LEADERSHIP CULTIVATION

President Obama Works For Mid-Term Surprise

President Obama is fighting back against his Republican troublemakers and has gotten his supporters "fired up and ready to go." It's this President Obama we need to re-ignite and lead the charge for the change we need to change America. It's this Obama that will once again beguile his competitors and keep this nation on a forward progress track that thwarts the return the GOP seeks of a return to their failed policies that put this country in the mess that it is in. 

The President warned that change would not be easy and it has been just that with Republicans being hell-bent on denying the President a victory on any solution he brings forward. Although progress has been slow, I think the media and pollsters have miscalculated the true mood of the majority of voters in this country in their prediction of wide-sweeping GOP victories in the mid-terms. Let me be the first to say they we supporters of real change have not been drinking the kool-aid. We may have taken a nap because of the toughness of the fight to elect Mr. Obama in the first place, but we are now awakened. And quite frankly, we don't intend to sit these elections out because they are just too important. 

There is a surprise coming in November when voters will soundly reject the GOP politics of no progress. Maybe then, Republicans will stop their stupidity and their selfish 24/7 campaigning and honestly work to dig America out of the hole that their leadership put it in. We can only hope. 

The Best Thing About Mondale and Gore Losing

The best thing about Walter Mondale and Joe Lieberman losing their races to the White House is that we didn't get Geraldine Ferraro and Joe Lieberman as Vice Presidents. I believe that Mondale and Gore would have been good U.S. Presidents if they had gotten the chance to serve. On the other hand, I get a level of satisfaction in knowing that Ferraro and Lieberman did not get close to the seat of power. Unlike the beer commercial that declares "they were who we thought they were", those two certainly were not who we thought they were. 

I didn't recognize the Geraldine Ferraro that showed up during the 2008 Presidential Campaign that pitted Barack Obama against Hillary Clinton. That was a case of former Democratic Vice-Presidential nominees gone wild. And Joe Lieberman?  I have to admit that I never had any passion for that guy, but I did like Al Gore. But with Gore, you would have gotten Lieberman and that quite frankly was worth Gore losing. Lieberman is turning out to be quite the "career politician." He seems to be willing to do or say anything to hold on to his Senate seat. His interference to achieving worthwhile health care reform is unacceptable. Too bad he isn't putting the amount of required effort into passing legitimate health care reform as he is in the global warming initial. I hope that Connecticut can field a credible candidate to run against this wolf sheep's clothing. Nuff said.

Reason for Celebration: Lou Dobbs Leaves CNN

The first question that comes to mind with the news that Lou Dobbs is out at CNN, is CNN what took you so long? Dobbs really had become a drag on the station and its trademark slogan of being unbiased in its reporting. It seems that Dobbs was forever talking through clenched teeth at the mere mention of President Obama.  I guess he never could get over the President taking him to task during the 2008 Presidential Campaign about his negative views about immigration. Dobbs wouldn't let his Obama chastisement go and now it's time for him to go. And it's not a second too soon!

CBS Video recommendation

Check out this free video from CBS. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/15/obama-asked-why-do-people_n_323251.html Watch it now!

Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) Calls the U.S. President a Liar...Are You Kidding Me?

There is no hiding place for Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) who called the President of the United States a liar during President Obama's speech to millions of Americans. Are you kidding me?  This lame-brain from my neighboring state of South Carolina went mad-mob town hall style crazy and made a complete fool of himself.  The people who sent this idiot to Congress must be feeling really proud. Surely there was someone else available. Anybody.

As much as anyone, I was surprised when Joe Wilson made his stupid and childish outburst.  Then I became angry.  This guy is a United States Congressman.  I initially had harsh thoughts about the State of South Carolina.  But there are good people in South Carolina.  Joe Wilson stands alone on his own island and rightfully so.  Does anyone expect Wilson to contribute anything of value to a grownup discussion about health care reform?

Joe Wilson and a lot of his Republican colleagues definitely do not have the best interests of everyday Americans without adequate health care at heart. They apparently still harbor too much anger about losing a national election to effectively do their jobs.  This is the mentality that President Obama must defeat in order to bring about health care reform.  Although I know it was not his intention, I think that Joe Wilson with his silliness actually helped the President's cause.  And President Obama impressed me that he is ready to rumble.

