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On Partisanship: Obama Will Do What The Founders Could Not?

By Big Tent Democrat

Kevin Drum effectively eviscerates a curious defense of Barack Obama's vision of postpartisanshp by historian Joseph Ellis. Kevin quotes Ellis and then comments:

Let the argument about the viability and practicality of Obama's major message go forward. But as it does, even his critics need to acknowledge that he is not a weird historical aberration. His message has roots in our deepest political traditions. Indeed, it is in accord with the most heartfelt and cherished version of our original intentions as a people and a nation.

Consider it acknowledged. But this sure seems like a backward argument to me. If even the brilliant, farsighted political visionaries who wrote the constitution and founded our country were unable to keep to their nonfactional ways for more than a few months, what does that say about the death grip that partisanship has on human politics? And what, in turn, does that have to say about Obama's apparent belief that he can overcome it?

(Emphasis supplied.) It says that Obama is either faking it, which I fervently wish, or he is a fool. The problem with even faking it of course is that it is a disastrous political strategy and disastrous for a progressive agenda. I truly hope that this Nevada result will wake him up and make him abandon Axelrod's postpartisan nonsense and really try to be an advocate for a Democratic progressive agenda.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on January 19, 2008 (boomark / email).