WASHINGTON — It's possible the debt-ceiling debate will turn out badly for President Barack Obama. For now, however, it may be helping his image with a vital group: independent voters, who have decided the last several elections.
He's certainly playing to them.
"It's important for the American people that everybody in this town set politics aside, that everybody in this town set our individual interests aside, and we try to do some tough stuff. And I've already taken some heat from my party for being willing to compromise," Obama said Friday as he delivered a message to Republicans worried about angering the GOP's right flank.
"My expectation and hope is, is that everybody, in the coming days, is going to be willing to compromise," he said pointedly.
Over the past week, Obama repeatedly has positioned himself as someone willing to make political sacrifices to reach a bipartisan accord and avoid a potentially disastrous default on U.S. obligations. He says some trims are needed to Social Security and Medicare, the safety-net programs dear to liberal Democrats. He also says an eventual package must include some tax increases, but only on the wealthiest Americans.
The reactions from GOP and Democratic leaders — they are worried about angering their conservative and liberal bases with a deal to raise the debt limit — are boosting Obama's image as a comparative centrist, a posture that could appeal to independent voters in next year's presidential election.