This is part of candidate Obama's appeal during 2008. He could unite the American people against the corporate interests in in American politics. It aligned Libertarians and Liberals at the same time. I am usually the lightweight in these conversations as well, although I am a liberal across the board.
In practice, what he has done is capitulate to Republicans that want to ruin him and have very little interest of the American people at heart. It's a party that has made the arguments we all agree on while protecting the interests of those that were put into office. I offer the Bush Tax Cuts as an example. Rand Paul said it clearer than just about anyone: "Picking on rich people when we sell them things or work for them hurts us all." There, for the rich's money is your job. To tax them means they will cut back and put you out of work instead of taking it out of their profits and profitability. Instead of having a problem with that when when we have budget shortfalls in States, falling revenues across the board, and the effect of the Bush Tax Cuts themselves on the econony (it wasn't a job creator nor did it grow the middle class), is insane. It's protecting a broken system.
If President Obama is able to see this, he has not indicated it. If President Obama is fighting against this wave of misinformation, recycled Repbulicans, and exploitation of outrage, I have yet to see his methods. That is why he's a bad leader. That's my take.