August 23, 2007

8/23: An Obama Opportunity

Rep. Jerry McNerney's (D-CA) troubled relationship with the netroots is a case study in the possible trouble a WH '08 Dem nominee will face with the anti-war base of the party. Since his return from Iraq, McNerney has both signaled to the Washington Post on repeatedoccasions that he is "willing to negotiate with the generals in Iraq over just how much more time they might need" and tried to reassure the netroots supporters who helped elect him that he's "firmly in favor of withdrawing troops on a timeline that includes both a definite start date and a definite end date." This isn't going over well with his netroots supporters.

CaliticsJulia Rosen blogs: "Answer me this, what is possibly gained from trying to negotiate with the Republicans about a specific timeline for withdrawal when they are trying to keep the war going on indefinitely? What exactly do you mean Jerry, when you say that we need to stop being partisan about our withdrawal resolutions? You were supposed to be our Mr. Smith goes to Washington and be a fighter to end this war, not some squishy person in the middle attacking both sides."

At MyDD a Barack Obama supporter blogs about Obama's emphasis on "the importance of building the mandate for a progressive majority -- that progressive changes on foreign policy, on health care, and on judicial appointments rely on building new coalitions, approaching new constituencies, and restoring faith in government." The coming Iraq war debate is a perfect opportunity for Obama to prove he can both deliver on his uniting the country rhetoric and please his progressive base at the same time.

Posted by Conn Carroll at August 23, 2007 01:00 PM