Democrats Bailing On Obama in Growing Numbers

by Dan Riehl

Jun 9, 2014 5:43 PM PT

As Ron Fournier reports at National Journal, even powerful, high-profile Democrats are beginning to bail on Barack Obama, even if some seek anonymity in doing so.

The Bergdahl exchange is just one more in a long and growing list of Democrat complaints about the Democrat in the White House.

The email hit my in-box at 9:41 p.m. last Wednesday.  From one of the most powerful Democrats in Washington, a close adviser to the White House, the missive amounted to an electronic eye roll. "Even I have had enough."

Another Democrat had quit on President Obama.

The tipping point for this person was the Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl case—not the soldier-for-Taliban swap itself as much as how the White House mishandled its obligation to communicate effectively and honestly to Congress and the public. More than that, Obama's team had failed once again to acknowledge its mistakes, preferring to cast blame and seek cover behind talking points.

Fournier also goes on to disclose that most if not all of his reporting critical of the Obama White House has originated with, or been broadened with the help of Democrat who seem far less pleased with Obama than perhaps even some supposedly objective journalists.

I share this email to make the broader point and to offer a disclosure: In the 18 months since I began writing columns focused on the presidency, virtually every post critical of Obama has originated from conversations with Democrats. Members of Congress, consultants, pollsters, lobbyists, and executives at think tanks, these Democrats are my Obama-whispers. They respect and admire Obama but believe that his presidency has been damaged by his shortcomings as a leader; his inattention to details of governing; his disengagement from the political process and from the public; his unwillingness to learn on the job; and his failure to surround himself with top-shelf advisers who are willing to challenge their boss as well as their own preconceived notions.

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