Obama unplugged

I just LOVE it when President Obama goes all defiantly “Dirty Harry” on us. It happened at a White House presser this afternoon. At times passionate and angry, Obama sternly rebuked his critics on the left, like an adult finally putting his foot down. (Methinks it was also part theater, and as such, cleverly timed and acted.)

When a reporter echoed the liberal meme questioning his willingness to stand firm on core principles, a visibly angry Obama let loose with the force of a 357 Magnum:

This notion that somehow we are willing to compromise too much reminds me of the debate that we had during health care. This is the public option debate all over again. I pass a signature piece of legislation where we finally get health care for all Americans, something that Democrats have been fighting for a hundred years. But because there was a provision in there that they didn't get, that would have affected maybe a couple of million people, even though we got health insurance for 30 million people, and the potential for lower premiums for maybe 100 million people, that somehow that was a sign of weakness, of compromise.

If that's the standard by which we are measuring success or core principles, then let's face it: We will never get anything done. People will have the satisfaction of having a purist position, and no victories for the American people. And we will be able to feel good about ourselves and sanctimonious about how pure our intentions are and how tough we are.

And in the meantime the American people are still saying to themselves, [I'm] not able to get health insurance because of pre-existing conditions. Or not being able to pay their bills because their unemployment insurance ran out. That can't be the measure of how we think about public service. That can't be the measure of what it means to be a Democrat. This is a big, diverse country. Not everybody agrees with us. I know that shocks people...

This country was founded on compromise. I couldn't go through the front door at this country's founding. If we were really thinking about ideal positions, we wouldn't have a union.

Amen, and pass the ammunition.

Washington Post writer Greg Sargent observed that "if Obama is going to play the role of adult-in-chief going forward, his tormentors on the left clearly will not be spared the rod." Memo to sanctimonious libs: As Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry would say, "Do you feel lucky? Well, do you, punk?" Heh.