Peter Wehner writes of his disillusionment upon seeing the true Obama temperament, which ranks well below first-class:
One of the attractions of Obama during the election -- one of his attractions to me, who wrote favorably about him several times -- was his tone and countenance, his apparent interest in a serious engagement with issues, and his professed allergy to politics practiced by those who are bitter and brittle. We should, he said, "resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long." He went on to say, "I will listen to you, especially when we disagree." All impressive and high-minded sentiments. And all, apparently, a ruse.Now he's getting warm, though still playing catch-up with the true state of affairs:
We have seen from this White House Nixonian tendencies and, it would appear, a burning anger and resentment toward its critics. Whether it's Fox News, the Chamber of Commerce, or companies that sponsor reports that take issue with the administration's assessments, there seems to be a cast of mind that views critics as enemies, as individuals and institutions that need to be ridiculed, delegitimized, or ruined. Given the administration's brazen public statements, one can only imagine what is being said privately, behind closed doors, as strategies are plotted and put into effect.
But there are lines that ought not to be crossed, temptations that need to be resisted, and people in the White House who need to say "no" to tactics that begin to drag an administration, and a country, down. There need to be, in short, people who care about character.With all due respect, it's a little late to worry about that. Barring a soul-converting lightning bolt from the Almighty, an appeal to Obama and company to upgrade the character of their administration is futility itself.
To see these impulses manifest themselves so early in Obama's presidency, and given all that he has said to the contrary, is rather startling.Yes, rather.
I hate to keep repeating it but the evidence of Obama's Chicago-style "temperament" was available for all to see before the election. Mr. Wehner readily admits to praising Obama during the campaign but I still find susceptibility to Obama's "charm" and "eloquence" baffling and frustrating. From Feb. '08:
Part of it is the eloquence and uplift of his speeches, combined with his personal grace and dignity. By all accounts, Obama is a well-grounded, decent, thoughtful man. He comes across, in his person and manner, as nonpartisan. He has an unsurpassed ability to (seemingly) transcend politics. Even when he disagrees with people, he doesn't seem disagreeable. "You know what charm is," Albert Camus wrote in "The Fall," "a way of getting the answer yes without having asked any clear question." Obama has such charm, and its appeal is not restricted to Democrats.That perception turns out to be, er, less than accurate. Now what?
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3 comments:
Some wise man once said that you only see a man's true character in adversity; it's not so difficult to be nice when everything is going your way, when affirmative action picks up every check.
But even during the campaign real signs of Obama's second or third class temperament could be detected in the acts of his surrogates. He was winning at a walk but he still felt the need to unleash surrogates all over the place to try to ruin Joe the Plummer's life. The animus displayed in that episode put many of us on guard. But the MSM did not even notice since they were on their knees looking where ever Anita Dunn pointed.
And are MSM anchors, reporters, producers. editors, etc. aware that the day is coming when the fact that someone was employed by one of the alphabet nets will be prima facie proof that person is not qualified to work in journalism?
Great post. When Obama gives a speech and its a good one, he uses what I call "pretty words." It all sounds real, believable, and you really think "he can do this." But the "this" rarely ever happens. Why? because the pretty words are only rhetoric. This is what he does. And he does it well. Thomas Sowell has said Obama reminds one of a college sophomore, who has done nothing but what his own rhetoric has said he has done. Bill Clinton was good at the rhetoric also, but Clinton got things done. I think Hilary Clinton helped him a lot. I am not sure if Michelle Obama helps at all. Another point. I think there is a certain amount of arrogance in every White House, but the Obama WH and Obama himself can be overbearing. All this, are signs of what can be called "weakness". It has been said, that this Administration has the potential to become a legacy similar to that of FDR, or in a negative sense, this administration could become similar to that of Jimmy Carter.
Chris M is right. The Obama crew took no chances. They have waaaayyy too much at stake to have some regular citizen, or citizens to screw it up. These are serious people committing a serious set of acts to undermine our nation. They have no time or patience for anyone standing in their way.
In a word- dangerous.
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