Albert R. Hunt: Come on, Obama: Come back into the political game | Opinion



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Much to the dismay of many Democrats, former President Barack Obama has largely floated above the political melee instead of actively leading the anti-Trump squad. He told his badociates that he did not want to aggravate political polarization and that he wanted to preserve his credibility by expressing himself only selectively and on significant occasions

If that is the case, it is now such a moment.

You have to sound the alarm about bad policies and the evil behavior of President Donald Trump. Others do it

On the contrary, it's a good time for Obama to pose a marker for the Democrats, subtly warning not to go to the extreme in response to Trump. According to an article published last month in the New York magazine, liberals need to "mix idealism and practicality"

In fact, during this political season, the traditional Democrats did well in the contested primaries. A New York congressional contest last month in which a young socialist defeated a leader of the Democratic House was widely and falsely interpreted by both opponents and enthusiasts as a sign that the Democrats turned to the left

could help correct. In response to Trump's policy of separating immigrant children from their families, politicians, including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Elizabeth Warren of Mbadachusetts, called for the elimination of the immigration and customs agency. Trump enjoys this debate, which diverts attention from his child abuse. There is also pressure on the Democrats for that they insist that the only way to improve the health care system is to entrust it to the government and demand the removal of Trump now.

Obama could make his presence felt midway picking fights. He could call for the construction of the Affordable Care Act, his signature health care measure, instead of abandoning it in favor of a single payer system. He might recommend leaving Trump's investigations by special advocate Robert Mueller and others to play before considering dismissal. He could insist that the focus on immigration issues be shifted to helping children and families instead of scaring them. And by his calm example, he could remind the allies to respect civility even in troubled times.

The position of the 44th president is such that it would provide coverage to Democratic candidates who are under pressure from the left of the party on these issues. 19659003] He is the only one who can simultaneously reach younger voters, angry campaigners and suburban women. Bill and Hillary Clinton have lost their credibility; Warren does not want to alienate the left; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is worried about retaining her leadership position if the Democrats take the House; and the leader of the minority in the Senate, Charles Schumer, would not be taken seriously by these constituencies.

It's a mistake for Obama to ignore elements of his party that believe, as historian Sean Wilentz writes, that "the only way to fight The overthrow of populism is due to left-wing populism.

Trump loses the border war politically. Thus, when critics attack an enforcement agency rather than the political decision maker, it plays a role. Similarly, Republicans are on the defensive on major health issues, having misled the country for eight years in its badault on universal health insurance and turning to a president who cares little about the subject. Changing the subject to debate the merits of what would be an extremely complicated, expensive and controversial single payer system throws these Republicans a life raft.

In the era of Trump, another duck is that only high pitched voices are heard. In the past eight months, the three biggest democratic winners – Sen. Alabama Doug Jones, Governor of Virginia Ralph Northam and Representative of Pennsylvania Conor Lamb – are all moderates in the way as well as politics. Two incumbent Democratic senators in the Trump-worn states, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Sherrod Brown of Ohio, are known by colleagues as kind. They are both likely to win double digits in November.

There are others, however, that the popular Obama could help. He vowed to help the Democrats' redistricting campaign, which seeks to reverse some of the huge gains that Republicans have made in creating congressional and state legislative lines after the 2010 census. Democrats were asleep at the switch then, when Obama was president and leader of his party. He also plans to make a selective campaign for some Senate candidates

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