Posted on 10/24/2009 8:15:27 AM PDT by Schnucki
Perhaps we should not be surprised that the land of the permanent campaign has produced a president like Barack Obama. During his White House bid, Mr Obama's staff argued that his masterful oversight of the machinery that ultimately got him elected was his highest achievement.
In many respects this was true, though Mr Obama was more chairman than CEO. Even Republican political operatives acknowledge that the Obama '08 campaign was a thing of beauty.
Essentially, however, Mr Obama won because of his persona – post-racial, healing, cool, articulate and inspirational. In a sense, therefore, his greatest achievement in life is being Barack Obama. Or the campaign version, at least.
Therein lies the problem. While campaigning could centre around soaring rhetoric, governing is altogether messier. It involves tough, unpopular choices and cutting deals with opponents. It requires doing things rather than talking about them, let alone just being.
Mr Obama is showing little appetite for this. Instead of being the commander-in-chief, he is the campaigner-in-chief.
After a disastrous summer that saw his approval rating drop more than any other president at the same stage since Harry Truman in 1953, Mr Obama has temporarily abandoned the campaign-style events promoting his stalled health-care reform initiative.
Now, he is stumping for Democratic candidates in states he won last year but which are now in danger. Last Wednesday in Hackensack, Mr Obama took to the stage to proclaim: "Your voice can change the world. Your voice can elect Jon Corzine, governor once again of New Jersey." Change the world? Mr Corzine is a former Goldman Sachs executive whose political career was launched when he spent $57 million of his own money on a Senate seat in 2000.
The rally was an attempted 2008 reprise. There was the spontaneous (or not) cry of "I
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
“Barack Obama must stop campaigning and start governing”
Memo to UK: He does not know how to do that.
“Change the world” by reelecting one of the guys that “got us into this mess”?
You really have to be brain dead to be an Obamite Democrat.
I'm not sure that wouldn't be WORSE!
I’d rather he keep campaigning and ignore governing. This way he can do less damage to the republic while continuing to annoy conservatives, Republicans & independants. Hopefully this will shorten his tenure in office.
The guy just keeps acting like a ghetto hustler or bullshitter. He has no concept as to what the job really requires. He can’t even bring himself to sit at the oval
office desk to actually work on anything.
Obummer has no substance. He is only a community organizer(sh-t disturber) and not a doer.
Obama doesn’t know how to govern.
He knows how to campaign.
He’s good at it.
People do what they’re good at.
Governing rquires brains and stones. Il Douche has neither.
It's too bad our dying press media doesn't get this while foreign newspapers see it clearly.
Great column, ‘cept: since Harry Truman in 1953.
As I recall Ike was in the White House in ‘53.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find only things evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelogus
I appreciate honesty!
“The guy just keeps acting like a ghetto hustler or bullshitter.”
“I’m not sure that wouldn’t be WORSE! “
If he hasn’t already started, heaven help us when he does get revved up.
Right now he still acts as if a election will occur, once he believes he is chaves, this country will spiral down faster than we already are.
Yes, I miss President GW Bush VERY MUCH.
There are many here on this forum that like to spout off about him.
However, to me he was the BEST President we had. People on FR who spout off against Bush then turn around and admire Reagan (whom I love too)
However, unlike Reagan, Bush did not give AMNESTY to aliens (although he did try). Also, unlike Reagan Bush did NOT hesitate to fight a dirty and long war. I never did like it when we withdrew from Lebanon. That shows weakness to Islamic terrorists. Today’s wars are going to be nasty and long. You need a commander in chief who can fight them.
Bush also had tax cuts and was a devoted capitalist.
I love President GWB and not a day passes by that I dont thank God that HE allowed GWB to lead this country for 8 years.
GWB certainly made some MISTAKES but he was a GREAT President. GREAT!
Correct! He’s worse than Clinton when it comes to cameras. He has turned over the government to his czars. That’s why he has so many. He also lets the Democratic leaders do whatever they want. He just goes around the country and gets in front of the cameras. What really gets me is that everyone in the country knows that what he is doing and what the Democrats are doing is extremely bad for this country and nobody....NOBODY....is standing up to stop it. By nobody, I mean people in government. Why do we even have a government if it is just going to be a good ole boys and girls club that takes all of our money and does exactly what they want?
