I am not an Obama basher. I personally feel that he is by all accounts a decent, honest, likable sort of chap who is constitutionally smart and very well spoken. I agree with him when he says:
“I don’t think there is anybody in this race who can inspire the American people better than I can. And I don’t think there is anybody in this race who can bridge differences … better than I can….”
But I have said it before, “Obama is not tough enough.”
In a perfect world that sort of Pollyanna attitude could work and it is inspiring to look to the best in human nature. Unfortunately we don’t live in this world. The partisan battleground that is Washington DC, if not America as a whole, is not going to miraculously disappear based on the outcome of one Presidential election no matter how steadfastly we wish for it or how hard we click our heels.
Politics is a contact sport. It is ruff and tumble, messy and not for the fainthearted. For change to be more than lofty words spoken with conviction it takes in the trenches warfare. Day to day handling of the biggest collections of power hungry egos since the Oscars.
Obama isn’t this person. He is not a person who tackles problems and with the sheer brute force of his will moves the ball down the field. He is an incremental compromiser at heart. When the going gets tough he tends to bend and that we do not need leading this country.
Look to his campaign to understand the operational style of the candidate. While “transformational”, “lofty” and my personal favorite “post-partisan”, Obama cannot seem to even formulate a tough response when attacked. His can’t-we-all-get-along-kumbaya world outlook may be inspiring but it is not practical. [link via Andrew Sulivan]
Lots of Presidents have been decent guys with good intentions (Ford and Carter to name two) but they didn’t make effective Presidents.
