Health Care Reform - Bad Politics by Obama

CBS News: Reports how the final version of the Health Care Reform; the merging of the House and Senate version; will be produced behind closed doors. This is a reversal of the Obama promise in 08 to allow sunlight in to the process. This is bad politics by the Obama White House, you have a bill that does not have popular support, that was gotten through the Senate by buying the votes of individual Senators and their states. Thus by breaking a Campaign pledge Obama is showing that he has learned Chicago methods if not real good politics.

500 US Casualties A MONTH predicted in Afghanistan

The Times: Reports on the prediction by retired US General Barry McCaffrey that the US will lose five hundred soldiers a month in Afghanistan. If this prediction comes true President Obama can forget about a second term, the US voter is already wary of Afghanistan; that shows sound judgement; but the will not tolerate an endless War, the US will be in Afghanistan for years, that's not the point, its one thing being in theatre, its another when you see five hundred body bags a month. The US voter already has health care reform to hold against Obama, this kind of loss in Afghanistan would be the final straw, the Republicans would take back the White House and the Congress, House and Senate in 2012.

Advice to MEN - Dating Sites

BBC News: Reports on the increase in people joining dating sites due to the weather conditions around the country. Advice to guys, don't, its better to become a train spotter in the Atlantic, less stress and even less pain, at the of the day you get your heart handed to you, and you feel like you just come out of combat foxhole after a heavy bombardment. If your in your 40s you just have to accept that its over on the romantic front, and if your a guy and married here is a good piece of advice, don't even think of joining a married dating site, the women there will hand you your heart and smash it to pieces, take the advice guys from an expert.

Feeling the COLD WIND of 2010

ABC News: Reports that two US Democratic Senators have felt the cold wind of the Mid Term Elections and not seeking re-election, Senators Dodd and Dorgan have thrown in the towel. The Obama Agenda could have a massive negative effect on the Democrats on the Hill, they will have to go home to moderate and conservative States and Districts and sell his health care reform and his spending spree, not an easy sell at the best of times but now in the recession not a great political idea. It can be postulated that more Democrats in the House and Senate will throw in the towel, Obama is really turning in to another Jimmy Carter.

Dems vs Dems

Politico: Reports on the rebuke by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to President Obama, how Obama has moved away from his Campaign pledges. The main problem for the Speaker is that the House will have to take the whole of the Senate Health Care Reform, with no major changes, liberals in the House are up in arms, but if the House was to try and change the Bill the Democrats could lose their sixty votes in the Senate. Thus the Speaker has to make sure that her Democrats take some tough medicine, and even then the Democrats could lose the House in 2010, thus if your a newly elected Democrat you see that you could lose your seat in the House and that you could be in the Minority Party in 2011. Touch choices ahead for Democrats.

Is Brown on the Chopping Block ?

BBC News: Reports on a move to get rid of UK PM Gordon Brown. This is far to late by Labour MP's, they are running scared that they will lose their seats, they are right to be scared, if its going to happen a Cabinet Minister has to resign, and a heavy weight at that, otherwise all we are seeing is a bunch of political dodos on the way to out, its that simple and brutal, this attempt will fail, what ever you think of the Conservative Party they are very effective of getting rid of a leader, just ask Lady Thatcher, at the end of the day you have to have the backbone to stick the political knife in, otherwise you sink on the RMS Brown or as we know it better the Titanic.

New Year Poll - Obama at 50%

Gallup: Reports on its first new poll of the new year, it finds that President Obama has a 50% approval rating, while 44% of Americans have a negative view of President Obama. In some respects this must be good news for the Obama White House, at least Obama is at the 50% mark, also as Gallup notes Ronald Reagan going in to his second year had a 49% rating; it should be noted that Reagan in 1984 won 49 states against Walter Mondale; thus this is not the end of the Obama Era, but what it does show is that the Obama Team have to change the message for the second year, it has to be about jobs, the Reagan recession turned in to the economic boom of the 80s. The present recession does not indicate that it will turn around that fast, so the Obama team has to stress jobs, making sure the media stress the limited good news, even if the recovery is a no job recover. It should be noted that 2010 Mid Term Elections will have a negative effect on the Obama Administration, it is expected that House Democrats will keep the House but with a much reduced majority, in the Senate the Republicans will pick up enough seats to filibuster most of the Obama Agenda. Thus the Oval Office has a few months to change the political landscape or Obama will look back at the first two years of his first term as the best and the rest a nightmare. That is the fun of politics folks, up and down.