Opinion: Where Are Obama's 'Righteous Gangstas'?

CHICAGO (March 16) -- I remember a snowy afternoon in January 2008, sitting on an old couch inside then-candidate Barack Obama's campaign headquarters in Des Moines, the day before Obama's surprising victory in the Iowa caucuses.

Sitting next to me was a top campaign insider, a key Obama supporter from the beginning. We talked about the strengths and weaknesses of his candidate, and what he may be up against.

Yes, he was smart and driven. He had the ideas, the intellect, the message and the personality. But was he too cool? Too dispassionate? Too quick to compromise? Would he exhibit the toughness necessary as president?

"Don't you worry," the insider told me. "He's from Chicago. He'll be tough enough. And, besides, we have an army of 'righteous gangstas' to back him up."

Now where are those "righteous gangstas" when he needs them?

For the past year, the administration has tried to push through the most significant change in the U.S. health care system since the creation of Medicare in 1965. And for the past year, they have largely been stymied.

Yet, after months of debate, he was able to get the House and Senate to pass historic bills at the end of 2009. Then he lost his filibuster-proof majority in the Senate (not that it ever really existed in the first place), and the two chambers have been stuck, unable to muster enough political momentum to reconcile their differences.

It's now time to get unstuck.

It's time for those Democrats in Congress to put up or shut up. History will mark this moment as either the rebirth of the modern Democratic Party, or the moment of its final demise.

Now let's not forget, the president should have had the numbers. In the House, the Democrats have a solid majority 253-178 (216 votes are needed for passage). And they control the Senate 59-41. So, with one of the largest Democratic majorities in modern history, why have they been running around like wimps?

Meanwhile, the Republicans made no secret about their intent to make this issue Obama's Waterloo -- "I'm doing everything I can to prevent this bill from becoming law, plain and simple," House Republican leader John Boehner proudly declared this week -- and have whipped up fears on the Hill that the voters will send a message come November.

On this, they may be dead-on. If the Democrats fail to pass health care now, then they all should fear for their jobs come election time. Elections do have consequences.

And, in the progressive media? Virtual crickets ...

While right-wing radio, Fox News and scores of conservative Web sites have not held back in their united scorn for the president -- he's been simultaneously called a communist and fascist, compared to Hitler and Lenin and The Borg -- liberal radio goes at him for not being enough of a lefty?

Instead, they should be aggressively blocking for their quarterback, even throwing a few elbows. You are his offensive line. Make a hole. It's time to score.

To be fair, the administration hasn't done itself any favors. At key intersections, they have appeared to back down against pathetic resistance from Republicans and conservative Democrats.

Obama got played during the early health care debates in the Senate, going through contortions to appeal to Sens. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., or Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, only for some of them to later vote against the bill. He then allowed conserva-Dems like Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., to hold the final bill hostage while trying to force language to restrict abortions, or Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., who now wants to block it because it doesn't contain language covering illegal immigrants.

Now, compare this to the previous White House occupant. In his first term, George W. Bush, buoyed by public fear, skyrocketing approval ratings and congressional momentum following 9/11, ran the tables on the Democrats.

His Republican-controlled Congress had a (slim) majority, but they knew what to do with it. They passed bill after bill -- tax cuts, warrantless wiretapping, the creation of the "big government" Department of Homeland Security -- and didn't stop to ask questions.

At every turn, Republicans had his back, while the best the Democrats could say was "Thank you, Sir, may I have another?"

Remember, Bush had his gangstas. Cheney, Rove, Limbaugh and DeLay were all out with machetes, chopping down the jungle ahead of him. And, a year after he's out of office, they are still out there, swinging the axes on behalf of their old boss. Now, Obama is their tree.

This week, Obama is out working the stump in his last, best push for health care reform, doing what he does best: connecting with the people. But meanwhile, where are his dogs, his loud, vocal, full-throated soldiers in this fight?

In the 2008 elections, it was clear that the country wanted change (remember those consequences that come with elections?).

They had expected to see health care reform -- and they meant true reform, not just full employment for lobbyists and insurance executives. They expected banking oversight, consumer protection legislation, a jobs bill and education reform all to get pushed through Congress in his first term.

Sure, they knew the Republicans would try to delay, derail and deny them at every turn. But, heck, that's what they do. Meanwhile, the Democrats had a majority. They were going to be unstoppable!

Instead, unless they can get it together in the next few days, they will have been stopped. Cold. On the one-yard line.

So, who's got Obama's back? Who is out there full-throated, loudly, actively pushing his agenda, up in the face of his opponents? Who is playing the axman?

This week, we will see. Democrats, it's time to step up. It's time to unleash the "righteous gangstas" and get this country moving again.

History is watching.

Bryan Monroe is a visiting professor at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. He was the former president of the National Association of Black Journalists, editorial director of Ebony and Jet magazines -- where he landed the first interview with Obama after he was elected president -- and assistant vice president/news at Knight Ridder. He has also been a regular contributor to CNN and helped lead the team in Biloxi, Miss., that won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for coverage of Hurricane Katrina. He can be reached at www.bryanmonroe.com.