Health Care Reform is GOP's Waterloo, Not President Obama's

Senator Jim DeMint and his Republican cronies would have you believe that health care reform will be a Waterloo moment for President Barack Obama. It is quite the contrary. The Waterloo moment belongs to Republicans who have everything to lose.  After having maintained a 24/7 assault upon President Obama in an attempt to weaken his presidency, Republicans now perceive they have a winner with their organized opposition to health care reform.  Imagine that, the GOP for political gain has no shame in their game nor any reservation to sticking it to everyday Americans. Republicans are desperate for a victory and see a defeat of health care reform as the Promised Land.  Anything less than their total defeat of health care reform means farewell to the Republican Party as a major political force in America, but the demise of the GOP is eminent.

America has changed and is not excited about reversing course on a movement away from political gridlock.  Sensible Americans want progress to continue and are smart enough to understand that helping a neighbor who is less fortunate is not Socialism, but a principle of compassion taught and advocated by Jesus Christ. You would think that Bible-thumping Republicans would know better. A question I hear posed repeatedly is whether an individual is satisfied with their insurance plan.  More times than not the answer has been yes.  But health care reform is biggest than looking out for number one. It is needed to help the 48 million Americans whose insurance coverages are inadequate or nonexistence.  

It defies logic how right-wing Republicans can be so selfish or how Blue Dog Democrats can so easily check their spines at the door in order to retain Congressional seats. Dedicated servants of the people would rather lose their precious seats than lose their integrity by being a sellout.  It is a pathetic situation to witness. Some of these good men and women sing "When We All Get to Heaven" in church on Sunday morning, then exit the church doors and proceed to make life a living hell for many others who are less fortunate. For some, even Christian values are not sacred.  But there is another song sung entitled "They Will Know We Are Christians" by our love. It is not a selfish love for ourselves or our possessions, but refers to the love we demonstrate to others by our actions.

In the end, it is by our love that we show people we care about their problems. Every American should have access to adequate health care.  It is a need that is everyone's responsibility to ensure that it becomes a reality. We cannot leave that humanitarian act to chance or allow complacency to result in a self-serving GOP victory enabled by faux Democrats or the mainstream media that long ago lost its way.  It is time for compassionate people to mount up and join the fight for health care reform.  I think that President Obama will make it clear in his Wednesday night speech that he will lead that charge. I predict the eventual outcome will not favor the opposition.

Win One For Teddy, Pass Health Care Reform

America lost a genuine hero and champion of everyday people with the passing of Senator Ted Kennedy.  Teddy showed us how much we can achieve when we refuse to succumb to personal failings.  It's a known fact we can be our worst enemy and the biggest hindrance to personal success. But Teddy after experiencing so many bumps in the road, recovered to become maybe the greatest Senator in the history of the United States. His many detractors unwittingly may have been his biggest motivators.

Teddy had a problem with alcohol abuse and who can blame him after having to deal with the loss of all his brothers and a sister early in his life.  What an awesome burden?  I think I can cut him some slack.  Yet I am amazed that so many people with weaknesses (that would be everybody) hold Kennedy and others like Michael Vick to hypocritical standards that lack empathy or compassion.

A major lesson we can learn from Teddy's life is never delegate responsibility for personal success or failure to others. This week as television fed us a steady diet of Teddy's successes and failures, I couldn't help but think about Senator Jim DeMint's proclamation that "passage (or the lack thereof) of health care reform would be President Obama's watershed moment." If DeMint was paying attention, surely he came to the realization that life and political careers are full of watershed moments. Using DeMint's rationale, it could be said that health care reform is a Teddy Kennedy watershed moment as well. But given the obvious respect and affection that Democrat and Republican lawmakers had for Teddy, I hope they will put partisan politics on hold and pass a comprehensive health care reform bill.  What better opportunity exists to solidify the legacy of a friend. The "Gipper" aside, I hope they do it for Teddy.  May he find rest from his labor.

The GOP and Their Waterloo Moments

U.S. Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina called President Obama's push for sensible health care reform as his Waterloo moment.  But wait, for Republicans hasn't everything that the President has tried to accomplish been his Waterloo moment? Do we detect a pattern here for the GOP? Oppose everything and if the President fails, make some ridiculous assertion that the President's agenda is facing widespread rejection by the American people.

Surprise, surprise. President Obama who has a lot of fight in him is not rolling over for DeMint as he hasn't for any of his political opponents.  Now it sounds like Sen. DeMint wishes he had chosen his words (or his opponent) more carefully. What's that rule, "to kick butt you have to bring butt." In other words, the good senator from South Carolina should have anticipated that when he threw a punch at this President, this President would punch back. I guess with one South Carolina politician out of the presidential picture, the good senator had hoped to fill the void. Oh well, all is not lost. With a name like DeMint, he can always open up a candy store. However, I would advise him against stocking jawbreakers. Ouch!

