Local Blogs
By Paul Losch
About this blog: I was a "corporate brat" growing up and lived in different parts of the country, ending in Houston, Texas for high school. After attending college at UC Davis, and getting an MBA at Harvard, I embarked on a marketing career, mai...
(More)
About this blog: I was a "corporate brat" growing up and lived in different parts of the country, ending in Houston, Texas for high school. After attending college at UC Davis, and getting an MBA at Harvard, I embarked on a marketing career, mainly in the Bay Area with different companies. My former wife went back to medical school after we had been married a few years, and we moved into married student housing at Stanford, had our two now adult children while she was a medical student, and moved into Palo Alto when she started her Residency. Been here ever since. As my kids were going through the Palo Alto schools, I was actively involved in their activities, most notably head umpire for Palo Alto Little League and 9 years as a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission, among other activities. My kids both are grown, my son teaches 5th grade locally, and my daughter, fluent in Mandarin, is working in China. I sold the business I owned and ran for 8 years in 2012, worked on the Obama campaign, and am consulting for non-profit organizations, which gives me a nice, flexible schedule. Lots of stamps in my passport, and for fun, I like live performances &emdash; theater and music - and of course the Giants!
(Hide)
View all posts from Paul Losch
Obama, GW Bush, FDR and Presidential Leadership
Uploaded: Sep 5, 2009
Some of my thinking here is based upon some opinions by national columnists and other readings of late, so it is not entitely original.
I have learned in recent readings that FDR in the 1930's largely ignored the Republicans in Congress when he was working to pass certain major initiatives, such as Social Security.
I witnessed with GW Bush that he and the GOP controlled Congress in the first 6 years of that administration largely ignored the Democrats to push through their agenda on various things.
I am tempted to send to our current President a copy of "The Prince."
Obama deserves credit for seeking consensus and compromise. When it can be done, that is a healthy thing. The test of his mettle as a new President is how he will act when consenus and compromise appear to be unattainable in the national health care dicussion.
I had a free afternoon in Austin Texas about a year ago, and I went to the LBJ Library on the UT Campus. The public part of this place understandably downplays the Viet Nam fiasco, and plays up the many things he did accomplish around voting rights, civil rights, and related legislation. LBJ was a powerful personality, and a great deal of what was accomplished in those bills that were passed had to do with his strong persona and an inate instinct to know when to unload the opposition in order to get things done.
The health care policy that will be passed can not please everyone, and at this point, I think Obama needs to look at recent and not so recent predecessors and get his agenda passed with the Congress that enables him to do that, and give up on the notion that he will be able to get the loyal opposition in the GOP to get on board.
It was a noble thing to attempt, but it failed. Time to play hard ball. Bring on Rahm Emmanuel after Labor Day.
Democracy.
What is it worth to you?
Comments
Post a comment
Sorry, but further commenting on this topic has been closed.