Obama: I'm afraid progressives will hurt Democratic allies



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Former President Obama has expressed concern about the Democratic Party's progressive wing, saying he feared that this would eventually undermine the allies.

Speaking Saturday at a public event hosted by the Obama Foundation in Berlin, the former president spoke of the need for a political compromise, citing the Affordable Care Act as being a progress, even if he did not realize all his aspirations. American health care.

"One of the things that sometimes worries me about progressives in the United States – maybe it's true here too – is some kind of rigidity where we say:" Uh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. That's how it's going to be, and then we sometimes start creating what we call a "circular platoon", where you start shooting at your allies because one of them is Is removed from purity over the issues, and when that happens, the effort and movement in general weaken, "he said.

"So I think you're talking as a citizen, as a political leader or as an organizer … you have to recognize that, to structure democracy, you have to take into account people who are not Agree with you and that, by definition, means that you will not get 100% of what you want, "he added.

Obama, who began his political career in Chicago as a community organizer before becoming a senator of the state of Illinois and, later, an American senator, spoke of the frustration that he had. he felt when politicians had told him that they could not make as much progress on an issue as what he would do. as.

Yet, Obama said his point of view has changed throughout his political career.

"You should take the time to think about your own mind and always refine and think:" What are my basic principles? "Because the danger is that if you do not know your principles, it's when you compromise them," he said. "You can not configure a system in which you do not compromise anything, but you can not operate in a system where you compromise."

Obama's remarks come as more than a dozen Democrats vie for the party's 2020 presidential nomination. Some candidates wanted to appeal to the party's burgeoning progressive wing, which is taking its place. is carved out a reputation for criticizing politicians who, according to some, have not taken the bold enough steps to adopt a change.

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