Third, this episode offers another revealing glimpse at Obama's diplomatic style; indeed, his entire approach to politics. A master of soaring rhetorical style, he sets ambitious goals and imposes short deadlines (remember when he said he wanted to get a two-state solution in his first term?). When those lofty goals (inevitably) turn out to be unreachable, he grabs what's available (a flawed health care deal, more photo-op "diplomacy" in the Middle East, a compromise "surge" in Afghanistan, etc.), and talks about the need to keep "moving forward." ... By setting too many lofty goals, and showing a too-ready willingness to cut deals in order to save face, Obama is teaching his opponents that he's never going to walk away and that they can always get a better deal if they stonewall him and drag things out as long as they can. That's a problem no matter who is doing it: the GOP, China, the Karzai government, Benjamin Netanyahu, or Iran. What makes it worse is Obama's penchant for thrusting himself into the middle of negotiations at the wrong time, as he did over the City of Chicago's Olympics bid and as he appears to have done in Copenhagen as well... But what really worries me is that Obama is in fact making the best of a set of bad options, and that it still won't be nearly good enough.
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By setting too many lofty goals, and showing a too-ready willingness to cut deals in order to save face, Obama is teaching his opponents that he's never going to walk away and that they can always get a better deal if they stonewall him and drag things out as long as they can. That's a problem no matter who is doing it: the GOP, China, the Karzai government, Benjamin Netanyahu, or Iran. What makes it worse is Obama's penchant for thrusting himself into the middle of negotiations at the wrong time, as he did over the City of Chicago's Olympics bid and as he appears to have done in Copenhagen as well...
But what really worries me is that Obama is in fact making the best of a set of bad options, and that it still won't be nearly good enough.
But you don't compromise with intransigence, it just takes what you offer and wants more. keep to the Fen Causeway
Magnifico's quotes sum up the problem quite well, I think. Conservatives want live babies so they can raise them to be dead soldiers. - George Carlin
I wrote a couple of years ago:
Obama did and it is one of the reasons I question his judgement too. If Powell is exemplar of the "wise" council any other candidate for president chooses, then I will question his or her judgment as well.
And:
A president cannot be an expert on everything, so I think whom he or she seeks as council is important. Therefore, the company a president keeps and the advice he or she listens to is important to my decision making process.
Therefore, the company a president keeps and the advice he or she listens to is important to my decision making process.
Obama has bad advisors, but he chose them.
NOTHING good in American history was done without opposition. Unfortunately history is a subject often ridiculed as "unimportant" in the US educational system and thus...
..and the collusion between those two parties to maintain the system. *Lunatic*, n. One whose delusions are out of fashion.
He would have been a good spokesman for a Democratic legislative agenda. Where he is, he's becoming a disaster.
Obama's the right guy in the wrong place.
I think this is the crux of the matter. However, he's a lot less inexperienced now than he was a year ago.
My hope is that he will realize one of these days that he was rolled by the generals on Afghanistan, and finds an excuse to change direction. The other stuff is largely the result, I think, of having a completely intransigent Republican party and a mostly uncooperative Democratic party. Considering what he started with, I think he's doing ok--except for the war part.
All he has to do is take a week off and get his head together. I'm pretty sure he can learn, and probably he's brave enough to change his mind on things when it becomes clear that they're not going in the right direction.
The way out is for the DNC to get off its butt and get the liberal votes out for the 2010 elections. With a few more seats in the Senate, in particular, he would not have to tread so tightly to the absolute center line between the parties.
