Dear Mr. President:
I first saw you on television, on the night you gave the DNC key note address at the 2004 convention; and I said to my wife “… this guy is going to make it to the White House…” Never thought it would be within the next 4 years; but that’s what happens when Jupiter aligns with Mars. For a rookie Politician you did a tremendous job under extremely difficult circumstances. Reviewing the macro accomplishments of all Presidents, starting with Teddy Roosevelt, in my view, you placed 2nd – behind FDR, in terms of bringing the country together and moving it forward for everyone. BRAVO! You had my vote on both occasions; I even contributed to your campaign – something I had never done in the past. But this is not about stroking you to generate a “feel good” moment.
During your 2 terms, all the good things aside, you made some serious blunders – very costly and which in many ways significantly discounted your accomplishments. Without going thru each situation, again, on a macro level, the single largest flaw was your undying commitment to being non-confrontational – not pushing back at the onslaught of negativism from the Right; and there was a LOT. One example – “… if you like your health insurance program, you can keep it…” I know what you meant, probably most Americans did; but the Right saw an opportunity and the used it to your detriment, almost to the point of bringing the Affordable Care Act to its knees. But you did a poor job of explaining that the “… you can keep it…” was contingent upon insurance co’s allowing a policy holder to do so. I waited every day for the clarification to come forth but it never did. This is ONE of several examples – one’s enough.
I first saw you on television, on the night you gave the DNC key note address at the 2004 convention; and I said to my wife “… this guy is going to make it to the White House…” Never thought it would be within the next 4 years; but that’s what happens when Jupiter aligns with Mars. For a rookie Politician you did a tremendous job under extremely difficult circumstances. Reviewing the macro accomplishments of all Presidents, starting with Teddy Roosevelt, in my view, you placed 2nd – behind FDR, in terms of bringing the country together and moving it forward for everyone. BRAVO! You had my vote on both occasions; I even contributed to your campaign – something I had never done in the past. But this is not about stroking you to generate a “feel good” moment.
During your 2 terms, all the good things aside, you made some serious blunders – very costly and which in many ways significantly discounted your accomplishments. Without going thru each situation, again, on a macro level, the single largest flaw was your undying commitment to being non-confrontational – not pushing back at the onslaught of negativism from the Right; and there was a LOT. One example – “… if you like your health insurance program, you can keep it…” I know what you meant, probably most Americans did; but the Right saw an opportunity and the used it to your detriment, almost to the point of bringing the Affordable Care Act to its knees. But you did a poor job of explaining that the “… you can keep it…” was contingent upon insurance co’s allowing a policy holder to do so. I waited every day for the clarification to come forth but it never did. This is ONE of several examples – one’s enough.
During the 2016 election and Hilary Clinton’s campaign, you made a point of standing back because you did not want to be seen as attempting to influence the election in favor of your former Sec of State. This may have been acceptable if the election was “normal” – visions of prior campaigns. Point is, it was anything but. This was abundantly clear, but it may still have been acceptable right up until it became apparent that the Russians and the Trump organization were in cahoots – word used by the New York Times, seeking to sway the election in his direction, using immoral, if not illegal tactics.
You were privy to some, if not most, of these activities and the possible impact they could have on the election. However, you elected to remain behind the scenes – allowed Mitch McConnell to override your attempts to go public – something you could have done without his support. The State of the country was at stake – didn’t take a genius to see that if Trump made it to the White House, the Republicans would control all three branches and on their way to controlling the 4th (the supreme court). In this respect, Mr. Obama, you were complicit in the disastrous failing of the Democrats in 2016 – hacking and social media scams, notwithstanding. It is worthy of note that other major contributors to this abject failing were, Ms. Clinton, herself; Bernie Sanders, the DNC – Debbie Wasserman/Donna Brazile combo and others. No understanding of the greater good; everyone seeking only to maximize on an individual level – BOOM! White House is lost, Trump is in control. How bad is that??
Why is this important:
Because the debacle is about to happen again; and the country cannot survive another 4 years of Trump. The Democratic party IS in disarray. It is leaderless and what’s even worse, they have no one with a voice strong enough to deliver the weak messages they have, which means that the failing is compounded even more so. Nancy Pelosi means well; she is a great politician with a wealth of experience but she has no delivery. Chuck Schumer is totally useless; as the supposed equal on the other side, he is simply no match for McConnell. Harry Reid did a much better job. The line up of candidates, now numbering 23+, are all individually focused, thinking only of themselves. Sure, they say the words but for anyone who’s listening, there’s not one actionable idea emanating from the entire lot – save for maybe Bernie, whose message has not changed in 2 years and beyond; but he is so inflexible, his message - good as it might be, wears thin because he's so rigid. The stage is now set, to be unveiled in 8 months, with a bunch of wannabe’s vying for position and saying anything they think will support their respective positions. Joe Biden currently leads in the polls but that lead is not meaningful - worth exactly ZERO. The party needs leadership, direction, a message, a strategy and a spoke person. Currently, they have none of these attributes or skills.
