Should the administration forget about building bipartisan support & just plow through reforms?

Of course they should. The Republicans dumped all their moderates. There's very few rational people among their elected officials left. Forget bipartisanship and move on.

Or, better yet, use the old Republican routine: Talk about how bipartisan you are while being as partisan as you can.

Anyone who thinks Obama has not tried to reach out to Republicans is truly uninformed. It was only last week we saw the effort put into working with Olympia Snowe and getting her buy in on the health care reform. But it benefits Republican congressmen to spit on the outstretched hand, then go home and tell everyone Obama has shut them out of the process. Because of the low-information voters, many Republicans, like the ones on this site.

They can`t plow through because their own people are against it. Have you not figured that out yet.

The democrats have the voting power to just pass anything they want without the Republicans even showing up. When Reed and Poloisi complain about republicans blocking progress it is a lie, they can`t. It is Democrats preventing it from moving ahead and standing with republicans.

I know the the state run media has not told you this yet but it is true.

The first stimulus package was managed in a very plow through fashion but Obama seemed to gain leniency for this because of "economic needs". Plowing things through seems like a very short term solution and appears to be the fastest way to crash the president's political capital and ability to do anything. Its a long four years and rumors of the 2010 mid terms trending a little more republican makes it seem like attempts at bipartisanship is best.

Yes. Except Reagan never tried to unify the nation, he was a very divisive president. So was FDR. However, polls show that most of the public knows that the Republicans are the spoilers here, so Obama's olive branches did some political good.

Barack has to stay on message and explain in plain English what needs to to done. He has to get on top of the right wing radio dummies and FOX. I'm hoping that calm and consistent explainations will eventually bring at least some of our fellow citizens back to their senses and get them to stop buying into the BS put out by the reactionaries on the far right. Meanwhile he has to do what needs to be done and let the nay sayers babble away as the spirit moves.

Not if the majority of Americans disagree with what reforms the administration is trying to shove down their throats, which appears is the case.

The Democrats don't want to pass this bill without at least one Republican vote. Technically that would make it bipartisan to them. This health care bill is a very risky endeavor. They do not want to take all the blame if it should pass and fail to work.

i do no longer think of i could choose the two. to compliment to be forgiven you've had to have performed something incorrect. i could desire that i would not might desire to ever do something so incorrect as to might desire to plead for forgiveness.One ought to have the means to make an apology and that's the top of the difficulty. As for desirous to be forgotten,does all of us EVER prefer to be forgotten?

Oh but wait... Hope & Change that Obama said he would accomplish?

What about bringing out the bigger guns to opposition to his agenda? He's nothing but a Chicago thug.

I honestly think with the senators being just rural and southern in the right wing side they have no choice. These people had the majority and almost ruined our country and their hate and ignorance is evident now so I guess what has to be done has to be done, right?