Today, reading Rules for Radicals is illuminating and worrisome.

Obama insists that he doesn’t want the government to run car companies, but he has fired CEOs, demonized bondholders, ensured the UAW gets the sweetest deal, and guaranteed warrantees. He insists that he doesn’t want to run banks, but his Treasury Department hesitates to take back some of the TARP funds that give them influence over bank policies.

Much of this is explained by Alinsky’s epigram, “In the politics of human life, consistency is not a virtue.”

During the campaign, Obama’s critics laughed and marveled at how quickly the candidate threw inconvenient friends, allies, and supporters under the bus once t...

Today, reading Rules for Radicals is illuminating and worrisome.

Obama insists that he doesn’t want the government to run car companies, but he has fired CEOs, demonized bondholders, ensured the UAW gets the sweetest deal, and guaranteed warrantees. He insists that he doesn’t want to run banks, but his Treasury Department hesitates to take back some of the TARP funds that give them influence over bank policies.

Much of this is explained by Alinsky’s epigram, “In the politics of human life, consistency is not a virtue.”

During the campaign, Obama’s critics laughed and marveled at how quickly the candidate threw inconvenient friends, allies, and supporters under the bus once they became political liabilities. Over on the Campaign Spot, it’s been easy to compile a list of quickly forgotten promises. But it is unlikely that Obama would consider any of this a character flaw; instead, it is evidence of his adaptability and gift for seeing the big picture.

Moderates thought they were electing a moderate; liberals thought they were electing a liberal. Both camps were wrong. Ideology does not have the final say in Obama’s decision-making; an Alinskyite’s core principle is to take any action that expands his power and to avoid any action that risks his power.

As conservatives size up their new foe, they ought to remember: It’s not about liberalism. It’s about power. Obama will jettison anything that costs him power, and do anything that enhances it — including invite Rick Warren to give the benediction at his inauguration, dine with conservative columnists, and dismiss an appointee at the White House Military Office to ensure the perception of a...

Moderates thought they were electing a moderate; liberals thought they were electing a liberal. Both camps were wrong. Ideology does not have the final say in Obama’s decision-making; an Alinskyite’s core principle is to take any action that expands his power and to avoid any action that risks his power.

As conservatives size up their new foe, they ought to remember: It’s not about liberalism. It’s about power. Obama will jettison anything that costs him power, and do anything that enhances it — including invite Rick Warren to give the benediction at his inauguration, dine with conservative columnists, and dismiss an appointee at the White House Military Office to ensure the perception of accountability.

Alinsky’s influence goes well beyond Obama, obviously. There are many wonderful Democrats in this world, but evidence suggests that rising in that party’s political hierarchy requires some adoption of a variation of the Alinsky philosophy: Power comes first. Few Democrats are expressing outrage over Nancy Pelosi’s ever-shifting explanation of what she knew about waterboarding. Those who screamed bloody murder about Jack Abramoff’s crimes avert their eyes from John Murtha.

It’s not about the policies or the politics, and it’s certainly not about the principles. It’s about power, and it has been for a long time.

— Jim Geraghty

Waiting For The Shoe To Drop: UPDate

6-6-08

Much more on Alice Palmer can be found here. Obama took out Alice Palmer in an ugly way – he removed the chance for the voters to make a choice. He gave them just one choice – himself. This hit job on a fellow liberal of standing shows Obama’s unfettered ambition for power. And that ambition carried him the the US Senate, again by removing challengers instead of allowing voters a choice:

Had Palmer survived the petition challenge, Obama would have faced the daunting task of taking on an incumbent senator. Palmer’s elimination marked the first of several fortuitous politi...

Waiting For The Shoe To Drop: UPDate

6-6-08

Much more on Alice Palmer can be found here. Obama took out Alice Palmer in an ugly way – he removed the chance for the voters to make a choice. He gave them just one choice – himself. This hit job on a fellow liberal of standing shows Obama’s unfettered ambition for power. And that ambition carried him the the US Senate, again by removing challengers instead of allowing voters a choice:

Had Palmer survived the petition challenge, Obama would have faced the daunting task of taking on an incumbent senator. Palmer’s elimination marked the first of several fortuitous political moments in Obama’s electoral success: He won the 2004 primary and general elections for U.S. Senate after tough challengers imploded when their messy divorce files were unsealed.

Liberal judges unsealed those divorce files, files that had been closed for years and were begged to be kept closed by both parties in the divorce. Only ugly ambition would expose someone’s personal life like that. But Obama skated to win in a US Senate seat Illinois as the GOP tried to transport in a candidate from Maryland in the form of Alan Keyes.

Today Obama is fighting a team as cold and calculating as he is. The Clintons don’t play bean-bag politics. The reason I am certain Alice Palmer will come up as part of this political play is the foreshadowing Larry Johnson did in his last post about the video:

The Last Primaries – Updated!
via The Strata-Sphere