Because the debacle is about to happen again; and the country cannot survive another 4 years of Trump. The Democratic party IS in disarray. It is leaderless and what’s even worse, they have no one with a voice strong enough to deliver the weak messages they have, which means that the failing is compounded even more so. Nancy Pelosi means well; she is a great politician with a wealth of experience but she has no delivery. Chuck Schumer is totally useless; as the supposed equal on the other side, he is simply no match for McConnell. Harry Reid did a much better job. The line up of candidates, now numbering 23+, are all individually focused, thinking only of themselves. Sure, they say the words but for anyone who’s listening, there’s not one actionable idea emanating from the entire lot – save for maybe Bernie, whose message has not changed in 2 years and beyond; but he is so inflexible, his message - good as it might be, wears thin because he's so rigid. The stage is now set, to be unveiled in 8 months, with a bunch of wannabe’s vying for position and saying anything they think will support their respective positions. Joe Biden currently leads in the polls but that lead is not meaningful - worth exactly ZERO. The party needs leadership, direction, a message, a strategy and a spoke person. Currently, they have none of these attributes or skills.
Under normal circumstances this would be challenging enough, however, in the world of Trump their efforts are already lost before they’ve even started. Let’s look at the world of Trump. He has turned Washington upside down; he controls just about everything. His current dilemmas, which for any other President , would spell immediate termination (for him/her), for Trump, they are but distractions. He controls the Justice Dept, the military, Wall St and the economy. The Mueller report was supposed to set the record straight, bring to light all the nefarious actions in which Trump had been involved, as it related to Russia and other matters - some illegal, others less so but all morally reprehensible. However, instead of being strong and doing what was right for the country, Mueller takes a PASS, releases a report that created more chaos and confusion, versus the solutions we all expected. It is not without suspicion that he could be a Trojan Horse, secretly working with Trump under the pretense of getting at the truth about Russia and unveiling it to the American people. Trump sets the stage; determines what gets done - what he will or will not do. What do you suppose would have happened to you if you had decided NOT to release your Income Tax Returns; but Trump walks away, like a quarter back completely protected by his defense line. All these facets have to be thoroughly understood if the Democrats have any hope of making inroads in 2020; but there is no evidence that they understand anything; and sadly, what little they know is delivered in such a lack luster manner – apologetic and without definition and/or clarity.
Enter Barrack Obama:
You are the only person – the only Democrat, well recognized and liked by the American people, who can rally voters to a cause, bring them forward with a defined message and strategy – something to which they can relate. But even more important than the message, you have the ability to face Trump down, call him out for what he is and SPLASH that narrative across the country. Drastic times call for Drastic measures and the current situation is as drastic as it gets. A past President stepping into the campaign and leading the charge against the incumbent; never before done, but without it, the Democrats will fall to Trump again! The Republicans will attempt to malign you, criticize your insertion into the election process. BUT if your message is strong, clear and accurate you can/will side step the GOP harangue and be successful in – a) giving the Democrats a fighting chance in 2020; b) highlighting Trumps miscreant, if not criminal behavior and setting the stage for further investigations, now and/or in the near future.
What does a Strategy look like?
Well, first, you’ll need funding; you were an excellent fund raiser in your time. I know of no one but George Soros and “Need To Impeach” Tom Stayer – the amount of cash the latter has unloaded over the past 18 months with absolutely no return - Amazing! Those are two sources; I am sure they are many more and the amount needed will be significant. Start the fundraising process, now. Key Action Plan steps, as follows:
I’ll stop here. If you can successfully convince voters – Democrats and Independents, of the dirt that lies beneath the Trump Administration, even for ½ of the issues outlined above, you will be successful. And, no matter what, DO NOT APOLOGIZE for anything - correct, yes, apologize NO! In most cases, an apology is seen as “backing up” ; and as you well know – in tennis as well as golf, the player keeps moving forward. Even if you’ve made a mistake, don’t ever apologize. Your rhetoric of the past has expressed your undying love for this country. Now is the time for you to step up/ step in and be the leader of the country that you truly are; anything less falls short. One last point - Donald Trump launched his divisive 2020 campaign in Florida on Tuesday, June 18, 2019. Understand that it was all encompassing - like a category 5 Tornado - sucking the oxygen out of every corner of the country. The Democrats currently have nothing to combat this onslaught and without a comparable aggressive and energized campaign, focused on WINNING, they will lose, unequivocally!!
It would be nice to receive a direct response from you – no handlers, and hopefully your screening process will allow this letter to filter through to you. There’s merit in what I’ve outlined above, if not exactly then at least in some derivative form. Hope you will see it in the light in which it was presented and recognize the call for action!
