President Obama Moves to the Center – Refuses to Play Politics

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You know a president is moving to the center when he’s praised by the opposition party and shredded by his own. The Democrats are outraged by President Obama’s compromise on extending the Bush tax cuts. Apparently they’d rather see benefits for most Americans – extension of unemployment benefits and tax cuts for the “middle class” – crash & burn rather than compromise their political doctrine.

That, however, is not how one governs this country. To govern a president must serve the people, not political doctrine.

President Obama explained this fundamental concept in his December 7, 2010 news conference:

Let me use a couple of analogies. I've said before that I felt that the middle-class tax cuts were being held hostage to the high-end tax cuts. I think it's tempting not to negotiate with hostage-takers, unless the hostage gets harmed. Then people will question the wisdom of that strategy. In this case, the hostage was the American people and I was not willing to see them get harmed. Again, this not an abstract political fight. This is not isolated here in Washington.

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