Like many in this country, I truly thought that in choosing Obama as our President, we had at last elected a credible leader capable of pursuing legitimate change in the way business is taken care of in Washington. The dire state of our economy and the global situation including two hot wars intensified the need - and, thus, the opportunity - for a populist leader to assume the Presidency. With things in such disarray, such a populist leader would be given wide latitude in doing the people's work instead of kow-towing to the corporate lobbyists who have corrupted nearly every notion of democracy ("of the people") that supports this Republic.

Instead, it seems we have once again been bamboozled by the same old DLC type creampuff casper milquetoast know-nothings who try to legislate from within the cesspool that is Washington pay-to-play politics and end up with little more than their pants around their ankles and a wtf look on their face.

Once upon a time in this Obama campaign and Administration, there was opportunity to pursue principle over politics, and it was in building a populist campaign for health care reform that this could most strongly have been realized. We could have been proud of at last taking a victory from the lobbyists and the corporations who own Washington, and maybe we could have learned a few things that would lead to actual political reform as well.

It is in hope of such an opportunity being realized that I truly thought we were getting "Change We Can Believe In" when I cast my vote for Obama. Instead, it's looking like we got some hick from Illinois who thought he could win at the Washington lobbyists version of three card monty, and we are all the greater fools because of it.