I genuinely believe that if Obama had at minimum passed a public option (not socialized medicine) and made at least public universities tuition-free, the right-wing wouldn't be so extreme as it is now.
Obama didn't need to be a radical socialist. I believe he just needed to greatly alleviate the cost of essential needs. Healthcare and yes, education at a bare minimum. I'm talking FDR Democrat or vanilla capitalist.
People go to extremes when they are financially struggling. If Obama had lived up to the 08 hype, Mitt Romney would have been as right-wing as the Republicans would get.
But this is coming from a person that economically at least, is incredibly left-leaning.