Comments on: Obama as Reagan 2.0

By: Weekend Linkage « life as usual must go…

Weekend Linkage « life as usual must go… — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:59:23 +0000

[...] Obama as Reagan 2.0 [...]

By: links for 2008-06-24 by Kevin Bondelli’s Youth Vote Blog

links for 2008-06-24 by Kevin Bondelli’s Youth Vote Blog — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 23:36:47 +0000

[...] Doc Searls Weblog · Obama as Reagan 2.0 [...]

By: Gregory Y

Gregory Y — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:28:17 +0000

It’s interesting to see how this is always about “the sizzle” and never about “the steak”. I still cannot get any meaningful content out of this “debate” of slogans and “me too” strategies. Neither candidate offers sound energy policy, each one knows he wants to be a president, he just doesn’t know what he is going to do when he gets it. What a choice!

By: Francine hardaway

Francine hardaway — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:47:33 +0000

Brilliant, Doc, although I also agree with your commeners. I worry every day on Gillmor’s program NewsGang about whether Obama will be beaten first by the racists or by the people forcing him to go to the center to win. Reagan had more skill with the media from his acting career than Obama has with his intelligence and wonkiness.

By: Doug Skoglund

Doug Skoglund — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 13:21:07 +0000

No Doc, your thoughts make a lot of sense — except for one thing — the media will decide who wins and it has nothing to do with Reagan and/or Lakoff.

The media will flood Obama with FUD — right out of the race because they can’t trust him to serve their needs.

And, of course, the dumb Democrats will help (IE, the current FISA “Compromise” controversy). Need I say more??

By: Doc Searls

Doc Searls — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 11:34:25 +0000

Good observations, Ed.

He’s going to have a hard time, no matter what.

What do you mean by “Reagan’s conception of Democrat Party”?

By: Ed Brenegar

Ed Brenegar — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 11:02:10 +0000

I think the jury is still out. He could be a Reagan and succeed as you say or a Carter and fail because he outsmarted himself by thinking the answer lies in Washington. Both were smart Presidents. One succeed while the other one didn’t. One succeed by understanding what the American people wanted, and the other didn’t because he didn’t understand what the country needed from its President.

The question for me is how Obama’s policies will change the Federal government. If he becomes the most expensive President in US history, then he fails to understand that inherent in his campaign’s approach is power and opportunity distributed to people in local communities throughout the nation. There is already a revenue battle waged between federal, state and local governments. If he grows the Federal government, then he fails to understand the fundamental shift that is taking place in our society.

As a former Democrat, the question remains whether he’ll live up to Reagan’s conception of Democrat Party, or change it to be something more contemporary. For the me the question is to open.