(Vox)
Former president Barack Obama touched on growing divisions within his own party, warning against pushes for ideological purity that can result in a “circular firing squad” in a town hall organized by The Obama Foundation in Berlin on Saturday.
While taking audience questions about the frustration that comes with lack of change, Obama expressed concern about a lack of compromise in Washington, and said he specifically worries progressive politicians could be alienating potential allies.
“One of the things I do worry about sometimes among progressives in the United States — maybe it’s true here as well — is a certain kind of rigidity where we say, ‘Oh, I’m sorry, this is how it’s going to be,’” Obama said. “And then we start sometimes creating what’s called a ‘circular firing squad’ where you start shooting at your allies because one of them is straying from purity on the issues.”
The former president said he believes this approach “weakens” movements, and that those that would like to see a progressive agenda “have to recognize that the way we’ve structured democracy requires you to take into account people who don’t agree with you.”
Obama ended his speech by advocating for patience and incremental change: “We have to be careful in balancing big dreams and bold ideas with also recognizing that typically change happens in steps. And if you want to skip steps, you can. Historically what’s ended up happening is sometimes if you skip too many steps you end up having bad outcomes.” Read more
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