Obama: No longer Mr. Cool?
What early stumbles have done to President Obama's aura of competence
President Obama's “desire to begin a 'post-partisan' era may have backfired,” said Michael Hirsh in Newsweek. “Taxgate” has dimmed his luster, and despite the president’s high approval ratings he has let the Republicans control the debate on saving the economy. What happened to the “bold leadership” the Obama team promised?
Nobody wants to follow a guy who has become “laughable” after two weeks in office, said Victor Davis Hanson in National Review Online. Obama preached ethics, then assembled a team of tax dodgers. He tried using the stimulus to shower Democratic constituencies with cash—we’re “teetering on an Obama implosion” here.
Obama’s rivals “smell blood in the water” already, said Tony Campbell in The Moderate Voice. And his base, expecting a “magic wand” of change, is growing impatient. “To my fellow Republicans—now is the time to clean our own house to prepare for when Obama really makes a mistake that people actually care about.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Obama just needs to stop stooping to Republicans’ level, said Joan Walsh in Salon. He’s the Democrats’ Ronald Reagan, our Great Communicator, so he should stop getting dragged into petty squabbles over spending details in the stimulus package, for example, and hit “big themes” like rights, responsibilities, and getting through this together. People still want to believe Obama can make a difference.
You have to admit, said the New York Daily News, “for the first time, the normally sure-footed Obama is starting to look less like Mr. Cool and more like the untested amateur his critics always said he was.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Why ghost guns are so easy to make — and so dangerous
The Explainer Untraceable, DIY firearms are a growing public health and safety hazard
By David Faris Published
-
The Week contest: Swift stimulus
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
'It's hard to resist a sweet deal on a good car'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
US election: who the billionaires are backing
The Explainer More have endorsed Kamala Harris than Donald Trump, but among the 'ultra-rich' the split is more even
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
1 of 6 'Trump Train' drivers liable in Biden bus blockade
Speed Read Only one of the accused was found liable in the case concerning the deliberate slowing of a 2020 Biden campaign bus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published