It’s a unique and nearly unprecedented day when a Democrat admits fault within their own party — but it just happened.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren displayed a rare grasp of reality Monday, when she acknowledged former President Barack Obama’s failures as commander-in-chief.
In an interview with The Guardian, Warren slammed Obama for misreporting the successes of his administration and exaggerating statistics to fit his agenda of securing his legacy.
“I think President Obama, like many others in both parties, talk about a set of big national statistics that look shiny and great but increasingly have giant blind spots. That GDP, unemployment, no longer reflect the lived experiences of most Americans,” Warren said.
Despite economic complaints from majority of Americans, Obama patted himself on the back after he left office.
The White House economic report from the last days of his presidency bragged of an economy 11.5% bigger than it’s height before the 2008 financial crisis, 15 million new jobs, and national unemployment falling to 4.7%.
But the American people clearly didn’t feel the economic burden lifting, and even notoriously liberal Warren saw through Obama’s twisted stats.
She recognized, “the lived experiences of most Americans is that they are being left behind in this economy. Worse than being left behind, they’re getting kicked in the teeth.”
It’s a shocking lack of bias from a leading Democrat, who then went as far as to attack the party as a whole!
“The Republicans have clearly thrown their lot in with the rich and the powerful, but so have a lot of Democrats,” she complained.
This follows criticism she had of Obama after it was reported that he received a $400,000 speaking fee for a Wall Street speech. Warren said she was “troubled” by the payment on SiriusXM radio show “Alter Family Politics.”
Of course, this wasn’t alturism by Warren. She has been doing a television and radio cross-country marathon promoting her new book.
And while she’s right, it can be seen as an ironic criticism for someone who also publicly endorsed failed Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
Clinton reportedly took a combined total of over $3 million from big banks during her campaign and has accepted a collective $153 million in speaking fees, many from Wall Street, in combination with her husband Bill.
Warren’s criticism of money in politics echos that of Vermont socialist Bernie Sanders’ populalist rally cry during his presidential primary campaign.
Further, recent polling suggests Warren has seriously been hurt recently among her base — critics say her attacks on Obama are nothing but political theater intended to win re-election and sell a few books.
Still, it’s nice to hear honesty from a politician — even if it’s self-serving.
— The Horn editorial team