[Editors’ note:  while we do not share the author’s conclusion, which amounts to a "The Worse, the Better" argument, his article speaks the truth regarding the Brobdingnagian hypocrisy of the present US Administration and the inability of sections of the US left to transcend Lesser Evilism.]

After being a kitten for the corporate elites, President Barack Obama pretends to be a warrior for the middle class. Even now that Obama has "found his fight," he still does not present real solutions but instead offers to his base the crumbs and leftovers of what would have been good policies, while still ruling shamelessly to the benefit of the elites.

Democrats believe we have to accept Obama’s treachery or we risk a conservative president. What do you think Obama is? Why should progressives vote for Obama when his only claim to fame is a health care bill he acknowledged he copied from Mitt Romney?

You never judge politicians by their discourse, you have to look at the facts. There is little daylight between Obama’s presidency and Romney’s performance as governor. In their current rhetoric the only difference is that Romney supports policies that blatantly help elites while Obama does the same but in a skillful and underhanded manner that triggers no resistance from the left.

Look how much wealthier the corporate sector has become during Obama’s administration, while the middle class is worse off.

Because the left considers Obama "one of us," he does not face the same opposition that an openly conservative candidate would. Nowhere is it clearer than in the international arena. President George W. Bush tried to pass a free trade agreement with Panama, Colombia and South Korea to no avail; the Democrats in Congress did not allow it. Yet, Obama accomplished it in a couple years. Talk about killing jobs.

In the warmongering arena, Obama is even more hawkish than Bush. Bad as he was, Bush could have never started a war in Libya. The leftish and moderate people in Congress would have opposed it, as there was no reason whatsoever to justify the invasion. However, Obama managed to start another war with the shameless goal to loot Libya so transnational corporations could feast on its oil.

Even now, as Obama rallies up for another war in Syria, the progressives continue to be bamboozled. During 2005, Israel requested U.S. bunker-buster missiles. The Bush administration refused that request because of the dangers of destabilizing the region. Obama authorized the sale of these missiles just months after receiving his Nobel Peace Prize.

Believe me, I am not the person to feel sorry for Bush but he ran into a lot of trouble for authorizing wiretapping of American citizens without due process. However, the same people who screamed bloody murder against Bush’s constitutional violation purr lovingly at the ankles of Obama after his ordering the illegal assassination of American citizens charged with terrorism.

A Spanish sailor’s saying goes: "May God protect me from the soft currents, because I will look out for the strong current by myself." This is exactly the problem with Obama, with his charming rhetoric and subtle approach he manages to keep the left off guard and unable to protect the people and the Constitution.

Democracy depends on the constituency holding their representatives accountable. Obama’s reelection will be a tremendous blow for democracy. Progressives fearing a Republican president need to remember Thomas Jefferson’s words: "When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty."

Obama has no fear of his constituency abandoning him, thus his blatant disregard of them. A losing reelection bid will teach future politicians not to betray their constituency. An openly conservative president will unite the left and we will rally to stop the ongoing assault on democracy.

Come Election Day there is only one choice for progressives: Stay home. Whatever the outcome, the next day we will need to go out there to take to the streets and start the long fight to rescue democracy.

August 2, 2012

Jesus Rivas of Somerset,  Kentucky, a former Herald-Leader contributing columnist, blogs at www.leftangle.org.