THE UR IS TOO WEAK FOR THERE TO BE A DOWNSIDE TO RESPECTFULLY DISAGREEING WITH HIM, BUT...:

GOP Looks to Escalate Attacks on Obama: Spending Offers A Prime Target (Perry Bacon Jr., 3/08/09, Washington Post)

Last month, House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) repeatedly excoriated House Democrats for what he considered flaws in the economic stimulus plan, rarely mentioning President Obama, one of the chief architects of the bill.

But as Congress considers a bill to fund federal agencies, legislation largely hashed out last year before Obama was elected, Boehner has shifted his aim from one end of Pennsylvania Avenue to the other.

"He is the president of United States; it takes the signature of the president for this to become law," Boehner said, referring to a provision that includes thousands of congressionally mandated projects, or earmarks, that Obama criticized during his campaign. "So the president ought to keep his campaign promise." [...]

Some Republicans said they will look to work with Obama on issues on which they can reach agreement with him.

"There are lot of things he campaigned on we can agree with," said Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the chief deputy whip for House Republicans, citing Obama's concerns about wasteful spending.

But on issues on which they disagree, Republicans say it makes more sense to contrast with Obama than Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.).

"People don't really know who Pelosi and Reid are," Souder said. "If people think the president is in charge, you have to at some point take him on. They're his ideas."

...voters still think it's the Republican Congress that they hate. The GOP needs to let people now that Democrats are in charge these days.

Posted by Orrin Judd at March 8, 2009 10:51 AM