democrats are feeling angst about Clinton’s reemergence, worrying that it will point to a party looking backward instead of forward."

They should pay attention to those feelings and act accordingly upon them.

I, not being a Dem, strongly encourage them to ignore their feelings.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

What's the over/under on how soon we hear calls that the 22nd Amendment is racist?

rehajm said...

Obama's ultimate goal is to copy the money-making Clinton Foundation.

Problematic when lefties aren't in charge of IRS. But he will bide his time...

rhhardin said...

airy act
beautiful bob
careful cavort
delicate dance
ethereal embrace
fragile frolic
gossamer gambol
heavenly hop
insubstantial intertwining
judicious jig
kittenish knot
lacy lurch
mincing move
nice nestle
ornate oscillation
pretty prance
quiet quaver
refined romp
subtle sway
tasteful tremble
unsteady undulation
velvety vacillation
wispy whirl
zany zigzag








tcrosse said...

From there — past, present — it's on to the pfuture.

If you can't pfix it, pfuck it.

Michael K said...

"Obama's ultimate goal is to copy the money-making Clinton Foundation."

I agree. If Michelle wants to run for the Senate, she might have to send some time in Chicago, which is not much fun compared to what she is doing now.

Kevin said...

What's the over/under on how soon we hear calls that the 22nd Amendment is racist?

Carter and Bush I die, Clinton has another health scare, and Bush states he has no interest in retiring to the job.

Bingo! The 22nd Amendment "enslaves" black people with the skills to be President in lower-tier jobs.

Ralph L said...

Obama can't pull off a yuge Obama Foundation because there's no chance Michelle will be President.

I remember in the 90's, the Clinton "insiders" kept saying that Bill&Hill weren't in it for the money, just didn't care about it.

zipity said...

Yeah, remember after Obama was elected in 2008, how GW Bush came out and was working actively to undermine the Obama Administration?

Oh.

Wait.

Never mind.

Democrats. Nothing is Beneath Them.

TosaGuy said...

"I agree. If Michelle wants to run for the Senate, she might have to send some time in Chicago, which is not much fun compared to what she is doing now."

So just where would Mrs. Obama pull her own version of Hillary Clinton . . . .

I don't see Dick Durban or Tammy Duckworth stepping aside for anyone.

Hawaii's senators are relatively new and that states' politics probably doesn't take to carpetbaggers from the mainland.

Hillary Clinton also poisoned the well of the parachuting into a state to become a senator.



And when it gets right down to it. I don't think either Obama cares to work too hard other than collecting speech/book money and having opinions.

ga6 said...

Who is pitching and who is catching?

Jersey Fled said...

Clinton's reemergence?

Maybe I missed something.

zipity said...

Clinton is re-emerging.

If she sees her shadow, it means another 4 years of Trump.

Sweet!

TML said...

Hmmmmm...didn't Schumer and Pelosi and Warne,r et all just trot out that new, super-lame "A Better Deal" nonsense just three weeks ago?

“We already lack a party leader, we lack a vision, we lack an identity,” the strategist said bluntly. “We can’t remain stuck in the past.”

Wince said...

Althouse said...
... hubristically huddle?...
...A tremulous triangle?
...A furtive foil.
...Fury... and fire.
...Lilting and lovely, delicately dancing.


"You always do that!"

Ray - SoCal said...

Strange, I thought Obama was going to no longer be silenced a couple of months ago. Had bought a house in D.C. And set up a political machine. A shadow White House...,

Then Trump did a tweet or two, and it was off to Tahiti and out of the limelight.

Is this like Al Gores new versions?

cubanbob said...

Why hasn't sessions appointed a special prosecutor to look at Obama and his criminal acts?

MaxedOutMama said...

Obama, unlike Hillary Clinton, has excellent political instincts. He will hover in the background so that if things go south, he can safely advance to the limelight, but he is not going to jump into the fray before the outcome is uncertain. There are a lot of people willing to dive into the melee, but not Obama.

I can hardly blame him. He's done his eight years. He probably just wants to have fun.

