| For Dems In 2010, Tomorrow May Not Come |
| Wednesday, June 17, 2009 |
by Amy Walter
As the "cheerleader in chief" for stimulus spending, Biden's been touring local communities to give an "all politics is local" pitch for the benefits of the program. But if voters are looking at high unemployment next year, the promise of a $1.7 million replacement bridge over Conodoguinet Creek in Carlisle, Pa., isn't going to make them feel much better.
It's not just Republicans who are complaining about the stimulus package. The U.S. Conference of Mayors, meeting this weekend in Providence, R.I., complained that cities have been shortchanged when it comes to federal stimulus money.
Some congressional Democrats, especially those facing unpalatable votes on health care reform (i.e. raising taxes), will be tempted to vote against the president to avoid being pulled down in 2010. But with their party in control of Congress and the White House, it's going to be really hard for any Democrat to run as a "lone wolf," especially if that member is a freshman without an established identity back home. This isn't to suggest that Democrats should simply follow Obama lockstep. But as we've seen with Republican moderates the last two cycles, if the brand goes bad, sometimes it doesn't matter how you voted.
For now, Obama still has a reservoir of good will built up with the public, and his high approval numbers may help insulate members of his party.
Ultimately, though, watching Democrats these days reminds me of the kids' board game "Don't Break the Ice." In that game, a plastic polar bear was placed on top of an elevated board made up of individual cubes of "ice." The goal of the game was to knock out as many pieces as possible without sending the polar bear crashing to the ground. Sometimes the polar bear came down after one piece was knocked out; sometimes he could still be standing even as his ice world crumbled all around him.
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posted by citizen jerk @ 1:27 PM   |
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Admirable post. Wants more. Thanks.
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Seed Newsvine
Admirable post. Wants more. Thanks.