A Historian Schools Joe Scarborough

As an historian, let me start by saying: No, he hasn't. Not by a long shot. /1https://t.co/jk7YdE85cG

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

If anything, historians will fault Obama for seemingly naive belief that he could launch, as he said in 2008, a "post-partisan" America. /2

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

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Obama's first years in office showed bipartisan outreach we have not seen in the modern era before. He's the *least* partisan president. /3

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

When Obama formed his Cabinet, he added two Republicans and, until Judd Gregg rejected the Commerce position, nearly had three. /4

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

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To put that in perspective, two Cabinet members of opposition party ties the 20th c. record: FDR's unity govt as nation entered WWII. /5

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

His major policy proposals were very bipartisan. A third of the stimulus package was tax cuts GOP had previously proposed, for instance. /6

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 10, 2015

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Health care reform modeled on Romney's MA plan. On foreign policy, Obama kept Bush's SecDef and followed SOFA timetable on Iraq. /7

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

Despite such bipartisanship, Obama was met w/ unprecedented levels of obstructionism in the House and Senate, as @NormOrnstein has shown /8

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

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As @MikeGrunwald noted in his terrific book, Republicans set out to deny Obama any GOP votes on major laws like stimulus, ACA, etc. /9

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

Cantor and McConnell forbade caucuses from voting or even negotiating, to create the image that Obama was "most partisan" POTUS ever /10

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

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GOP embraced knee-jerk opposition to anything Obama proposed. As Sen. Voinovich noted: “If he was for it, we had to be against it.” /11

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

Again, read @NormOrnstein and Thomas Mann's book on this -- the GOP Congress imposed unprecedented delays, holds, filibusters, etc. /12

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

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Add on top of that the unbridled hostility -- birther nonsense, Joe Wilson screaming "You lie!" from the House floor at the POTUS, etc. /13

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

And you have asymmetric polarization in which Obama generally started from a position of compromise, but was still rebuffed constantly /14

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

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It's amazing to conclude, as @JoeNBC does, Obama is "the most partisan" president -- when he's actually one of the least partisan. /15

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

As an historian, I assure you: When we look back, Obama will fare just fine. But this idiocy in our news media will be mocked endlessly. /16

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) September 11, 2015

Up Next: The President Holds a Town Hall with Service Members

3:0 EDT: The President Holds a Town Hall with Service Members, Defense Media Activity, Fort Meade, Maryland

Vice President Joe Biden: A Beautiful Interview

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Rise and Shine

On This Day – Pete Souza: “We were at the Pentagon to mark the ninth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. After the formal ceremony, the President stopped to shake hands with family members of victims attending the event. Here he is holding hands with a little girl.” Sept. 11, 2010

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Today (all times Eastern)

8:45: President Obama, the First Lady, and White House Staff Observe a Moment of Silence to Mark the 14th Anniversary of the 9/11 Attacks

1:0: Vice President Biden Delivers Remarks at the 9/11 Motorcycle Ride Kick Off Event,
New York

3:0: The President Holds a Town Hall with Service Members, Defense Media Activity, Fort Meade, Maryland

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On This Day

President Obama listens during an economic policy meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Sept. 11, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)

First Lady Michelle Obama and President Obama meet with the Crown Prince and Princess of the Netherlands in the Yellow Oval Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., Sept. 11, 2009 (Photo by Samantha Appleton)

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama gather on the South Lawn of the White House to observe a moment of silence marking the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Sept. 11, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Obama pauses during a moment of silence in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House at 8:46AM, Sept. 11, 2010, in remembrance of the time that the first plane hit the World Trade Center in 2001 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Barack Obama greets guests at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., on the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks against the United States, Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

First Lady Michelle Obama signs a program for children at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., on the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks against the United States, Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama greets a woman following a ceremony to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks against the United States, at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa., Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama talks with guests following a ceremony to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks against the United States, at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa., Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

Following the ceremony at the Flight 93 National Memorial, the President and First Lady pause as they view the crash site. Sept. 11, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Obama greets an attendee after signing his invitation during the September 11th Observance Ceremony at the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Va., Sept. 11, 2012 (Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama visit Section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Sept. 11, 2012 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Jill Biden pause for a moment of silence on the 12th anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, September 11, 2013

 

President Obama greets children at the September 11th Observance Ceremony at the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Va., Sept. 11, 2013 (Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama greets volunteers at Food & Friends during a service project to commemorate the September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance, in Washington, D.C., Sept. 11, 2013 (Photo by Pete Souza)

First Lady Michelle Obama talks with children at the USO Warrior and Family Center in Fort Belvoir, Va., Sept. 11, 2013. The center supports wounded, ill and injured troops, their families and caregivers, as well as local active duty troops (Photo by Lawrence Jackson)