In this Jan. 10, 2015, file photo, demonstrators rally in support of President Barack Obama’s pledge to veto any legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline, outside the White House in Washington
Amid appeals for bipartisanship, President Barack Obama in just three days has provoked Republicans on issues as disparate as immigration, Wall Street and the Keystone XL pipeline — a combative mix of defense and offense that underscores Washington’s political realignment.
Sensing a Republican retreat, Obama is headlining a Miami town hall yesterday, enlisting his Latino base of support to increase pressure on Republican lawmakers who want to tie funding for the Homeland Security Department to repeal of his immigration executive actions. Before leaving for Florida, Obama was to meet at the White House with immigration advocates.
On Tuesday, he vetoed Republican-backed legislation that would have forced construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast. And on Monday he proposed tougher rules on financial brokers who help manage retirement accounts, over Wall Street objections.
Such aggressive activism delights Obama’s supporters but irritates the Republicans who now control both chambers of Congress.
It’s not as if Republicans didn’t see it coming. But it unfolds as Obama insists he is willing to find common ground with Republican leaders on such issues as trade and reforms to the criminal justice system.
Indeed, Obama on Tuesday summoned a bipartisan group of lawmakers to the White House for a private meeting on how to address modernizing juvenile justice, sentencing and incarceration policies. And today, Obama planned to draw attention to the economic benefits of trade and exports in a series of interviews at the White House.
“Let’s try to focus on some of things that we have in common and deliver real results,” he told governors of both parties who attended a White House luncheon Monday.
But can the confrontational Obama exist alongside Obama the accommodator?
Among those attending the criminal justice session at the White House on Tuesday were Republicans who have been among the most high-profile critics of Obama on other issues, such as Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, a potential presidential candidate.
On trade, Obama is seeking legislation that will give him the authority to negotiate international trade deals that Congress can only approve or reject but not amend. A majority of Democrats oppose such “fast track” authority, which means Obama must rely on mostly Republican votes to get his way.
“I think we’re in synch with the administration,” said Republican House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who is leading the pro-trade drive in the House.
Such efforts at bipartisanship occur against a steady effort by Republicans to undo or roll back Obama actions on immigration, health care and financial regulation. Obama has promised to use his veto to reject those as he did the Keystone bill.
So far, both sides have demonstrated an ability to place confrontation on one track and cooperation on another.
“The bluster over the veto-bait bills that Republicans are trying to pass is mostly fake — everyone knows that he can’t sign them,” said Matt Bennett of the centrist Democratic group Third Way. “So when it comes time for the trade bills, on which most Republicans, many Democrats and the White House are all aligned, there won’t really be any hangover from these battles.” Jim Kuhnhenn, Washington, AP
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