--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Obama, like Carter, is reacting to…" description: "\"Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited Democrats and increasingly radicalized Republica..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg" --- # Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by… ![“Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited Democrats and increasingly radicalized Republicans.” quote by Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg) > “Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited Democrats and increasingly radicalized Republicans.” [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes political polarization as a middle ground attempt between disheartened Democrats and radical Republicans. **In simple terms:** Politics seeks balance amid extreme parties. Key Takeaway Aim for centrist solutions in polarized climates. Themes politics polarization moderation Mood analytical concerned Type political commentary When to use this quote - campaign strategy - legislative negotiation - public discourse - media analysis Key Concepts democratic theory public policy Questions to Reflect On - What compromises are acceptable? - How to engage both sides constructively? A Different Perspective Centrist approaches can be seen as indecisive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carter/) [Carter Reacting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carter-reacting-2037277/) [Democrat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democrat/) [Democrats Increasingly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democrats-increasingly-2037278/) [Differences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/differences/) [Dispirited Democrats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dispirited-democrats-2037280/) [Like Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-carter-2037281/) [Radicalized Republicans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radicalized-republicans-2037279/) [Reacting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reacting/) [Republican](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/republican/) [Seeking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seeking/) [Splits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/splits/) [Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trump/) [Warning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warning/) [Warning signs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warning-signs/) ## Related quotes > [“Well, I'm still not keeping the watch." I turned on my heel to leave. "You don't like it?" Carter's eyes flashed hurt for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriane-leigh/well-i-m-still-not-keeping-the-watch-i-turned-on-my-heel-to-leave-you/) [Adriane Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriane-leigh/) > [Why has the Democratic Party become so arrogantly detached from ordinary Americans? Though they claim to speak for the poor and dispossessed, Democrats have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/why-has-the-democratic-party-become-so-arrogantly-detached-from/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [“When they found us there were no warning signs. One moment our camp was asleep and the next we watched our homes and our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-eifler/when-they-found-us-there-were-no-warning-signs-one-moment-our-camp/) [Emily Eifler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-eifler/) > [“The primary claim made by the IPCC and other warmists was that there was a ‘consensus’ among the world’s scientists, but anyone familiar with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-caruba/the-primary-claim-made-by-the-ipcc-and-other-warmists-was-that-there/) [Alan Caruba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-caruba/) > [The failures that you beat yourself up over are the ones where you experienced warning signs and can connect the dots backwards after the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-ghosn/the-failures-that-you-beat-yourself-up-over-are-the-ones-where-you/) [Caroline Ghosn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-ghosn/) > [“How to explain... that the warning signs were so slight ? That disaster, when it is quite sure of its own strength, will announce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cleave/how-to-explain-that-the-warning-signs-were-so-slight-that-disaster/) [Chris Cleave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cleave/) > [That dreadful alligator attack in Orlando would never have happened if Disney had put up real warning signs, like other Florida resorts do. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/that-dreadful-alligator-attack-in-orlando-would-never-have-happened/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“Here’s a handy list of warning signs of the worst people on the road. Some are tuned-out menaces, others are just assholes. Be alert,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-carolla/here-s-a-handy-list-of-warning-signs-of-the-worst-people-on-the-road/) [Adam Carolla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-carolla/) > [When people are in crisis and pose a threat to themselves or others, those closest to them are often the first to see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-mcbath/when-people-are-in-crisis-and-pose-a-threat-to-themselves-or-others/) [Lucy McBath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-mcbath/) > [“TIL KINGDOM COME you'll be the one. FOR YOU theres NO MORE KEEPING MY FEET ON THE GROUND. My head is in the clouds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhyan-roads/til-kingdom-come-you-ll-be-the-one-for-you-theres-no-more-keeping-my/) [Rhyan Roads](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhyan-roads/) > [“If you ignore the warning signs, a tragedy awaits you ahead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-j-herndon/if-you-ignore-the-warning-signs-a-tragedy-awaits-you-ahead/) [Cory J. Herndon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-j-herndon/) > [Folks, some of these town halls are clearly organized. But, regardless, there are potential warning signs that Republicans perhaps shouldn't ignore.We heard Democrats dismiss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-todd/folks-some-of-these-town-halls-are-clearly-organized-but-regardless/) [Chuck Todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-todd/) > [“Yet I had not bargained for this, the girl with tears hanging on her cheeks like stuck pearls, her cunt a split fig below…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/yet-i-had-not-bargained-for-this-the-girl-with-tears-hanging-on-her/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering are only warning signs that I was living against my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-chaplin/as-i-began-to-love-myself-i-found-that-anguish-and-emotional/) [Charlie Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-chaplin/) > [The landscape of dating is a well-trodden horizon of red flags and green flags. Red flags are, of course, warning signs - anything about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-cooper/the-landscape-of-dating-is-a-well-trodden-horizon-of-red-flags-and/) [Brett Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-cooper/) ## More by Eric Alterman > [As with almost every significant aspect of the Bush presidency, its handling of 9/11 was a catastrophe from start to finish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/as-with-almost-every-significant-aspect-of-the-bush-presidency-its/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Ever since Richard Nixon walloped George McGovern in the presidential election of 1972, political pundits have treated as a truism the proposition that liberals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/ever-since-richard-nixon-walloped-george-mcgovern-in-the-presidential/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [This trend of reporting process over substance is unfortunate, if omnipresent. Even worse is the media's inability - or unwillingness - to fact-check Republicans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/this-trend-of-reporting-process-over-substance-is-unfortunate-if/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Most of the provisions designed to fix what ails our health system don't kick in until 2014, which, one wishes administration officials had noticed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/most-of-the-provisions-designed-to-fix-what-ails-our-health-system/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Whether one agrees or disagrees with the tactics of the Occupy Wall Street movement, it's easy to understand the inspiration for its anger as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/whether-one-agrees-or-disagrees-with-the-tactics-of-the-occupy-wall/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [America's great newspapers have staffs that range from 50 percent to 70 percent of what they were just a few years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/america-s-great-newspapers-have-staffs-that-range-from-50-percent-to/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Trends in circulation and advertising - the rise of the Internet, which has made the daily newspaper look slow and unresponsive; the advent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/trends-in-circulation-and-advertising-the-rise-of-the-internet-which/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Warren Buffett pays taxes on a smaller percentage of his billions in income than his cleaning lady.