Why is Obama so unpopular?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

4. When he was passing his health care bill, Obama/Reid simply used strategic voting tactics (senate held a vote during a brief 60 democrat majority period, and did the rest through the vile tactic that is reconciliation), and correct me if I'm wrong here, but to my knowledge, Obama/Reid/etc. did not make truly serious attempts to get even a single republican vote in the house or senate for the bill. All that effort they did to get the vote of Ben Nelson, they should have been working equally as hard to get the vote of republicans such as Olympia Snowe, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, but they did no such thing (to my knowledge).

That's false. Obama and Baucus spent months watering down the ACA to try to attract Republican support in meetings with Enzi, Grassley, and Snowe, among others. That's why the bill ended up being a national version of Romneycare, which the GOP constantly touted as a "market based solution that works" until the black guy supported it. Hell, Snowe even voted for the bill in committee. But the Republicans decided in a secret meeting on day one of Obama's presidency to obstruct everything he did in an attempt to win in 2010, and at the end of the day even Snowe gave in to the pressure to vote against Obamacare/Romneycare.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html

ACA was always basically Romneycare plus a lot of additional regulations. That wasn't a matter of it being watered down.

[Landslide Lyndon]

4. When he was passing his health care bill, Obama/Reid simply used strategic voting tactics (senate held a vote during a brief 60 democrat majority period, and did the rest through the vile tactic that is reconciliation), and correct me if I'm wrong here, but to my knowledge, Obama/Reid/etc. did not make truly serious attempts to get even a single republican vote in the house or senate for the bill. All that effort they did to get the vote of Ben Nelson, they should have been working equally as hard to get the vote of republicans such as Olympia Snowe, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, but they did no such thing (to my knowledge).

That's false. Obama and Baucus spent months watering down the ACA to try to attract Republican support in meetings with Enzi, Grassley, and Snowe, among others. That's why the bill ended up being a national version of Romneycare, which the GOP constantly touted as a "market based solution that works" until the black guy supported it. Hell, Snowe even voted for the bill in committee. But the Republicans decided in a secret meeting on day one of Obama's presidency to obstruct everything he did in an attempt to win in 2010, and at the end of the day even Snowe gave in to the pressure to vote against Obamacare/Romneycare.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html

ACA was always basically Romneycare plus a lot of additional regulations. That wasn't a matter of it being watered down.

So you admit that whole "Obama wasn't bipartisan enough" crap is revisionist history.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

President Obama isn't unpopular.

Bigger problem that he isn't inspiring anymore, Obama coalition turnout rate was less than pre-Obama (2006). It looked like he would be the perfect guy to turn them into a permanent political force but he's been disappointing on that line, in part due to outside factors.

Given how Obama has been a staunch supporter of the status quo, I've been thinking that driving down the turnout and generally disillusioning younger voters is a feature and not a bug.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

4. When he was passing his health care bill, Obama/Reid simply used strategic voting tactics (senate held a vote during a brief 60 democrat majority period, and did the rest through the vile tactic that is reconciliation), and correct me if I'm wrong here, but to my knowledge, Obama/Reid/etc. did not make truly serious attempts to get even a single republican vote in the house or senate for the bill. All that effort they did to get the vote of Ben Nelson, they should have been working equally as hard to get the vote of republicans such as Olympia Snowe, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, but they did no such thing (to my knowledge).

That's false. Obama and Baucus spent months watering down the ACA to try to attract Republican support in meetings with Enzi, Grassley, and Snowe, among others. That's why the bill ended up being a national version of Romneycare, which the GOP constantly touted as a "market based solution that works" until the black guy supported it. Hell, Snowe even voted for the bill in committee. But the Republicans decided in a secret meeting on day one of Obama's presidency to obstruct everything he did in an attempt to win in 2010, and at the end of the day even Snowe gave in to the pressure to vote against Obamacare/Romneycare.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html

ACA was always basically Romneycare plus a lot of additional regulations. That wasn't a matter of it being watered down.

So you admit that whole "Obama wasn't bipartisan enough" crap is revisionist history.

