Tavis Smiley, Cornel West on the 2012 Election & Why Calling Obama "Progressive" Ignores His Record

Tavis Smiley, Cornel West on the 2012 Election & Why Calling Obama "Progressive" Ignores His Record

"As the most expensive presidential election in U.S. history comes to an end, broadcaster Tavis Smiley and professor, activist Dr. Cornel West join us to discuss President Obama’s re-election and their hopes for a national political agenda in and outside of the White House during Obama’s second term. At a time when one in six Americans is poor, the price tag for combined spending by federal candidates — along with their parties and outside groups like super PACs — totaled more than $6 billion. Together, West and Smiley have written the new book, "The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto." Both Tavis and Smiley single out prominent progressives whom they accuse of overlooking Obama’s actual record. "We believe that if [Obama] is not pushed, he’s going to be a transactional president and not a transformational president," Smiley says. "And we believe that the time is now for action and no longer accommodation. ... To me, the most progressive means that you’re taking some serious risk. And I just don’t see the example of that." West says that some prominent supporters of Obama "want to turn their back to poor and working people. And it’s a sad thing to see them as apologists for the Obama administration in that way." Click here to see part 2 of this interview. [includes rush transcript]

Filed under  Poverty, Obama, 2012 Election, Election 2012, U.S. Economy, Tavis Smiley, Dr. Cornel West

Guests:

Tavis Smiley, TV, radio broadcaster, philanthropist and New York Times bestselling author. He hosts the TV show Tavis Smiley on PBS and two radio shows: The Tavis Smiley Show and Smiley & West, which he hosts with Cornel West. Together, they have written the new book, The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto.

Dr. Cornel West, professor of philosophy and Christian practice at Union Theological Seminary and professor emeritus at Princeton University. He is a New York Times bestselling author of numerous books and co-host of the radio show Smiley & West with Tavis Smiley. Together, they have written the new book, The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto..."