Judis to progressives – Keep Obama honest from left

Amen to John Judis’ call for progressives, from the ground up, to keep President Barack Obama’s feet to the fire to deliver some mess of pottage that can at least halfway be Change We Can Believe In.

Says Judis:

I think the main reason that Obama is having trouble is that there is not a popular left movement that is agitating for him to go well beyond where he would even ideally like to go. Sure, there are leftwing intellectuals like Paul Krugman who are beating the drums for nationalizing the banks and for a $1 trillion-plus stimulus. But I am not referring to intellectuals, but to movements that stir up trouble among voters and get people really angry. Instead, what exists of a popular left is either incapable of action or in Obama's pocket.

I’ll riff on that last line.

That’s why people like me are the unpopular left to not just full-fledged Obamiacs but to most MSLBs, who are more the neo-lib intelligentsia.

Judis goes on to note the differences between now and FDR, who DID have an organized, or semi-organized, real Left, personified by Huey Long, pushing him hard.

Instead, MSLBers may slap Congressional Democrats, especially Harry Reid, around a bit, while going in the tank for Just.Another.Politician.™