it's time to any other president obama to satisfy his progress to date
right now there are signs coming from big time democratic donors
like billionaire george soros
but their patience is running out
he palatal a group of progressive donors
and a private meeting but it's time to move on from obama
pose a strong words for exactly
and how one progresses proceed without the president
meanwhile the reports of the president might move on from larry summers to roger altman
for his top economic adviser
all that might be one of the few democrats in the country
who in my opinion are more pro-law streeters summers
is there any hope that this president or sunday do something buddies actually progressive
find out if i meet you top bottom
davis the rotors radio hosts a syndicated columnist
bill press that is also a radio talk show host the jet boat join us now
uh... first up bill
iodine defeat the president has done some things that are progressive
but educate me while i being too tough on it
well personal project let me just say that all three of us are members of the professional
after chaotic even but if i could have been accused of that at the white house on all
of us have been critical of president obama
bottle i don't think it has left is that we can be too tough on him i think we have to
keep the pressure on given credit when he's right but really keep the pressure on what
it looks like he's caving in i've been disappointed like you have on many fronts
in the end though i think you also have to accept
that he's had zero cooperation from republicans in zero corroboration from a lot of democrats
he's only been there twenty months he inherited a mess
and frankly i'm surprised it for them to get as much done
as he has so far so i'm not saying he's up for mom
i'm just saying up to be realistic as well
happen given what do you think anyway
let me ask you to keep in the goofy waded dead people open essentially v give me a report
card of the first two years
i mean a pure your top strong progressive
uh... i don't think you did you mean aid but
what grade do you get
well i don't mean to cop out but it it's really an incomplete i mean these next two years
are really really key i think the bush tax cuts
and the afghanistan war are really the key issues here right the bush tax cuts represent
the bush vision for economic policy extending them even temporarily all of them after campaigning
against them would be a democratic president going on record saying that even temporarily
the bush economic vision is a smart economic vision that would be a huge huge failure walking
away publicly walking away from a commitment
to start drawing down troops in afghanistan as we've heard in the news that your vomit
messages for is proposing
that would also be a huge huge failure so i think these next few weeks and months will
really tell us what that report card is saul bellow on those two issues there megan you've
got obama looks like he's got a compromise
on the bush tax cuts it makes them for two more years you might get a republican president
and the extent of forever
in twenty twelve so
that's that's a huge
compromise if you're being kind
uh... and then you got you know you've got
did roger altman possibly replacing latvians possibly replacing larry summers
doesn't seem like it's always the establishment choice always a conservative choice rather
the progress of drugs because i want to add that david celeste i think the don't ask don't
tell us a big test right now i think
extending unemployment benefits is a big test right now to put up in the tax cuts i think
it's a huge mistake
to compromise out all the president has made the case we should not be borrowing eight
hundred billion dollars seven hundred billion from the chinese to get millionaires in this
country a tax cut i think you ought to stick to that
i think you know to put it up for a vote make the republicans vote against middle-class
tax cuts without an option to extend the tax cuts even for two years and you guys are both
right if they extended for two years that'll be another two years then another two years
it's just uh...
of cover-up perot's making a permanent always roger altman goes day gotta tell you the outlets
but paul krugman in there
put somebody on our side in their we've had enough wall street people in the white house
turned and looked up
we literally have not had a show on this program for that and what i've been hosting
that has disagreed everybody says flight flight on the tax cuts
somehow obama decides not we're not going to fight on the tax cuts
west side
he's so frustrating why are you getting advice why does he is always going to establish ment
and secondly how do you mow the lawn for that that's the key question
well the answer is that there's a clear as a kind of a conflict in what he campaigned
on
he campaigned on the most progressive presidential platform in a generation andy also campaign
on a promise of bipartisanship ultimately the republicans were never going to accept
a river of above progressive agenda the agenda to the campaign dot so he has decided that
you prioritize quote-unquote an attempted bipartisanship over his keep progressive promises
why is that happening i think for two reasons one of the culture of washington says that
democrats in particular progresses after capitulate to republicans that's the medium political
culture and also you have to look at money look this is a president who raise more money
from wall street than any presidential candidate in american history so she's got those two
forces pushing on in in the third and final point
she is not afraid of his progressive days he's not afraid that progressives are going
to push him are going to primary him are going to primary members of congress who capitulate
within that's part of the dynamic here are was any brought out the primary were there
bill
yeah quick
greg was argues that i had
the president has not yet he's given indications he might be ready to he is not yet said he's
willing to go further to your extension which means i think we've got to work to do with
ought to be on shows like this we ought to be with all of the organization's were involved
with
keeping the pressure on and i know that today nancy pelosi in study hall there told him
it's a mistake
to do any compromise so they're keeping the pressure of now's the time to really fight
quite how about that primary idea is is that too much added
would hurt the president too much is it
is a good idea to pressure him in that way even if the primary design sexy
just for my i gotta say i love primaries i think the more
kind of uh...
challenges that we have the better
i'd love to see russ feingold a bernie sanders they'd need my ideal ticket
that's not going to happen so yeah i have a primary fight but don't expect that's going
to go anywhere for bob what would be our candidate in twenty twelve
not by david right now if your sources right and i know you you've said similar things
about moving out without the president
how do you as this
he's a guy who's supposed to be the parece a president
if he's not doing what you think he should be doing
how do you move on without
for ir from george soros is that more resources and
organizing needs to go into progressive movement building as opposed to simply abounded want
anyone or another president for presidential candidate or for congressional candidates
we need more investment in movement organizing that is organizing around a set of issues
not around the dear leader not around a cult of personality not around any one individual
the conservatives have a true conservative movement
the progress is i think need to invest more in movement building organizing again around
a set of its over issues that you're willing to pressure both political parties and any
president on