So he got tough

(if you don't want to sit through the entire video above, the one below is much shorter and concise)



President Obama participated in a Q&A session at a retreat organized by Republicans from the House of Representatives where he finally not only stood up to the GOP, but rebuked their criticisms, exaggerations, and misconceptions. A growing consensus among the media is that Obama appeared to be a school teacher lecturing unruly students.

MSNBC's Luke Russert who covered the event for his network, reported that a Republican spokesperson and other aides confided that permitting the "cameras to roll like that" was a "mistake".

This is exactly what Democrats, the progressive base, and independents (including myself) have been demanding for a long time; that if you don't stand up and fight back, you will be perceived as a total wimp, the Republicans will eat you alive and try to destory you (as they nearly did with Clinton) and ultimately lose national support.

Obama's smackdown couldn't come at a more crucial time for him and his party, as the Republicans captured Edward Kennedy's old senate seat in Massachusetts recently, coupled with voter anger over Wall Street bonuses, back room deals related to the health care reform legislation, the dropping of the public option and expansion of Medicare, and a lack of substantial job growth.

Some of the highlights from Obama's Q&A session included his castigation of Indiana Representative Mike Pence, who labelled Obama's economic agenda "radical":

I am not an ideologue, I'm not. It doesn't make sense if somebody could tell me, 'You could do this cheaper and get increased results,' then I would say, 'Great.' The problem is, I couldn't find credible economists who could back up the claims that you just made.

Continuing with his economic policies, Obama chided Republicans for slamming the stimulus package but showing up at "the ribbon-cuttings for some of these important projects in your communities."

Obama set the record straight with the claim that the monthly deficit is higher now than Bush's annual deficit, by flat-out saying, "That's factually just not true. And you know it's not true", and derided the GOP for characterizing health care reform legislation as "some Bolshevik plot", which drew laughter of approval from the audience.

Those from the media who were in attendence not only enjoyed and appreciated the spectacle, but also called for further similar events. Marc Ambinder of The Atlantic asked that these kinds of forums be held monthly. Chris Hayes from The Nation recommended that Obama should go before the progressive caucus. The Washington Post's Ezra Klein called it "the most compelling political television I've seen...maybe ever. And NBC's Chuck Todd said Obama "should hold Congressional 'town halls' more often. Public needs to see this if they'll ever trust Washington again." Dee Dee Myers, Bill Clinton's former press secrety added:

Most people thinking about this would have thought 'ooh Obama is going into the lion's de. But there was a great opportunity to jujitsu that. On one level it looked brave but on another he was the substitute teacher there, lecturing the audience. A lot of us have been waiting for that moment, a little more fight, a little more politics. He is in a political business and he has to pay attention to not just the substance but the politics.