WI: President Obama Visits Occupy Wall Street Protesters

CthulhuFhtagn

Banned
Inspired by the discussion on Richard Nixon. What if, at the height of the OWS movement in late 2011/early 2012, Obama had pulled a Nixon and visited them alone? No security, no warning, nothing?

What would be the political consequences of doing this?
 

Generaloberst

Banned
No security or warning?

The Secret Service has a fit, and would probably demand that Obama basically never leave their sight again.
 

leopard9

What would Obama be talking to them about? It would certainly give the Occupy movement much more credibility as a legitimate protest and make Wall Street more open to changing how they invest money. Republicans would tear Obama to shreds over it though. "Willing to negotiate with those who break the law", etc.
 

Realpolitik

Banned
I'm not certain Obama would be taking the same kind of physical risk by going into the Occupy crowd that Nixon did in the 1970 Washington DC, post Kent State crowd. Also, something very important to note is that Nixon didn't want it to be political-he just wanted to talk to them. I'd assume Obama would be similar. I think our Presidents tend to want that more than people think.

I think it would hearten the protesters far more than Nixon did to the students, but I don't see it making a difference in terms of actual policy. They would listen to Obama more, definitely. The main difference is the impact on the movement, not the law.
 
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Dunbar

I think you'd see a mass defection of Wall Street donors to the GOP. They were already weary of Obama even though he didn't touch them, they would be terrified if it looked like he agreed with the Occupy movement.
 

Realpolitik

Banned
Dunbar said:
I think you'd see a mass defection of Wall Street donors to the GOP. They were already weary of Obama even though he didn't touch them, they would be terrified if it looked like he agreed with the Occupy movement.
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Wall Street is not stupid. Obama is a friendly, conservative Democrat on economic questions. The GOP was going insane, and it's not the like Tea Party likes big Wall Street all that much-it's very populist.

They'd understand why he is doing this, and stick with the "sane" side that lets them make money, if a little less.
 
LHB

LHB

Realpolitik said:
I think it would hearten the protesters far more than Nixon did to the students, but I don't see it making a difference in terms of actual policy. They would listen to Obama more, definitely. The main difference is the impact on the movement, not the law.
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To a point.

If the crackdown still happens as OTL, the DHS still coordinates it as OTL, and that news comes out at approximately the same time as OTL then Occupy is going to hate him like radioactive poison. Obama already didn't have many fans, mostly of the "he let us down" variety, in Occupy as-is. If he visits, gives the impression he's on the movement's side, and then the feds do their crackdown as OTL then he's going to come out looking like a two-faced opportunist. Even if the truth of the matter is other elements acting without his knowledge (I highly doubt that) that would if anything make him look worse by making it look like he is not in control of his own government.

Don't forget Obama letdown was a big factor in the Occupy movement happening in the first place. Obama looking like he's playing them will go over even worse in the movement though odds are that won't hurt his re-election chances. What it will do is reduce the number of Occupiers who went into party politics and electoral activism after the last camps were broken up and funnel more into direct action.
 

Realpolitik

Banned
LHB said:
To a point.

If the crackdown still happens as OTL, the DHS still coordinates it as OTL, and that news comes out at approximately the same time as OTL then Occupy is going to hate him like radioactive poison. Obama already didn't have many fans, mostly of the "he let us down" variety, in Occupy as-is. If he visits, gives the impression he's on the movement's side, and then the feds do their crackdown as OTL then he's going to come out looking like a two-faced opportunist. Even if the truth of the matter is other elements acting without his knowledge (I highly doubt that) that would if anything make him look worse by making it look like he is not in control of his own government.

Don't forget Obama letdown was a big factor in the Occupy movement happening in the first place. Obama looking like he's playing them will go over even worse in the movement though odds are that won't hurt his re-election chances. What it will do is reduce the number of Occupiers who went into party politics and electoral activism after the last camps were broken up and funnel more into direct action.
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True. They'd be more open to him. That's about it.
 
LHB

LHB

Realpolitik said:
True. They'd be more open to him. That's about it.
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Right up until the cops start cracking heads and it comes out who orchestrated the whole thing.

Oddly enough an Obama visit could give rise to an activist "stab in the back" myth of sorts. That'd be rather surreal.
 
Sabot Cat

Sabot Cat

Banned
LHB said:
Right up until the cops start cracking heads and it comes out who orchestrated the whole thing.

Oddly enough an Obama visit could give rise to an activist "stab in the back" myth of sorts. That'd be rather surreal.
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He'd be the Friedrich Ebert of Occupy in this timeline.
 

Swiffness

It'd score him a few brownie points with the Netroots and lend a ultimately haphazard movement some legitimacy. Republicans would complain, footage at 11.

IMHO, a much more interesting OWS hypothetical would be "What if the Oakland/Zuccotti Park crackdowns devolved into a militarized police massacre?".
 
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