Three Signs of a Failed President
You know what? I'm not going to wait for them to call the game. I know how this ends, you know how this ends, so why not just call it ourselves and beat the traffic home?
The Obama administration is over. Done. Failed.
(I'm not saying he can't get up to more mischief, or that the Republicans are victorious -- I'm a realist: I think it's possible, even probable, that we live in complicated world where there doesn't need to be a winner, where everyone can lose.)
But here are three signs that he's over and out:
1. He's worried about his base. The left keeps saying, over and over, that the problem with Obama is that he's not....liberal enough. You've got to energize the base, says Joe Conason, and Salon. You've got to sound more left wing, says Bob Shrum. (Because that, presumably, is the heart of his problem with independents: he's not liberal enough.)
2. His toadies are desperate. E. J. Dionne spins hilarious wish-fulfillment fantasies about an Obama comeback. MSNBC tries to rally the troops. The LATimes and the Washington Post begin the painstaking work of cocooning themselves until Thanksgiving.
3. He's like a rat in a coffee can. He can't get any traction on anything -- not another stimulus package, not his targeted tax cuts, not his mess of a health care plan, not nothing. With no way out, he's flailing around for someone -- anyone -- on the other side to blame. Which is why suddenly John Boehner is suddenly a popular topic among the left. When a sitting president -- a guy who won with 53% of the vote! -- is so toothless and weak he has to run against the House Minority leader -- well, good Lord, how small can this president get?
I'm sure there are more than three signs, of course. But they all point the same way: Obama's moment is over. He blew it, with his arrogance and pomposity and his stratospheric self-love. With his ossified brand of big government liberalism and his dilettante's contempt for people who work for a living. The high point of his presidency was January 20th, 2009. That's when, as I'm sure it felt at the time to him, he gained admission to the prestigious University of the White House. Another step achieved. Looks great on the resume.
The next three years are Zombie years, as he stumbles around American politics like the walking dead. And sadly, as we all know, zombies are still dangerous.
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Sep '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Absolutely not. He has passed the point of no return. Once a President loses the trust & faith of the American people, he can never regain it. When Obama spoke out in support of the Ground Zero Mosque, that was too much. It was the equivalent of Carter's infamous "malaise speech." In essence, Obama was saying to the American people: "I do not share your values and I have nothing but contempt for your moronic, knuckle-dragging, Islamophobic bigotry."
Sep '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
I certainly have no wish to deny anyone proper credit, so I went back and Googled up "Obama / Malignant / Narcissist." I got four major hits:
On August 13, 2008 (at Global Politician), Sam Vaknin, PhD, posted:
"Barack Obama – Narcissist or Merely Narcissistic?"
On September 28, 2008 (at American Thinker), Robert Bowie Johnson, Jr, posted:
"Obama, Oprah, and the Guru: Malignant Narcissism."
On September 16, 2009 (at American Thinker), Robin of Berkeley posted:
"Is Obama a Narcissist?"
And on March 4, 2010 (at American Thinker), James Lewis posted:
"Obama's Malignant Narcissism."
American Thinker, in particular, seems to be making a special effort to keep an eye on our Cuckoo-in-Chief. Note that two of those posts precede the 2008 Election. In any case, I did not mean to imply that Robin was the "first" (clearly, she was not). So, Rob, if you can produce a personal quote preceding Aug 08 that connects Obama with narcissism, we will cheerfully give you credit for the scoop.
Edited on Sep 10, 2010 at 4:53pmRe: Three Signs of a Failed President
It just doesn't seem like it's in him, does it, James? Back in 1995, when Clinton lost both houses, you could see it on his face -- he was kicking himself, because he knew better. He'd been in that place before -- a little too pushy, a little too far left, and he lost the governorship of Arkansas. The current occupier of the office, though, doesn't have those scars, those reserves of experience and wisdom. He's going to lose in November and he's just going to get mad. At us.
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
David Parsons Rob, if you can produce a personal quote preceding Aug 08 that connects Obama with narcissism, we will cheerfully give you credit for the scoop. · Sep 10 at 4:39pm
Edited on Sep 10 at 04:53 pm
Well, I probably can't. And to be honest, I've called a lot of politicians "malignant narcissist."
I think I used it first back in the 2000 presidential campaign, about a certain Man from Tennessee.
Sep '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Rob Long
He's going to lose in November and he's just going to get mad. At us.
Of course, he's going to get mad at us. He has no rapport with the American people. A leader's people will allow him all sorts of privileges and forgive him all sorts of excesses & personal failings, as long as they believe that he shares their values. That is critical. An effective leader must maintain some sort of social or emotional connection with the common people. He can do this in any number of interesting ways. Charles II is a good example. During the Great Fire of London (1666) Charles went out and joined the firefighting effort. When he took Nell Gwyn (a commoner) as his favorite mistress, the citizens of London were delighted, because she was one of them. Somehow, I simply cannot see Obama snuggling up with a NASCAR girl, if you get my point. And the fact that I seem to be equating President Obama with royalty says a lot about his arrogant persona – "Good King Barack," as Mark Steyn likes to say.
What sort of connection does Obama have with average, ordinary Americans? None.
Edited on Sep 10, 2010 at 11:34pmJul '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
It's an Army of Davids!
Sep '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Rob Long
Well, I probably can't. And to be honest, I've called a lot of politicians "malignant narcissist."
I think I used it first back in the 2000 presidential campaign, about a certain Man from Tennessee.
It's funny that you should mention that. I always referred to Al Gore as a "narcissistic ninny" (I have a weakness for alliteration). But Al is unique in that he can make himself look arrogant & utterly ridiculous at the same time – the very personification of pomposity.
May '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Rob Long
Well, I probably can't. And to be honest, I've called a lot of politicians "malignant narcissist."
I think I used it first back in the 2000 presidential campaign, about a certain Man from Tennessee. · Sep 10 at 4:56pm
Ah yes, 'A Certain Man from Tennessee' is such a great song. I like the verse:
A certain Man from Honolulu*,
A certain Man from Germantown,
A not-so certain Man from Scranton,
Thought the Alaskan was a clown.
Then the man from Honolulu*,
Threw the man from Germantown,
beneath that rolling bus of Hope
where he never would be found...
[*citation needed]
At least I think that's how it goes. Good Times.
Edited on Sep 13, 2010 at 5:52pmMay '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Although that song pales in comparison to the timeless 'Malignant Narcissist's Blues'
Aug '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
Pat Sajak
They drain the lifeblood of the living. · Sep 10 at 9:48am
It is with trepidation that I question the wisdom of the King of Ricochet, but this is not right.
Vampires drain the lifeblood of the living. For zombies, it's all about eating brains.
There is an insight here somewhere...
Edited on Sep 13, 2010 at 9:50pmMay '10
Re: Three Signs of a Failed President
We should have known there was something funny about a guy from Honolulu who doesn't seem to have any pictures of himself surfing.