tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13107487528128171212012-02-16T03:59:38.598-05:00American politics and the Obama AdministrationGeoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-36815004606141597572010-07-18T16:40:00.002-04:002010-07-18T16:48:39.617-04:00

Obviously I've done a terrible job keeping this blog going since November of last year. I'm not planning on restarting it anytime soon, in part because I have just begun what amounts to an extremely similar blog at a more formal publication, the GC Advocate, which is the student newspaper for the CUNY Graduate Center, the doctorate-granting institution where I am a student.My "blog beat" over

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-15856579610463662362009-11-04T18:43:00.002-05:002009-11-04T19:04:44.406-05:00

Last night's off-year elections were clearly a win for the Republicans as they picked up the governor's office in two key states, but I'll somewhat buy the line coming out of the White House, as reported by Politico, that "Democratic losses in New Jersey and Virginia are no verdict whatsoever on President Barack Obama or his policies." That's an exaggeration, but as Nate Silver has argued, this

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-65457639959569391972009-09-18T17:52:00.005-04:002009-09-18T18:15:14.735-04:00

There seems to be a mistaken assumption among many supporters of President Obama that criticizing him on this or that policy, or this or that tactic, is a mistake because he is already getting hit quite hard (and quite unfairly) from folks on the right. I don't buy that in the slightest. Much of what Obama has done so far as president has undoubtedly been disappointing if not point-blank awful,

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-80440182593399733082009-09-16T22:25:00.009-04:002009-09-17T01:29:31.620-04:00

Earlier tonight I attended "An Evening with Senator Tom Daschle", a "President's Forum" hosted by president of The New School (and former Senate colleague of former senator Daschle) Bob Kerrey (whose tenure at the well-known NYC university has been nothing if not controversial).I discussed Daschle in less-than-flattering terms back in February when he stepped aside as Obama's nominee for

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-89657297486631456722009-09-12T01:39:00.002-04:002009-09-12T04:41:49.902-04:00

Back in 1993, Bill and Hillary Clinton famously tried to reform the health care system. Their idea wasn't very good, and obviously it was completely scupered in the end. One contributing factor in the defeat of that reform effort was the series of infamous Harry and Louise advertisements paid for by a major health insurance industry lobbying group known at the time as the Health Insurance

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-84004204344507477852009-09-09T22:42:00.003-04:002009-09-12T04:59:18.645-04:00

So simply as a speech, I thought Obama did quite well tonight. He really is an exceptional speaker, and it's clear his administration views that ability as their ace in the hole. He did a fine job articulating some of the key problems in the American health care system—problems of which most every American is well aware. As predicted, he reiterated his support for a public option, but left the

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-77454799022900960422009-09-09T20:32:00.010-04:002009-09-12T04:59:46.646-04:00

8:32 Getting rid of the "pre-existing conditions" problem is indeed a big deal, but we'll have to see to what extent insurance companies find way around it.8:35 Nice reaction by McCain to getting props from Obama.8:36 Regarding those who choose not to go without insurance, Obama says that's irresponsible "if there are affordable options." Right now there are not, and it very much remains to be

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-35032175957640337392009-09-09T19:43:00.006-04:002009-09-12T05:00:18.639-04:00

8:03 One important point even before the speech starts is that, in excerpts from the speech released to the press today, there is no mention of the public option. Presumably it will be mentioned in the full speech, but obviously a failure to release remarks related to the public option prior to the speech suggest the administration is not interested in highlighting it.8:09 Why is he so late? It's

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-16104737222807386552009-09-09T19:20:00.004-04:002009-09-12T05:00:50.317-04:00

For progressives and other supporters of a "single-payer" health care system (which has never even been on the table or indeed even part of the conversation on health care reform), tonight's speech is all about what the president says about the so-called "public option." Pre-speech articles suggest that Obama will be, as he has been for some time, "supportive, but not insistent" when it comes to

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-85439154337497187872009-09-09T19:03:00.002-04:002009-09-09T19:15:32.019-04:00

Sorry. I went and forgot to blog for almost five months there.It's amazing how difficult it is to get back into blogging once you take a hiatus. I guess it's somewhat like going to the gym in that regard, except you burn slightly less calories while blogging. But I've been meaning to get back into this for awhile, and decided live-blogging President Obama's important health care address tonight

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-7916176888473379492009-04-18T14:21:00.010-04:002009-04-18T15:55:55.844-04:00

Like many I'm of the hope that, years from now, the passage of Proposition 8 last November, while devastating, will be seen as the nadir of the movement for marriage equality and perhaps for the contemporary LGBT rights movement in general. Since then events have been moving very much in the opposite direction. In the immediate aftermath of Prop 8's passage, we saw massive protests around the

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-80833424546035743312009-04-09T22:47:00.004-04:002009-04-13T13:47:56.530-04:00

The below interview with George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley goes into a bit more depth on Obama's policy with respect to state secrets and NSA wiretapping. Turley is fairly damning, particular when he argues that we're going to have to get used to the fact that Obama is "more interested in programs than principles, and he never intended to fight on issues like torture and

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-60904752096988781262009-04-09T21:10:00.009-04:002009-04-13T13:48:10.346-04:00

