Here’s Robert Reich, talking to the wall again, trying to tell Democratic politicians what they must do to lead the way to economic recovery and prevent Republicans from creating an even worse downturn than the one that has plagued us since 2008:

Americans are scared, with reason. We’re in a vicious cycle in which lower wages and net job losses and high debt are causing consumers to cut their spending – which is causing businesses to cut back on hiring and reduce pay. There’s no way out of this morass without bold leadership from Washington to rekindle consumer demand.

If the Democrats remain silent, the vacuum will be filled by the Republican snake oil of federal spending cuts and cut taxes on big corporations and the wealthy. Democrats – starting with the President – must have the courage and conviction to tell the nation the recovery is stalling, and what must be done.

Reich even made a video that explains why the recession persists, so succinct even a Tea Partier could understand, if he or she was interested in understanding.

You know a smart fellow like Barack Obama understands. You know he could eloquently explain that it will take jobs creation programs, restoration of higher taxes on the rich, disincentives for outsourcing existing jobs, legal protection of workers who want to unionize and other bold measures to get the economy back on track.

By now you also probably know that Obama is still kissing up to the big corporations and, most shamelessly, to the owners of the Wall Street casinos, who are “one of his most vital sources of campaign cash” and the same people who played a major role in wrecking the economy.

It’s safe to assume Obama and most congressional Democrats — just like the Republicans — will continue to reject jobs creation, effective regulation of financial markets and higher taxes on the ultra-rich, if only because pursuing them would alienate the executives who form their true base of support.

Obama isn’t interested in Reich’s cogent diagnosis of our economic malady, or in possible cures. He’s interested in being re-elected, period, and he takes for granted we’re all in his camp because the alternative is some odious Republican dwarf who would make life even harder for most of us.

It’s time we stopped complaining about how pissed off we are at Republicans — they will always be what they are — and at “the corporatocracy,” and focused on cleaning up our own party, by refusing to nominate Democrats in name only who sell us out every day.

There is no way out of this trap without a serious challenge to Obama from within the party or from a third-party candidate. Reich knows this better than anyone. Why doesn’t he make a video that addresses this reality?

Footnote: See Glenn Greenwald on the Obama people’s ridiculous e-mail pitch for contributions from “everyday Americans.” The funniest lines: “Most campaigns fill their dinner guest lists primarily with Washington lobbyists and special interests. We didn’t get here doing that, and we’re not going to start now.”