Nerve Endings Firing Away

[T]he Obama campaign, like all presidential campaigns, was built on a series of fictions. The first fiction was that government is a contest between truth and error. In reality, government is usually a contest between competing, unequal truths.

The second fiction was that to support a policy is to make it happen. In fact, in government power is exercised through other people. It is only by coaxing, prodding and compromise that presidents actually get anything done.

The third fiction was that we can begin the world anew. In fact, all problems and policies have already been worked by a thousand hands and the clay is mostly dry. Presidents are compelled to work with the material they have before them.

The fourth fiction was that leaders know the path ahead. In fact, they have general goals, but the way ahead is pathless and everything is shrouded by uncertainty.

All presidents have to adjust to these realities when they move to the White House. The only surprise with President Obama is how enthusiastically he has made the transition. He’s political, like any president, but he seems to vastly prefer the grays of governing to the simplicities of the campaign.”

[Source: NYTimes]. David Brooks in one of his better columns explains why things were never going to turn for the better on the night of January 20th and how change or more specifically, governing change, is not like changing channels. It is applicable more so when Obama is in charge and is known for weighing his options (or as the other side calls it “dithering”) instead of shooting from the hip, like our Decider often did.

This calm and measured way of governing whether it is seen as a quality desirable in our leaders or not, is also what we saw during the campaign when most political pundits doubted his ability to “close the deal” and “stick it to the enemy”. Often liberals like Bill Maher wish that Obama govern in the style of Bush and ram progressive legislation through Congress but then people voted not only against Bush’s policies but also for his style of governing. Just because they are the policies you agree with is no reason to push them through Bush-style.