BTT
You ain’t kidding, FRiend. Much as I hate to see him taking the First Enabler to Manhattan for dinner on my nickel, at least it gets him out of the office.
My brother actually still lives in NJ. (I have no idea why) He pays more taxes on his home than I pay in federal, property and local taxes in Florida
Corzine can't change NJ,(at least for the better) how's he going to change the world?
As I recall Ike was in the White House in ‘53.
Maybe they mean the first 20 days or so of 1953 when Truman was still in the white house.
exactly.
When you think about it when did he ever have to apply himself to complete a difficult task? He had no father or
any know mentor to guide him to do anything. Granted, he won the office of president, but he was pushed in to the office by the media, liberal guilt, being the first black president, the Dem party etc etc. A true unabashed slacker if I ever saw one.......
There was much to admire about Bush. There were a few things that I would have had him do differently. But to me, his greatest accomplishments were preventing Al Gore and John Kerry from becoming president. Pity he could not do the same for Barack Obama.
You put your finger right on it. Very few in Congress believe their role is to represent their constituents and protect the Constitution. You have noticed and lots of others have noticed.
Obama is a one-trick pony; all he can do is make speeches.
The problem with that concept Mr. Harnden is this, bammy has no idea what he's doing.
He was coached and prodded all along the way by handlers and controllers who made every decision for him from what clothes to wear to when to flash his condescending sneer. After the election, those people went on to start making policy and writing the laws abandoning bammy to stumble on with what little bit he was able to recall of his campaign training.
Without his team of wranglers feeding him lines from the wings, he falls back on the old soft shoe. Without the teleprompter, he's just another hopeless hack in the spotlight.
You’re right. The coke fried the brains and Michelle broke the stones.
Obama won because he had a 21st century media machine turning him into “cool, post-racial” candidate. It’s all a fiction - that person does not exist.
Anyone else feel that Obama may have ADD? Or is this a medical crutch to shirk responsibility, i.e., attributing a complicated medical disorder to someone, rather than just saying he's a slacker who hates to work?
Regardless, something is wrong with a man who is on the road campaigning rather than dealing with a list of problems an arm long.
Well, the poll being referred to (a fav around here!) shows that no newly installed POTUS’s polling has tanked so badly in such a short period of time since 1953. In both cases, an individual with enormous personal popularity was elected, then came the reality of governing.
Webster has a new definitions for empty, a big void, brain dead, “Obamaesk”
Without Herr Telepromter and bringing up his race, I doubt nobama would have been elected.
As long as he’s reading someone else’s thoughts, he good, but on his own...he’s a disaster.
He may have ADD. He probably just thinks he has to keep physically moving to keep from being discovered (or found out) by others.
Obummer is doing a bang up job blowing up his cabinet and NOT governing. The last thing a conservative wants this piece of commie trash to do is to GOVERN!
He should continue to campaign for president of the sixth grade class.
no no no ........ if he starts governing, we are truly doomed
As a malignant narcissist whose only real interest is love of himself, he won’t stop campaigning until there isn’t a person left in the world who doesn’t LOVE him—with all his heart, and all his soul, and all his mind, and all his strength.
Because he knows that HE is worthy of all love.
He needs all of our love to fulfill his vision of himself, to know that he has arrived at that place where he belongs—Messiah of the world. Or, rather , Mahdi of the world, since he thinks of his divine mission in basically Muslim terms.
LOL… famous for being famous.
Obamonty Talkathon's Lying Circus' hilarious wild comic parody of an American administration, Stumpin'
NObama only knows how to campaign and fly around the world at taxpayer expense.
He never knew how to govern, and he never will.
Anyone else feel that Obama may have ADD?”
I am not willing to give NObama ANY excuses.
He is incompetant from the git-go.
He will never improve.
Sheesh, he can't even speak without reading.
America knew he was unskilled immigrant labor when they voted for him, or allowed votes for him to be cast in their behalf without their knowledge.
You're going to heal "Clean up in aisle Zero" a lot, so get used to it. Or give him two weeks pay and a military escort back to Kenya, whichever.
No kidding. If he completes a full term of present, that will be the longest he has ever held a job. And he has accomplished that by the age of 47 according to his birth certificate. Oh wait.
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