One thing that has always intrigued me about debating politics on Daily Kos is the types of arguments that people use to express their political views. As someone who has frequently criticized President Obama in several policy areas, I've participated in some illuminating discussion with many users who have disagreed with me. Occasionally, however, I will see arguments in defense of Obama that I think are quite common yet ultimately unpersuasive and unproductive.
With that in mind, I'd like to present my responses to a series of arguments frequently used to defend Obama from progressive political criticism. I consider these arguments to be flawed lines of reasoning that otherwise detract from productive debate. They are related to each other in their own way, and they each take some form of the statements below in bold.
A few notes: 1) Most of my responses will refer to civil liberties since that is where I have my biggest objections to the Obama Administration. 2) Obviously, not everyone who defends Obama from progressive criticism uses the arguments contained herein. 3) I admit to being passionate about the subjects discussed, but I will do my best to explain my responses in as civil a way as I can, and ask others (even those who agree with me) to do the same.