My blogging is going to be extremely sporadic for the next month or so because of academic committments, but the issue here is too important to let go by without a quick comment. It's also exactly the kind of disappointing decision on the part of Obama that many progressives (myself included) have feared.Talking Points Memo reports on the Obama administration's recent motion in a lawsuit dealing

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-54679355314977100722009-04-04T21:06:00.002-04:002009-04-04T21:21:45.098-04:00

This afternoon thousands of folks marched in Manhattan's financial district against escalation of the war in Afghanistan (and continuation of the war in Iraq) and in favor of a "bailout" for our communities rather than continued military spending and bailouts for Wall Street. The march took place on the 41st anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., which occured one year

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-67114895479673416502009-03-27T00:35:00.001-04:002009-03-27T04:30:34.022-04:00

I've spent a lot of time (too much) in the past couple of years editing the English-language Wikipedia, to the point that I actually became an administrator on that web site which lets me do certain things that other "editors" of Wikipedia cannot. I've been a bit less active there for awhile but still like Wikipedia and find it fascinating/maddening, however that's a topic I'll perhaps save for

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-69677420439857936792009-03-24T20:24:00.012-04:002009-03-25T00:18:26.288-04:00

(part two of two, part one here)8:26 Question about Mexico - not sure who from - a key issue but one we're not hearing much about.8:27 Not a particularly interesting answer, except it's good to say that illegal American guns going to Mexico are bad.8:31 It's called the "military industrial complex" Barack! Just say it!8:32 Inevitable AIG question (from CNN). Also again pushing the "debt! debt!"

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-89655812429401837242009-03-24T19:52:00.009-04:002009-03-25T00:19:15.780-04:00

Initial thoughts. This strikes me as a particularly important press conference for the Obama administration. He's trying to push through an important, extremely unpopular, and (many say) ill-advised bank bailout plan. His popularity remains high right now and does not seem to have taken a huge hit from the AIG ridiculousness or the continued economic malaise, but that could change very

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-81609090129859588312009-03-24T19:38:00.003-04:002009-03-24T19:44:48.377-04:00

That's right readers! In about 15 minutes I'll be "live blogging" President Obama's second prime time press conference on the economy.Me, live bloggingThis live blog will offer you an excellent chance to read my real-time reactions to President Obama's second prime time press conference on the economy. So if you happen to be reading this right now or some time in the next 15 minutes or so, be

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-61491220673565192332009-03-24T15:40:00.004-04:002009-04-13T13:49:20.121-04:00

As originally reported by the Washington Independent, Arlen Specter (R-PA) has come out against the Employee Free Choice Act and announced that he will side with his fellow Republicans in the Senate in a filibuster of the bill, effectively dooming its chance for passage in that chamber despite the fact that it likely has majority support. This is a huge blow to unions, but of course the National

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-37532975438139087642009-03-23T01:25:00.006-04:002009-03-23T01:49:47.788-04:00

Well not really, but this post from Josh Marshall at Talking Points Memo is absolutely hilarious and no doubt one of the only funny things that will come out of the Bernie Madoff fiasco.Apparently someone at the esteemed US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York—the office handling the Madoff prosecution—is unfamiliar with the notorious "Nigerian Scam." Of course the only way

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-58181124862328112982009-03-22T00:05:00.005-04:002009-03-22T06:33:19.003-04:00

If, like me, your Tonight Show-watching days are well behind you, you may have missed Obama's interview with Jay Leno last Thursday. The only real piece of policy news to come out of it relates to Obama's obviously lukewarm feelings about the "tax-the-AIG-bonuses" legislation passed by the House. It seems likely he does not want to sign that bill as is, which is unsurprising given how much

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-983707569968618342009-03-17T17:40:00.003-04:002009-03-17T20:40:22.902-04:00

The AIG bonus scandal is really pissing folks off. Senator Chuck Grassley, Republican of Iowa, went so far as to say that the AIG executives who okayed tens of millions of dollars in bonuses to the very people who ran the company into the ground should "resign or go commit suicide."That got everyone's attention and Grassley earlier today had to walk that back a bit—he was speaking "rhetorically"

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-2909973419047691622009-03-14T01:21:00.005-04:002009-10-17T04:57:39.081-04:00

I discussed a piece on the stimulus package by David Harvey in a previous post and am following that here with this video offering from Laura Flanders' GRITtv.Flanders is joined by Harvey and Counterpunch editor/Nation columnist Alexander Cockburn (two old-school, dyed-in-the-wool lefties) as they discuss the current economic crisis, the Obama administration, labor unions (a discussion which very

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-38897438992773898432009-03-12T15:54:00.004-04:002009-03-12T16:24:47.982-04:00

What we might one day look back on as the "neoliberal era"—roughly the last 30-35 years—has also undoubtedly been an era of general declension for the American labor movement. There is really nothing good about that and much that is rather disastrous. While unions themselves deserve some of the blame for their loss of power due to their own poor decisions, various external factors are far more

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1310748752812817121.post-18585379050076478892009-03-08T00:50:00.006-05:002009-03-08T04:26:51.305-04:00

Something which I'd like to make a regular feature of this blog, and which I'll inaugurate with this post, is an ongoing series that I'll call "radical critiques of Obama" (thus will this and all future posts of a similar nature be tagged).My personal politics are well to the left of Obama and the Democratic Party, falling firmly in the broad and fractious left anti-capitalist camp (with more

Geoff Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04492873513809715748noreply@blogger.com4