Truth for America Panel Concurs that President Obama’s Arrogance Played Large Role in Historic Democratic Election Loss

Neal Asbury opened the show by proposing that while President Obama seemed not to listen to the will of the American people, after the drubbing Democrats took in the House (the largest reversal in party change since the 1930s), “he better be listening now. He better be listening that the American people don’t want a socialist agenda, don’t want cap and trade, don’t want card check, and don’t want Obama Care. It’s time for him to start spending more time doing what is best for the American people. –and that means job creation,” said Asbury.

Asbury contended that the message is loud and clear:” We don’t like the direction this country is taking and it needs to be fixed.” He pointed to new Florida Senate winner Marco Rubio –who was endorsed early by Truth for America – as someone who gets it and who has a bright political future. He rightfully told supporters that “it’s not about political parties – it’s about Washington doing the will of the people.”

While it is gratifying to see that the people have spoken and taken back the House, Asbury warned that “it’s no time to gloat. It’s time to watch our representatives closely to make sure that they don’t fall into bad habits. The Republican Party sees this as a chance to correct the mistakes they made the first time around. Now it’s time for them to do the jobs for which they were elected. Let’s get this country moving again.”

Due to the significance of the midterm elections, this week’s Truth for America altered its format and called on a panel of experts to weigh in on the ramifications of the election results. Asbury and cohost Rich Roffman were joined by David Drucker, a reporter for Roll Call, which has covered Capitol Hill since 1955; Steve Lombardo, president and CEO of Lombardo Consulting; and returning guest Paul Anderson, Senior Fellow at United States Congress, Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure and a former Commissioner-Designated Chairman at the Federal Maritime Commission.

In a discussion of the House results, Drucker proposed that the message was clear: “The American people want President Obama to put the brakes on his liberal over reaching. People are suspicious of Obama’s agenda because they don’t see any results. Most people believe that Obama has taken the country too far to the left.”

Drucker also suggested that the President is making a big mistake by claiming that poor communication of his policies led to the Democratic defeat. “It wasn’t a lack of communication; they just didn’t like what he had to say. They didn’t like the fact that the policies weren’t working. He needs to shift his course back to the center.”

Steve Lombardo believes that Obama exhibits a kind of arrogance that will make it hard for him to change. “He is who he is. He makes no excuses for his policies. I think he actually believes that if you don’t like what you’re hearing from him, it’s your fault because you’re too stupid to grasp it.”

Lombardo says that Obama can stand by his convictions, but admit that he made some mistakes. “It is my job to lead the country, but I didn’t do it.”

Anderson concurred that Obama did not accept the failure for his policies, but blamed others. He predicts the Republicans will pick up on this. Like Lombardo, Anderson believes that Obama underestimated the smarts of the American public. “The Democratic losses were not just regional; it was an overwhelming defeat in every corner of the country.”

“From the beginning, it was about a referendum for the President,” added Lombardo. “It was an historic loss for the Democrats. I think they’ll lose 63-65 seats in the House. Obama will be facing a difficult political environment. The loss was a repudiation of his policies. Obama wasn’t elected to turn the government on its head – the public wanted him to fix the nation’s problems.”

Drucker maintained that it’s not that Obama doesn’t get it, “he just doesn’t care. He wants to do the things he thinks are best. He wants to be a transformational president. He didn’t run just to win; he wants to do what he wants to do. He’s very insulated.”

Lombardo echoed Drucker’s comments. “It’s OK for the President to have core principles, but he has to demonstrate that he gets it. Show some humility. Send a message to voters.”

As an example, Lombardo relates that voting day exit polls found that 48 percent of voters want to repeal Obama Care, but Obama is not listening.

Once Republicans control the House, Drucker expects an internal struggle as House members challenge each other for leadership positions. He expects the same infighting among Democrats now that they’ve lost the House leadership.

Lombardo agreed but warned that if Republicans think that the liberal movement is dead, they will be making a big mistake.

Along those lines, Anderson explained that the jockeying for House committee leadership involves gamesmanship and tight connections with party leaders. He said it is hard for freshmen House members to join the most powerful committees, especially the all-powerful appropriations committee. Anderson expects to see a big shakeout in earmarks, which contributed to the Republican loss in 2008.

Turning to the Senate, Asbury predicted that Harry Reid (who managed to hold his Senate seat in Nevada) and President Obama will become the “face of the Democratic party. Reid is very unpopular nationally even among his own party, and with Obama’s low approval ratings, I think with 20 Democratic seats in play in 2012, the GOP can take back the Senate. I mean, Obama lost his Senate seat in Illinois to Mark Kirk, a Republican.”

Anderson noted these same trends were apparent throughout the country, and predicted that with Boxer retaining her seat and Jerry Brown winning the governorship in California, “there is going to be a revolt.”

He pointed to the Senate election of Marco Rubio in Florida as a great story because his election didn’t fit the mold. Despite down 30 points when he first appeared on Truth for America show earlier this year, Rubio energized the grassroots with his humble family story and he coasted to victory. Anderson predicted that Rubio will be a rising star in the Republican Party.

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