tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post3907533612989201930..comments2023-10-16T07:13:12.123-05:00Comments on A plain blog about politics: Oy, BaiJonathan Bernsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-85914475175736049352010-07-23T10:45:55.388-05:002010-07-23T10:45:55.388-05:00Certainly I was voting for health care reform - no...Certainly I was voting for health care reform - not Hillary's specific plan in the primaries, nor Obama's in the general, but broadly for a world view that includes health care reform. (Actually getting it is an unexpected bennie!)<br /><br />Likewise I was voting for a world view that includes the stimulus, even though it was not an issue on the table in 2007. Health care reform, and a stimulus if the economy tanks, are the sorts of things I expect Dems to attempt, and that world view is why I am a Dem. <br /><br />Bai is disingenuous in ignoring that broad world-view bundling. Obama is keeping his major promises, both explicit (health care reform) and implicit (a stimulus). He has attempted what Generic Dem is supposed to attempt - and unlike Generic Dem, has actually delivered.<br /><br />Isn't this why the hysteria on the right is so intense? They're always hysterical when Dems get elected, but even more so when Dems succeed in enacting substantial parts of the Dem agenda.Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932015378213238346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-86488349500563035552010-07-23T01:20:52.833-05:002010-07-23T01:20:52.833-05:00Well, two different questions. Were the candidate...Well, two different questions. Were the candidates talking about health care in 2007? Absolutely. Did people choose based on issues? Probably not, and almost certainly not in the general election -- but that's not because the candidates weren't talking about issues.Jonathan Bernsteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-31897039073790095222010-07-22T21:29:16.103-05:002010-07-22T21:29:16.103-05:00How salient were 'issues' during the campa...How salient were 'issues' during the campaign? In the primaries Obama and Hillary had very similar positions on substance; I made my primary choice purely on campaign strategery, and I suspect this was true of most politically engaged Dems. (In the general there was no question of voting for anyone but the Dem nominee.)<br /><br />And to the degree that 'issues' were salient in the primaries, they were largely different issues - no one in 2007 was talking about an economic stimulus.Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16932015378213238346noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-69120869942924251742010-07-22T17:27:01.068-05:002010-07-22T17:27:01.068-05:00Oh, there's no doubt that Obama's campaign...Oh, there's no doubt that Obama's campaign was full of substance. But both you and Nyhan bury the lede -- that chart of Reagan/Obama's ratings is amazing! Could someone send that to Richard Cohen, please?Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18440356770947146690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-20348222475938226392010-07-22T17:02:24.265-05:002010-07-22T17:02:24.265-05:00Agreed! Hope and Change dominated but they were al...Agreed! Hope and Change dominated but they were all backed up by policies that were messaged into one or two sentences to really connect with voters.Andrew Calkinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02443311272898885243noreply@blogger.com