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/warren-buffett-pays-taxes-on-a-smaller-percentage-of-his-billions-in/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [The myth of the liberal media empowers conservatives to control debate in the United States to the point where liberals cannot even hope for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/the-myth-of-the-liberal-media-empowers-conservatives-to-control/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [While history never repeats itself, political patterns do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/while-history-never-repeats-itself-political-patterns-do/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Face it, the system is rigged, and it's rigged against us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/face-it-the-system-is-rigged-and-it-s-rigged-against-us/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [The war on terrorism was a bait and switch operation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/the-war-on-terrorism-was-a-bait-and-switch-operation/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [If bloggers are to improve our public discourse - helping busy and usually uninformed people make sense of the world - it is necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/if-bloggers-are-to-improve-our-public-discourse-helping-busy-and/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [Americans continue to suffer from a notoriously short attention span. They get mad as hell with reasonable frequency, but quickly return to their families…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/americans-continue-to-suffer-from-a-notoriously-short-attention-span/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) > [By the accusation of liberal bias ... the institutions that conservatives revere - the military, corporate America, organized religion, and the powerful conservative groups…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/by-the-accusation-of-liberal-bias-the-institutions-that-conservatives/) [Eric Alterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) [Explore all 64 Eric Alterman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/) ## More Carter quotes > [I am somewhat influenced by the years that I've spent trying to actually get things done, whether it was reforming education in Arkansas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-somewhat-influenced-by-the-years-that-i-ve-spent-trying-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Benny Carter came up to me and said to me, "You know, in the whole history of the alto, I think Phil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/benny-carter-came-up-to-me-and-said-to-me-you-know-in-the-whole/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) > [Trying to make it from the bottom. His sins Feeling as hard as Vince Carter's knee cartilage is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-sweatshirt/trying-to-make-it-from-the-bottom-his-sins-feeling-as-hard-as-vince/) [Earl Sweatshirt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-sweatshirt/) > [ \[A\]n Obama presidency would be an amusing approximation of the Carter administration, complete with vaporous moralizing and foreign policy bungling. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmett-tyrrell/a-n-obama-presidency-would-be-an-amusing-approximation-of-the-carter/) [Emmett Tyrrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmett-tyrrell/) > [When I worked in the White House for President Carter, we tried to do comprehensive tax reform and we made some progress, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rubenstein/when-i-worked-in-the-white-house-for-president-carter-we-tried-to-do/) [David Rubenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rubenstein/) > [They know where Carter at, straight off the launchin pad marching on the moon muthafuka I've been to Mars and back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-wayne/they-know-where-carter-at-straight-off-the-launchin-pad-marching-on/) [Lil Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-wayne/) > [ I've kept the people who've been in my career who I feel are my family. Kathy \[Kennedy\] had been with me since 1978. Janusz… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-ve-kept-the-people-who-ve-been-in-my-career-who-i-feel-are-my/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [ Here's a foolproof method for keeping America safe. Always do the exact 180-degree opposite of whatever \[Jimmy\] Carter says, as quickly as possible. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/here-s-a-foolproof-method-for-keeping-america-safe-always-do-the/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [“Time crawls in the silence. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tock. Tock. Tock.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-mckay/time-crawls-in-the-silence-tick-tock-tick-tock-tick-tock-tock-tock/) [Emily McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-mckay/) > [No doubt the ridiculous politicians are right to like politics. They have found careers in which success can be achieved by being ridiculous. Imagine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/no-doubt-the-ridiculous-politicians-are-right-to-like-politics-they/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Over the weekend, former Enron executives Jeffrey Skilling and Rebecca Carter married each other during a huge ceremony in Houston. The happy couple is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-o-brien/over-the-weekend-former-enron-executives-jeffrey-skilling-and-rebecca/) [Conan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-o-brien/) > [Look at what Jimmy Carter did. Look at the risks he took for a country that wasn't his. Israel has benefited unbelievably from that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-wright/look-at-what-jimmy-carter-did-look-at-the-risks-he-took-for-a-country/) [Lawrence Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-wright/) > [After my bad experience as a kite, I simply refused to go about as a glowing Sadie-headed chicken. That’s fine for Carter, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/after-my-bad-experience-as-a-kite-i-simply-refused-to-go-about-as-a/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [- "Women should all move to Amazonia, or at least vacation there four times a year." - "Amazonia?" - "It's the girl world in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/women-should-all-move-to-amazonia-or-at-least-vacation-there-four/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Mine own people do not care for me, John Carter; I am too unlike them. It is a sad fate, since I must live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-rice-burroughs/mine-own-people-do-not-care-for-me-john-carter-i-am-too-unlike-them/) [Edgar Rice Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-rice-burroughs/) [Browse all 437 Carter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carter/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited Democrats and increasingly radicalized Republicans.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eric Alterman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning-signs-by-seeking-to-split/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Carter" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning-signs-by-seeking-to-split/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3de/eric-alterman-10672_carter_obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning_2612035.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited…” — Eric Alterman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eric Alterman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-alterman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Obama, like Carter, is reacting to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning-signs-by-seeking-to-split/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-alterman/obama-like-carter-is-reacting-to-warning-signs-by-seeking-to-split/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```