Best wishes to you
Howard A Samms
You are the only person – the only Democrat, well recognized and liked by the American people, who can rally voters to a cause, bring them forward with a defined message and strategy – something to which they can relate. But even more important than the message, you have the ability to face Trump down, call him out for what he is and SPLASH that narrative across the country. Drastic times call for Drastic measures and the current situation is as drastic as it gets. A past President stepping into the campaign and leading the charge against the incumbent; never before done, but without it, the Democrats will fall to Trump again! The Republicans will attempt to malign you, criticize your insertion into the election process. BUT if your message is strong, clear and accurate you can/will side step the GOP harangue and be successful in – a) giving the Democrats a fighting chance in 2020; b) highlighting Trumps miscreant, if not criminal behavior and setting the stage for further investigations, now and/or in the near future.
What does a Strategy look like?
Well, first, you’ll need funding; you were an excellent fund raiser in your time. I know of no one but George Soros and “Need To Impeach” Tom Stayer – the amount of cash the latter has unloaded over the past 18 months with absolutely no return - Amazing! Those are two sources; I am sure they are many more and the amount needed will be significant. Start the fundraising process, now. Key Action Plan steps, as follows:
- Meet with all candidates as a group and lay out for them – a) the need for Trump to be defeated in 2020, assuming Congress is not able to launch a successful impeachment process. Establish and review all the challenges and roadblocks that stand in the way of achieving that goal.
- Layout in stark, real terms that if the party does not come together as soon as the nominee is identified, the resulting fragmentation will be an enabler for Trump. Obtain a commitment, at all costs from the group, that those candidates lagging behind will immediately fold in with the leader; and that position must be achieved well before the National Convention.
- Research all the visuals of Trump’s lies and contradictions – too numerous to count, and compile a collage of clips to be broadcast all across the nation – national and local networks, as well as cable; you will be the spokesperson, guiding voters thru what they are seeing. Demonstrate, using the contradictions, how untrustworthy is Trump and the fact that his policies – such as he has any, are not in the best interest of middle America.
- Address socialism head on. The GOP would have people believe that socialism is a dirty word; and they have been successful. Explain what is Socialism and how it differs from Communism. Demonstrate that some level of socialism is good for the nation and that we do, in fact have elements of socialist programs in place, TODAY. The GOP would like people to think that there’s not a shred of socialism in our Free Market Economy. We both know that not to be true; but no one will say it. Demonstrate the value of government oversight and regulation; that without it there would be rampant fraud, manipulation and crime – individuals selling fraudulent goods and services to unsuspecting consumers. We have that today, even with many regulatory policies in place; think of what it would be like if there were none.
- Lay out the Democratic strategy – straight talk, no sound bites and political spin. Set forth the principles of “More for Most” as opposed to “All for a Few” and clearly articulate how a Democratic Administration would achieve this. Call out the likes of Mitch McConnell and his cronies for what they are – Frauds with absolutely no interest in the welfare of average Americans.
- Note, however, that there is a significant flaw within the Democratic strategy, it’s called inflation. As we work towards achieving “More for Most” the stimulated middle will begin spending and that leads to inflation. This must be explained with a clear demonstration of how it will be curtailed and controlled; without the latter, we’ll be back to the 70’s with 15% interest rates and double-digit inflation.
- Explain why it is important to have a balanced Supreme Court; that Supreme Court judges should park their partisan perspectives at the door and focus only on the rule of law with a fair and equitable application for ALL citizens – why what Mitch McConnell did in 2016 was totally wrong; why the appointment of Kavanough to the SC was slanted, biased and not at all concerned with fair and impartial judgement.
- Tell ALL that you know about the Russian interference in the 2016 election and Trump’s involvement. Be straightforward, objective and accurate.
- Explain what is the emolument clause and how Trump has completed violated its principles. Outline in detail, Trump’s nepotistic behavior with regards to his children and the abhorrence of them being involved in the upper echelons of White House Administration, even as they parley their interactions with other world leaders for their own, selfish financial enrichment.
I’ll stop here. If you can successfully convince voters – Democrats and Independents, of the dirt that lies beneath the Trump Administration, even for ½ of the issues outlined above, you will be successful. And, no matter what, DO NOT APOLOGIZE for anything - correct, yes, apologize NO! In most cases, an apology is seen as “backing up” ; and as you well know – in tennis as well as golf, the player keeps moving forward. Even if you’ve made a mistake, don’t ever apologize. Your rhetoric of the past has expressed your undying love for this country. Now is the time for you to step up/ step in and be the leader of the country that you truly are; anything less falls short. One last point - Donald Trump launched his divisive 2020 campaign in Florida on Tuesday, June 18, 2019. Understand that it was all encompassing - like a category 5 Tornado - sucking the oxygen out of every corner of the country. The Democrats currently have nothing to combat this onslaught and without a comparable aggressive and energized campaign, focused on WINNING, they will lose, unequivocally!!
It would be nice to receive a direct response from you – no handlers, and hopefully your screening process will allow this letter to filter through to you. There’s merit in what I’ve outlined above, if not exactly then at least in some derivative form. Hope you will see it in the light in which it was presented and recognize the call for action!
Best wishes to you
Howard A Samms
RSS Feed