Netroots Nation 2011 And How President Obama Has Led!

I kept thinking about going to Netroots Nation 2011 this year because I knew that the organizers are very anti-Obama and I really wanted to get in their faces. I’m sure it would not have been a pleasant scene, not that I care, but unfortunately, I was not able to attend. I would have been that guy being dragged out of the session, singing a protest song or screaming “don’t taze me bro”. I probably would have screamed “Real progressives care about progress, not their fucking egos” or “You’re sore losers, get over Hillary’s loss” or maybe “How is hurting the Democratic Party going to help progressives?”. But like I said, it probably wouldn’t have been a pleasant scene, because I would have been a heckler at the Aravosis, Choi and Hamsher bitchfest. I would have made the biggest fucking scene, oh man.

When checking out the Netroots Nation 2011 website and seeing the agenda, it occurred to me once again, that President Obama is definitely the leader they should be rallying around. They have many panels and discussions about topics that President Obama has been a fierce leader on. It proves that President Obama is the most progressive president we’ve ever had. Here is a description of one panel on their schedule, followed by the many things President Obama has done on each topic.

Our Progressive History (The Historical Roots of Many Issues We Fight on Today)

Thu, 06/16/2011 – 4:30pm, M100 H

The issues progressives work on today have long and storied histories–ones that provide valuable lessons for today’s modern progressive movement. In this panel, progressive historians and scholars will explore brief histories of the key issues of our time, including labor, Social Security, the welfare state and safety net, women’s rights, immigration, the religious right, voting rights and equality.

So of course I immediately thought of all the great things that Obama administration has accomplished in those areas. Google President Obama and accomplishments and you will find many of them.

Labor

• Established POWER Initiative – protects government workers, ensures reemployment, reduces worker’s comp claims and payments. ref
• Restored funding to the EEOC and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. ref
• Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; Instituted equal pay for women. ref, ref, ref

Social Security

• Social Security Disability Applicant Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010. ref
• President Obama has been emphatic about his support for Social Security, here, here and here.

Welfare State and Safety Net

• Expanded eligibility for Medicaid. ref
• Provided $20 billion increase for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. ref
• Increased funding to expand community based prevention prog: rams. ref
• Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act // Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (March 2010). ref , ref
• Expanded eligibility for State Children’s Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP). ref, ref

Women’s Rights

• Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act; Instituted equal pay for women. ref, ref, ref
• Presidential Memorandum extending benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. ref , ref , ref , ref
• Established White House Council on Women and Girls (Executive Order 13506 ). ref
• Financial agencies must establish Offices of Women and Minorities to promote more diverse hiring.
• Established a New Patient’s Bill of Rights. ref
• Increased funding to expand community based prevention prog: rams. ref

Immigration

• Requested emergency funding of $600 million for Border Security. ref
• Has supported and continues to support passage of the Dream Act which the congress has dropped the ball on.
• President Obama continues to meet with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to get the Dream Act passed.

Equality

• Presidential Memorandum extending benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees. ref , ref , ref , ref
• Presidential Memorandum protecting gay and lesbian partners’ visitation/healthcare decision-making rights (4/15/2010). ref
• Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act to include gender, sexual orientation and disability. ref
• Used the proper procedure for the permanent repeal of DADT, ending the Clinton era program that continued discrimination against GLBT service members.
• Financial agencies must establish Offices of Women and Minorities to promote more diverse hiring.
• Increased minority access to capital. ref
• Signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. ref
• Increased Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities (Exec Order)(celebrating 20th anniversary of the ADA). ref, ref
• Civil Rights History Project Act of 2009. ref, ref
• Tribal Law and Order Act. ref, ref, ref, ref

So as you can see, the President has been a great leader on all of those issues that were discussed in that panel at Netroots Nation 2011. I wasn’t there, but I’m sure they spent much of the time talking about all the great things the Obama administration has done and how they can help him continue to fight for those issues. I just know that is how the panel went, but like I said, I wasn’t there.

Source for much of the above accomplishments.