Two failed presidential elections later, is it safe to say that we’re beyond the unhelpful stage, and that further exposing what many of us — Rush Limbaugh (and credit where it’s due, Sean Hannity) among them — already knew about Obama and his political ideology before he was ever elected, is now allowable?

I mean, we pretended it didn’t exist and showed our graciousness in defeat to the Good Man who has since taken to turning the Executive into an imperial backdoor legislature, making a feckless GOP House all but moot, if not his outright bitch — all while weakening the US internationally, militarily, and domestically, creating enormous debt, long-term unemployment, an unsustainable new entitlement program, and pushing (with Republicans) for a long-term demographic majority of clients for the Democrat vote-buying machine through amnesty.

Straight Cloward-Piven, enforced by the tactics of Alinsky and the aid of a government-suckling, parasitic press.

And this is after having nationalized a number industries, set case law against bond holders, and worked to put the government in every last aspect of our lives, from our puddles to our vending machines to our bake sales to our first, second, fourth, ninth, tenth, and 14th amendment rights.

— Though to be fair, we get to point to how historic we are. After all, what better way for a capitalist country to repent for its sins of success than by electing a full-bore Marxist Socialist (VISIGOTH ALERT!) to run a constitutional republic built around constraining such attempts at centralized takeover?

Keep in mind this was unearthed nearly a year ago.

I just thought it would serve as a timely reminder — or in some cases, an introduction, for our newly, raw meat conservative voices in the blogosphere who have built their followings on networked linking and “realist” positions of the sort that gave us a Romney campaign, “fiscal cliff” capitulation, and the regular, ordered dressing down of conservative “true believers” and “Purists” who just don’t understand what it takes to win in DC. As President Romney daily reminds us.

Daily Caller, “Full audio of 1998 ‘redistribution’ speech: Obama saw welfare recipients as ‘majority coalition’.

Non-workers of the world, unite!

“I think that what we’re gonna have to do is somehow resuscitate the notion that government action can be effective at all,” he told an audience that reportedly consisted of some 400 people. “There has been a systematic — I don’t think it’s too strong to call it a propaganda campaign — against the possibility of government action and its efficacy,” he said.

“And I think some of it has been deserved. The Chicago Housing Authority has not been a model of good policymaking. And neither, necessarily, has been the Chicago public schools.”

“What that means, then is that as we try to resuscitate this notion that we’re all in this thing together — ‘leave nobody behind’ — we do have to be innovative in thinking.’What are the delivery systems that are actually effective and meet people where they live?’” he said.

It was at this point that Obama launched into his now-famous line about constructing government systems that redistribute wealth.

The full recording reveals that Obama saw welfare recipients and the working poor in Chicago as a “majority coalition” who could be leveraged politically.

[…]

The recording also shows Obama in 1998 identifying with what he said was an American majority angling for new limits on the Second Amendment.

“The vast majority of Americans would like to see serious gun control,” the future president said, noting that “it does not pass. Why does it not pass? It doesn’t pass because there is this huge disconnect between what people think and what legislators think and are willing to act upon.”

Obama also revealed his early disdain for Republicans, referring to his policy opponents as “the bad guys” who stood in the way of crucial reforms — while progressive activists often failed on their own to protect oppressed minority communities.

“The people who are guilty of disempowering the population are not only the bad guys — I won’t be partisan here and say who the bad guys are,” Obama said. “It’s not only the folks who are representing the special interests, quote-unquote, and the guys with the pinky diamond rings and the fat cats. Sometimes it is also us.”

Some of the mechanisms Obama suggested to create a more engaged voter base included progressive policy prescriptions that would be easily recognizable in his 2012 White House — among them the need to give unions and community organizers more “access” to the political decision-making process.

“How do we think about some of the systemic changes that might be required to reengage the citizenry on these policy issues?” Obama asked. “I would have some suggestions that I would be happy to toss out during the question-and-answer: things like public financing for campaigns. How do we strengthen the mediating institutions like churches, unions, and community organizations and provide them with the resources and access to decision making?”

On health care, Obama laid the groundwork for his eventual government-controlled system.

“In the midst of the greatest economic boom in my lifetime and probably most of yours,” he said, “we have actually record numbers of persons with no health insurance. And yet there is virtually no movement of, ‘How do we provide insurance to these uninsured?’”

“There’s a lot of talk about HMO reform, which looks good, partly because it doesn’t cost that much. It’s a matter of just passing a couple of laws. I support this HMO reform but it certainly doesn’t get at the more fundamental issue of, ‘What do we do with this burgeoning number of people who have no health insurance and are one illness away form bankruptcy or worse?’”

During the question-and-answer session that followed, Obama singled out United Power for Action and Justice, a left-wing community organizing outfit, for high praise for “incorporating unions in the organizing process.”

“It’s that kind of community organizing model that ends up being absolutely vital to connecting policy with actual implementation, and empowering citizenry to make these decisions.”

Obama also said the community-organizing political model held advantages, “particularly institutional-based organizing, church-based organizing, [and] incorporating unions in the organizing process.”

There. Just consider this my helping all the new full-throated, a pox-on-both their houses erstwhile “realists” and “pragmatists” maintain their herd of followers.  A shepherd needs a good staff.  And Obama has certainly given us a big enough one to work with.

Now. Go get em, tigers!  Sure, you’re 5 years late and have helped cripple the grass roots movement that rose up to beat back the wave of progressivism you thought you could turn into a political windfall by never fighting it while perpetually campaigning against it, but what the hell: it’s finger in the wind time again, and wherever there’s a good blow happening, you’re all in on that.

(h/t JohnInFirestone)