WASHINGTON — Just a year after celebrating Barack Obama’s inauguration, despondent Democrats on Saturday heard from their party leader, who urged optimism in the face of Republicans’ challenge to their congressional dominance.
At its winter meeting, a defiant Democratic Party worked to project strength even as loyalists acknowledged the prospect of several defeats in November. The party that controls the White House typically loses seats during midterm elections at an average rate of 28 net House seats.
Obama, looking to write his own history, warned fellow Democrats that “we have to acknowledge that change can’t come quickly enough.”
He said political leaders must plot their way forward to November with an understanding of the economic difficulties that Americans face.
Obama sought to energize Democratic loyalists against what he called “the other party.” He urged Democrats to work with their Republican counterparts.
Although Republicans have stood in solid opposition to the president’s proposed overhaul of health care, Obama insisted he wasn’t willing to abandon his top domestic priority.
“Let me be clear: I am not going to walk away from health care insurance reform,” Obama said, bringing audience members in the hotel ballroom to their feet.