"Bipartisan enough for whom?" I guess would be the question. The main focus of Obama and the Congressional Democratic leadership regarding the passage of the ACA was always getting their members on board.  There was some outreach to Republicans, but they were always going to be a harder sell on it than the Democrats and so less effort was spent in that direction.  The resulting partisan divide on the bill didn't help with its perceived legitimacy, but that was far less important than the fact that they didn't come up with a bill that they could adequately defend and explain before the public. If they had managed to sway public opinion, they might well have earned a few Republican votes. As it was, they made the deals they felt were necessary to pass it, took a few shortcuts on process, and prayed that it would turn out good for them in the end.

[Landslide Lyndon]

"Bipartisan enough for whom?" I guess would be the question. The main focus of Obama and the Congressional Democratic leadership regarding the passage of the ACA was always getting their members on board.  There was some outreach to Republicans, but they were always going to be a harder sell on it than the Democrats and so less effort was spent in that direction.  The resulting partisan divide on the bill didn't help with its perceived legitimacy, but that was far less important than the fact that they didn't come up with a bill that they could adequately defend and explain before the public. If they had managed to sway public opinion, they might well have earned a few Republican votes. As it was, they made the deals they felt were necessary to pass it, took a few shortcuts on process, and prayed that it would turn out good for them in the end.

That's another load of bull. Immigration reform is popular even among Republicans voters but the congressional leadership will never even allow a vote on it.
The repeal of Don't Ask, Don't tell was popular but the Republicans bitterly opposed it.

McConnell said it plainly, for anyone willing to listen: their goal wasn't to help governing or legislating. It was to make Obama an one-term president. 

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

"Bipartisan enough for whom?" I guess would be the question. The main focus of Obama and the Congressional Democratic leadership regarding the passage of the ACA was always getting their members on board.  There was some outreach to Republicans, but they were always going to be a harder sell on it than the Democrats and so less effort was spent in that direction.  The resulting partisan divide on the bill didn't help with its perceived legitimacy, but that was far less important than the fact that they didn't come up with a bill that they could adequately defend and explain before the public. If they had managed to sway public opinion, they might well have earned a few Republican votes. As it was, they made the deals they felt were necessary to pass it, took a few shortcuts on process, and prayed that it would turn out good for them in the end.

That's another load of bull. Immigration reform is popular even among Republicans voters but the congressional leadership will never even allow a vote on it.
The repeal of Don't Ask, Don't tell was popular but the Republicans bitterly opposed it.

McConnell said it plainly, for anyone willing to listen: their goal wasn't to help governing or legislating. It was to make Obama an one-term president. 

I never said the Republican Congressional leadership would have supported it.  nice try though.

[Landslide Lyndon]

"Bipartisan enough for whom?" I guess would be the question. The main focus of Obama and the Congressional Democratic leadership regarding the passage of the ACA was always getting their members on board.  There was some outreach to Republicans, but they were always going to be a harder sell on it than the Democrats and so less effort was spent in that direction.  The resulting partisan divide on the bill didn't help with its perceived legitimacy, but that was far less important than the fact that they didn't come up with a bill that they could adequately defend and explain before the public. If they had managed to sway public opinion, they might well have earned a few Republican votes. As it was, they made the deals they felt were necessary to pass it, took a few shortcuts on process, and prayed that it would turn out good for them in the end.

That's another load of bull. Immigration reform is popular even among Republicans voters but the congressional leadership will never even allow a vote on it.
The repeal of Don't Ask, Don't tell was popular but the Republicans bitterly opposed it.

McConnell said it plainly, for anyone willing to listen: their goal wasn't to help governing or legislating. It was to make Obama an one-term president. 

I never said the Republican Congressional leadership would have supported it.  nice try though.

The Republican Congressional leadership pulled out all the stops to prevent individual members from even considering to support any Democratic initiative. Just go back and read what happened with Snowe and Cao.

[hopper]

"Bipartisan enough for whom?" I guess would be the question. The main focus of Obama and the Congressional Democratic leadership regarding the passage of the ACA was always getting their members on board.  There was some outreach to Republicans, but they were always going to be a harder sell on it than the Democrats and so less effort was spent in that direction.  The resulting partisan divide on the bill didn't help with its perceived legitimacy, but that was far less important than the fact that they didn't come up with a bill that they could adequately defend and explain before the public. If they had managed to sway public opinion, they might well have earned a few Republican votes. As it was, they made the deals they felt were necessary to pass it, took a few shortcuts on process, and prayed that it would turn out good for them in the end.

