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• Monday, November 24, 2008 08:22 AM

  Only the Republican thought he was this wild eyed liberal

  I am a person who supported Barack Obama early and eagerly. During the just finished campaign, the Republicans branded Obama as "the most liberal person in the Senate". I felt at the time this was campaign retoric, not fact.

  He was, and is, a community organizer. I see the influence of Saul Alinski in every thing he does. As I remember it, Alinski had sympathy for the protester of the war but was also critical of them because nothing changed. Compromise was king for Alinski. At the time and still, Alinski was seen by the right as a wild eyed liberal; but with compromise being king he was mostly and primarily pragmatic.

  So the left-right difference that has framed our politics, Obama is not best summed up as either. People that try to do that--on the right or left are doomed to be upset because he is not that (whatever they think that is).

  Take Lieberman (please take him). What I have not seen in alaysis is what this response opens you too. Yes, perhaps Lieberman's vote but also moderate Republicans. You don't think that John McCain and Susan Collins noticed this? If COMPROMISE was king, wouldn't you do what Obama did about Lieberman?

  And while everyone looks at Hillary we have Teddy in the Senate, Bacchus at the House and Tom Daschle ready to pass a version of universal health care. Is this a big liberal issue?

  Obama, like Alinsky, is ready to get something done about an issue that has avoided previous administrations--he is going to get something done and others have only talked about it. And perhaps Lieberman is going to help with this and if that turns out so, is this a good deal?

  —Arakasi Read Arakasi's other letters
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