Then there is the awkward question over various DOJ problems and ethical lapses, and the more the Trump-targeted investigations go forward, the greater the probability that some of those receive real scrutiny. So Obama has an incentive to make a deal with Trump.

HoodlumDoodlum said...

Bob Ellison said...Pure marketing is not enough. You gotta have a product people want. The Dems are bereft.

I disagree. "Free stuff" still sells very well--left, right, and middle! Obamacare, especially in its first years, was mostly about free stuff. The sucker was designed to frontload benefits and backload costs and all the Media and most people cared about was all the great free stuff. Trying to change anything now, when even some in the Media can't avoid concluding that "the system has some problems (!)" is almost impossible as any reasonable change will involve taking away at least some free stuff. Can't have that!

It doesn't help, of course, that a pseudo-populist like Trump derives a solid portion of their support from free-stuffery so your electoral choices are something like "lots of free stuff for everyone, but especially for our preferred groups" vs "free stuff for some special groups and better standards of living via free stuff (better jobs, etc) through my protectionist policies."

Anyway the Dems have free stuff to give away and more than the Repubs can also sell spite and vengeance--"it's time the rich pay their fair share; down with the 1%, tax the fat cats" and so forth. That sells well, too.

gg6 said...

Cleverly comic and caustically correct!

glenn said...

I think the Dems should adopt a whole new marketing strategy. Instead of all their high flying rhetoric about social issues just boil it down to "Vote for us and we'll give you some of his" . That's what they really mean.

rcocean said...

Crazy. The Democrats were 99% sure they were going to get the Senate and elect Hillary! - that was 9 months ago.

Now, they're a party "without a plan, a platform, or an identity"!

What was their "identity" on November 1, 2016?

rcocean said...

Why the "Resistance" need Obama?

They've got the entire MSM, except for Fox News and a few talk radio hosts.

Go read the "Memorandum" website, which summarizes and links to MSM news articles. 95% are anti-Trump day after day after day. No matter what Trump does or says.

Every NPR story I listen to, is anti-Trump. Same thing with CNN.

CStanley said...

Crazy. The Democrats were 99% sure they were going to get the Senate and elect Hillary! - that was 9 months ago.

Now, they're a party "without a plan, a platform, or an identity"!

What was their "identity" on November 1, 2016?


Wile E Coyote, right before he goes off the cliff. And their ever present "new identity" has "ACME" stamped on it.

CStanley said...

Is it just me or does "re-emerge in delicate dance" sound like a description of locusts hatching?

bwebster said...

The morning after the election last fall, I posted/tweeted, "Let the game of thrones begin!" Now, not quite a year later, it's still unclear who the leader of the Democratic Party is.

Unknown said...

Obama is still young. There's a lot more he can accomplish yet in his life and I doubt he will just sit back uninvolved. To Democrats, Obama's presence in politics to only a plus. The Democratic base wants to see more of him. Clinton should retire gracefully.

Yancey Ward said...

I have written it before, and will again:

The Democratic primary season will be the grudge match to end all grudge matches between Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama. The only thing that will prevent this from coming true is Hillary! taking a big dirt nap.

Jim at said...

"To Democrats, Obama's presence in politics to only a plus."

I suspect there are more than 1,000 former Democratic office holders at the state and federal level who would disagree with that statement.

Fabi said...

I can feel the unbridled enthusiasm from the democrat base in these very comments! Or is that gas?

JaimeRoberto said...

"We lack an identity". Au contraire. Your identity is all about identity, and that's what your problem is.

Unknown said...

This is great news for Republicans. The man led rewriting the scoreboard for officeholders.

I hope he gives us another lecture about who we are - light up the deplorables, baby!

> The Clinton Crime Machine rolls on

It was masterful how they got immunity for everyone associated with the Foundation and the mail server from the JOD. All the influence for sale to foreign money, and the only interest is in finding "money laundering" in Trump family business.

Wasserman almost got her Paki spy off the hook, "was this close..."

> Obama is still young. There's a lot more he can accomplish yet in his life

When did he start?