Too much Obama

That's what was wrong with Obama's summit:

According to Senate Republicans, President Obama spoke for 119 minutes, other Democrats for 114 minutes, and Congressional Republicans for 110 minutes.

He talks too much. And he has an exaggerated sense of his rhetorical effectiveness.
Yuval Levin observes:

But he doesn’t seem like the President of the United States—more like a slightly cranky committee chairman or a patronizing professor who thinks that saying something is “a legitimate argument” is a way to avoid having an argument. He is diminished by the circumstances, he’s cranky and prickly when challenged, and he’s got no one to help him. The other Democrats around the table have been worse than unimpressive.

But he did offer an important reminder at the end, though the center and right of the electorate are not likely to forget it come November:

"That’s what elections are for."

Another thing that was wrong with the summit: too much of the eew factor. (There's more to the RS McCain piece than the title might suggest.)

But what was really, really wrong with Obama's setup/summit was that the facts are not on his side. That's why the Dems, one after another, including the Moderator in Chief, continually, irritatingly resorted to anecdote. They must treat substance as something that "bogs down" an argument. They're unable to participate in an honest discussion of the content of their bills. Stephen Spruiell:

‘We have some strong disagreements on the numbers,” President Obama said after Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) concluded his devastating critique of the Democrats’ budget claims, “but I don’t want to get too bogged down.” In the ensuing debate, what became clear is that the Democrats just don’t have an answer to Ryan’s arguments. They ducked, dodged, and changed the subject repeatedly, because Ryan’s numbers themselves are unimpeachable.

The Democrats came armed with sob stories (some of them, I hope, spurious), and the GOP came armed with facts. Just watch this six-minute tour de force by Rep. Paul Ryan and you'll know who's got a handle on the issues.

And by the way, what's this about? It looks like Obama once purchased auto insurance with a high deductible and still holds a grudge against the company. Grow up and take some responsibility for your own bad decisions.

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