That's another load of bull. Immigration reform is popular even among Republicans voters but the congressional leadership will never even allow a vote on it.
The repeal of Don't Ask, Don't tell was popular but the Republicans bitterly opposed it.

McConnell said it plainly, for anyone willing to listen: their goal wasn't to help governing or legislating. It was to make Obama an one-term president.  

If you look at Politifact yes McConnell said he wanted Obama to be one-termer but McConnell also said he wanted to meet Obama halfway on legislation.

Do you think the opposition party really wants the presidents party to be a 2 term presidency? No. I'm sure Tip O' Neil wanted Ronald Reagan to be a one-termer as did Newt Gingrich probably wanted Bill Clinton to be a one-termer.

Immigration Reform-That's a issue that will always split Congressional Republicans until its passed. There is a deep split in the party on that subject.

I think Republicans voted what they thought on "Don't Ask Don't Tell".

[hopper]

Clinton and Gingrich's relationship was worse than Obama and Boehner. The reason Gingrich was more "productive" is because the GOP controlled the Senate as well, so bills actually made it to the President's desk and he happened to sign a few. No compromise was really ever reached in the 90s.

Well Obama and Boehner do like each other personally but they have no working relationship. Gingrich and Clinton had no personal relationship or very little of one but they worked together for the good for the country.

[ingemann]

May I suggest that Obama's "unpopularity" have to do with one thing:

He has been president in 6 years, people are just tired of him, like they are of most two terms presidents, when there are less than 2 years to the next presidental election. Right now he seems tired, impotent and rather powerless, he has gotten most of what he was elected to do through, he's just cleaning the last things up he promise, he's the past, dead man walking etc. People look forward to the next dynamic president, with a fresh new vision for America, everything Obama is not anymore.

[Beet]

I don't know, the political environment in 2009 was so toxic that no government action was getting public support. It wasn't just ACA. Even the stimulus bill was derided. And it wasn't just Republicans- turn on NPR at the time and all you could hear was that monotone radio voice droning on about this or that minor shortcoming of the stimulus, the surging deficit, the latest job losses, etc. The public mood at the time was universally negative, and for the first half of the year Obama just seemed to float above it all, like some sort of angel or visage separated by clouds from the storm beneath. In 1933 at least Franklin Roosevelt had the public behind him. When he said in his inaugural that he might have to ask for "broad executive powers" to address the crisis, people cheered. There was a rally-around-the leader effect, as you see in many crises.

But in 2009 it was not there, quite the opposite. When people needed to come together the most, we were coming apart. When people ought to have supported expansionary, Keynesian policies the most, deficit hysteria and gold bugism was at its peak. I still remember how sales of books like The 5000 year leap, atlas shrugged and so on, suddenly appeared on the bookshelves that winter, driven by sales. Years later many liberals faulted the stimulus for not having been larger. I almost replied, you weren't there to defend the one we did get, so how could you expect the public to acquiesce for more? Even now, I look back and think it somewhat of a miracle that we got out of that period the way we did, without worse repercussions. Of course, I know for some radicals it was a disappointment, because a much deeper collapse would have broken the system and forced the government to do what Obama did not, which was to break up the banks and really enact a new, New Deal.

This is not to say health care reform would have been popular in "normal" times; we have 1993-1994 as an example. It may be that just as only Nixon could go to China, only a Republican can pass health care reform. That, or a crisis that brings people together like Britain in the 1940s, and not America in the late 2000s.

[Beet]

May I suggest that Obama's "unpopularity" have to do with one thing:

He has been president in 6 years, people are just tired of him, like they are of most two terms presidents, when there are less than 2 years to the next presidental election. Right now he seems tired, impotent and rather powerless, he has gotten most of what he was elected to do through, he's just cleaning the last things up he promise, he's the past, dead man walking etc. People look forward to the next dynamic president, with a fresh new vision for America, everything Obama is not anymore.

