On Spying, Obama Just Isn’t That Into the Democratic Coalition - Conor Friedersdorf - the Atlantic
Uh, Greenwald isn’t the only one to notice. I guess the Atlantic has also caught “Obama derangement syndrome.”
PS - the Atlantic endorsed Obama for President. TWICE
What few liberals want to acknowledge or grapple with is the fact that, on issues like drone strikes abroad and surveillance in the United States, President Obama is not actually in a coalition with fellow Democrats. Rather, the coalition that sustains his ability to kill U.S. citizens without trial and to spy on the phone calls of all Americans is composed largely of Republicans. GOP legislators disproportionately support these policies, former Bush officials staff the apparatus, and it’s all grounded in neo-conservative theories of executive power. It is all irredeemably illiberal.
Wednesday’s vote on NSA phone surveillance exposed one of Obama’s coalitions for all to see.
The Obama Administration put together a winning majority of surveillance state apologists. It included establishment Democrats, like Nancy Pelosi, who joined far-right conservatives like Michele Bachmann. Overall, Obama’s position prevailed with 134 Republicans supporting it and 94 opposed. 111 Democrats voted against the president’s position, with just 83 for it.
More: On Spying, Obama Just Isn’t That Into the Democratic Coalition - Conor Friedersdorf - the Atlantic