Rush Limbaugh Gets Stimulus Package from President Obama

I just left my car where "for entertainment purposes only", I listened to Rush Limbaugh rant about President Barack Obama. Limbaugh repeatedly referred to "our side", "us" and "we" as being this huge ground swell of opposition to the President and his policies. He said that "they" didn't need to moderate their viewpoint but instead should promote "a good looking conservative with charisma" to offset similar qualities found in the President. I thought to myself, who are these people that Rush keeps referring to and why haven't they stepped forward to be recognized? He can't be including Colin Powell and Tom Ridge and Karl Rove doesn't count. I guess Limbaugh after trying to sell President Bush to the American people is ecstatic to have President Obama as a convenience "prop" for his talking points that will allow him to grow his profit margin for years.

Call that Limbaugh getting a stimulus package from President Obama. It may be an indirect bailout, but make no mistake about it, the great entertainer is taking full advantage of it. Limbaugh sounded absolutely giddy as he went through his monologue on the radio. Ching, ching. Limbaugh complained about the stagnant GDP. Does he even know what the letters represent? I doubt it. Does it matter to his followers (now that's a scary thought)? Ditto. Like the "Energizer Bunny", Limbaugh went on and on jumping from one Obama criticism to the next. Blah blah blah blah blah. Try listening to that gobbledygook for an extended period of time. Talk about torture, water-boarding has nothing on Rush Limbaugh.

If you really want to make an enemy combatant talk, pipe Limbaugh into their cell and they will sing like a canary, "Make it stop, I will tell you everything!"  As nauseating as it is, don't expect Limbaugh to change his script any time soon, because President Obama is going to be around for a long time. Limbaugh is counting on it. He can't be so stupid to think that his gibberish is winning converts. The GOP numbers are shrinking. So if the goal is not to increase the base, then it's reasonable to conclude that it must be to sell the product line! Therefore, it's not credible for Limbaugh to accuse the President of moving the country towards Socialism. Since as long as Limbaugh shamelessly uses the President as a prop, he presents himself as evidence that the Free Enterprise System is in no danger of collapsing.

WaPost Wrong, No Presidential Divide for Black Americans

Throughout the 2008 Presidential Campaign, the public was subjected to a regular dose of fabrications about Barack Obama. Add to that regiment a Washington Post article that implies that there exists a widespread split in the Black community over the President, supposedly because some Black commentators like Tavis Smiley and Jeff Johnson have been outspoken critics.  The Post erroneously thinks that Black people rely upon these commentators for forming their opinion about how to feel about Mr. Obama.  That is simply not true. 

Believe it when I tell you that Tavis Smiley and Jeff Johnson do not speak for the masses.  Smiley lost favor with a lot of Black people when he rejected Michelle Obama as a suitable stand-in for candidate Obama at his New Orleans Covenant on Black America Summit. It doesn't help Johnson's case that Smiley was a consultant to Tom Joyner about who his replacement should be on his Morning Show. It doesn't take an Einstein to figure out that it is these guys who need the lesson.  Black America is not asleep at the wheel or stuck in some naivete zone. We simply do not expect the President to be held to a higher standard or pass some litmus test not required of his predecessors.  

For those who can't see the forest for the trees or somehow missed the real implication of the election of Mr. Obama, maybe this will help.  The significance for Black America or other non-whites is that now they can unequivocally tell their children that they could grow up to one day be President of the United States because there is empirical data to back up their assertions.  And Mr. Obama's election was a victory for Whites as well.  A false promise of equality had been draped across America from it's inception.  With the merit vote cast by Americans on November 4, 2009 that elected Mr. Obama, that burden was removed. 

When I posted in my blog that "Black people now look at White people differently and there is nothing that they can do about it", a White woman responded and thanked me for my statement that had presented her with a degree of relief.  My followup response to her was I hadn't harbored any ill feeling, but that a burden I didn't realize existed was now lifted from my shoulders. I understood why Americans cried on Election Day. Mr. Obama's election helped to heal some deep wounds.  So listen up pundits.  It wasn't some fleeting feel good moment and we don't need a play by play accountability tab kept on the President. We get it!  Mr. Obama needs to be judged by his performance and he will be as all the Presidents before him.  Isn't that the real point?