Which is why I pointed out that Eisenhower, Reagan and Clinton were all popular late into their terms, showing unpopularity is not inevitable.

[hopper]

I don't know, the political environment in 2009 was so toxic that no government action was getting public support. It wasn't just ACA. Even the stimulus bill was derided. And it wasn't just Republicans- turn on NPR at the time and all you could hear was that monotone radio voice droning on about this or that minor shortcoming of the stimulus, the surging deficit, the latest job losses, etc. The public mood at the time was universally negative, and for the first half of the year Obama just seemed to float above it all, like some sort of angel or visage separated by clouds from the storm beneath. In 1933 at least Franklin Roosevelt had the public behind him. When he said in his inaugural that he might have to ask for "broad executive powers" to address the crisis, people cheered. There was a rally-around-the leader effect, as you see in many crises.

But in 2009 it was not there, quite the opposite. When people needed to come together the most, we were coming apart. When people ought to have supported expansionary, Keynesian policies the most, deficit hysteria and gold bugism was at its peak. I still remember how sales of books like The 5000 year leap, atlas shrugged and so on, suddenly appeared on the bookshelves that winter, driven by sales. Years later many liberals faulted the stimulus for not having been larger. I almost replied, you weren't there to defend the one we did get, so how could you expect the public to acquiesce for more? Even now, I look back and think it somewhat of a miracle that we got out of that period the way we did, without worse repercussions. Of course, I know for some radicals it was a disappointment, because a much deeper collapse would have broken the system and forced the government to do what Obama did not, which was to break up the banks and really enact a new, New Deal.

This is not to say health care reform would have been popular in "normal" times; we have 1993-1994 as an example. It may be that just as only Nixon could go to China, only a Republican can pass health care reform. That, or a crisis that brings people together like Britain in the 1940s, and not America in the late 2000s.

Obama had rock star power in the first half of 2009. I think by the end of 2009 his rock star power died out with the passage of ACA through the US House and US Senate the 1st time around in both bodies of congress.

[pbrower2a]

May I suggest that Obama's "unpopularity" have to do with one thing:

He has been president in 6 years, people are just tired of him, like they are of most two terms presidents, when there are less than 2 years to the next presidental election. Right now he seems tired, impotent and rather powerless, he has gotten most of what he was elected to do through, he's just cleaning the last things up he promise, he's the past, dead man walking etc. People look forward to the next dynamic president, with a fresh new vision for America, everything Obama is not anymore.

Which is why I pointed out that Eisenhower, Reagan and Clinton were all popular late into their terms, showing unpopularity is not inevitable.

Barack Obama never got into the range of approval in the 60s. America has been much too polarized for that. There has also been a well-funded, loud campaign by the Koch syndicate to vilify anything and anything liberal so the Koch syndicate can have a plutocratic oligarchy with the inequality of a plantation order.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

May I suggest that Obama's "unpopularity" have to do with one thing:

He has been president in 6 years, people are just tired of him, like they are of most two terms presidents, when there are less than 2 years to the next presidental election. Right now he seems tired, impotent and rather powerless, he has gotten most of what he was elected to do through, he's just cleaning the last things up he promise, he's the past, dead man walking etc. People look forward to the next dynamic president, with a fresh new vision for America, everything Obama is not anymore.

Which is why I pointed out that Eisenhower, Reagan and Clinton were all popular late into their terms, showing unpopularity is not inevitable.

Barack Obama never got into the range of approval in the 60s. America has been much too polarized for that. There has also been a well-funded, loud campaign by the Koch syndicate to vilify anything and anything liberal so the Koch syndicate can have a plutocratic oligarchy with the inequality of a plantation order.

Well, except for the fact that he started there.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

He's not "unpopular."  Although his job approval has dipped, it's still a good 15-20 points higher than Bush's were at this time.  It just proves that there are lies, damned, lies, and statistics.

[Rockefeller GOP]

The economy

is the correct answer.

Agreed.  Except also totally because he's Black, man.  In a similar way to how Democrats only criticize Herman Cain and Ben Carson because they are Black (it couldn't possibly be that they disagree wildly with their policies), the only reason that could be behind Obama's unpopularity is his skin color.  Common knowledge.

[SWE]

Benghazi