Obama: Passion vs. Arrogance

God forgive me for my brash delivery
But I remember vividly
What these streets did to me
So picture me
Lettin these clowns nitpick at me- Jay Z “What More Can I Say?”

Danny, I like the Guru comparison, but I would take it a step further. Guru was too underrated to be Obama. Obama is really the Jay-Z of politics. Lyrical. Smooth. Never rattled. Ice cold. Possessing a large, cross-sectional fan base. Seemingly above the fray. He needs that smoothness and cool demeanor given the vitriolic nature of the healthcare debate and his Tea Party agitators. So, I surely appreciate him trying to take the high road. On the other hand, I want to clarify the notion of passion. I would never debate that Obama can deliver soaring rhetoric. He has the grand speech thing down pat. But speeches don’t effectively change people’s lives unless there is a movement or policy changes linked to them. I most definitely want Obama to succeed but I must also objectively critique his strategies and tactics. The passion thing is based on the data. I will not question his toughness. Folks know his history in Chicago and the fact that he was willing to bare knuckles to get things done. But when I discuss passion, I am really talking about commitment to some core values and principles, which are consistently demonstrated. Is it to his party? Evidently not. Exhibit A. A weak yet loyal Democratic candidate runs for mayor in New York City. Rather than using some political capital to strongly support Bill Thompson, which would have cost him nothing, he gives one of the weakest endorsements possible. Why? Clearly Obama did not want to upset Bloomberg and his deep pockets. I would rather he just say, “Mayor Bloomberg is an ally, and I wish to remain neutral in this race.” But no, he plays both sides of the fence, giving an innocuous endorsement which faintly demonstrates party loyalty, but allows him to save face with Bloomberg. It wasn’t about whether or not Thompson was a loser but rather about commitment to your party, which I guess doesn’t mean much to Obama. Some would argue that Obama did not want to get involved in local politics but clearly he felt it important enough to sandbag poor David Paterson (I’m not his fan but clearly he deserved a little bit more love) and to try to save a sinking Gov. Corzine in New Jersey. Worse yet, now it has been revealed that Bloomberg used his influence to keep Obama on the sidelines.

That is a microcosm of the Obama way. Play the middle. Passion? Is it to ending the war in Afghanistan? Nope. Clearly not yet ready to make a decision on that yet. Hasn’t articulated a strategy for getting out, and what exactly we are doing there now. Still searching for Bin Laden? Trying to prop up a corrupt Karzai administration? Hmmm, a cliffhanger. Is it to get American workers employed again? No, he has just gotten around to announcing a jobs summit after months of reports by economists that unemployment would hit double digits (and it is definitely way higher since the way unemployment is calculated is akin to nutritional information on junk food, the smallest number the better). Now comes word that the major stimulus plan component, green jobs, are primarily going overseas.

I think the passion that some talk about is really Obama’s own grandiosity, like any other narcissistic politician. Quite honestly, Obama and his advisers, as Bush would say, misunderestimated Obamamania and the amount of political capital he possessed. They talked about having healthcare wrapped up before the Congressional recess in August. He tackled healthcare because he believed that his charm would overwhelm both his Republican critics and his party dissidents. Obama knew it would be a remarkable legacy. But he was wrong about the power of his charm offensive. It was pure arrogance. There will be no true bipartisanship on this bill, and he was even unable to wrangle his own party’s rabble-rousers. Despite that reality, the healthcare bill will be a major achievement. And he should indeed receive credit for such a historical accomplishment. Since I understand that he probably wanted to take advantage of his majority in both Houses to pass this bill, it was a strategic move. But the most pressing issue was unemployment. I have been talking for some time about the fact that the administration needs to spur job creation. Folks who are unemployed will not have to worry about health insurance because they won’t be able to afford it. Climate change? Probably not the most salient concern for someone trying to just pay the rent. Constantly extending unemployment benefits will not stimulate the economy or really help those who are not working. Folks who can collect unemployment for two years will not necessarily be that willing to consume. Rather they are just trying to keep hope alive and their heads above water. Obama and his advisers understand that to create jobs, you either need to convince private employers to wholeheartedly invest in American workers (not a good bet) or to have the government develop a major WPA-type initiative to get people working (probably too socialist for them and a massive undertaking). So, again, as difficult as healthcare reform has historically been, his ego convinced him that it was easier than job creation.

Obama can be Cool Hand Luke all he wants but appearances matter. I am not asking him to be fire and brimstone all the time. But I am asking for him to not be so scripted and staged. Michelle seems to be his realness and moral compass. It’s the psychology of it. What worked during the campaign (i.e. grand ideas and promises) will not work as a sitting president, if there is no substance. The Clinton comparisons will continue because he hired all the usual suspects rather than bringing new energy and a different perspective to the White House. Rahm Emanuel? Really? If you want to ever see an example of Good Cop (Obama), Bad Cop (Emanuel), there it is. I will give him credit where it is due but I would also like his fervent supporters to be willing to admit his missteps and flaws. I know my politics are indeed much to the left of him, so I don’t ever expect to fully agree with Obama on a lot of things. Yet I am open to supporting him when there seems to be common ground, and I will continue to call him out when I feel it necessary.

“It is not light that we need, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake.” – Frederick Douglass