By Rick Krug
GCC/Staff
Dec. 19, 2009

When Senator John McCain announced he would suspend his campaign for President of the United States and return to Washington DC to tend to the budget crisis, the Obama camp jumped on that news like college freshman finding the last Krispy Kreme in the box.

Then Senator Obama proudly took to the airs waves, sans teleprompter, nearly giddy, and cool as ever, to tell the American people that he had no intention of leaving the campaign trial for, “a good leader can chew gum and walk at the same time.”

It was reminiscent of the first televised Kennedy-Nixon Presidential debate of the 1960 presidential campaign; the young man from Chicago made the Senior Senator from Arizona seem a bit overwhelmed, tired, and maybe not up to the task.

For the record, those of us on the inside of McCain’s campaign knew otherwise, but the Press had the narrative they needed and gave Obama the bump he needed to finally take the commanding lead. I suppose that’s why it’s called gambling.

So, how about that gum and walking thing? Truly, the leader of the most powerful country in the world should be able to (pardon the mixed metaphors here) keep a few balls in the air, spin a few plates, and yes, gnaw the Wrigley’s while ambulating.

But just as putting one foot in front of the other remains a fairly easy task, one would expect the presidential multitasking to at least have a few bright spots to offer as victories.

However, Mr. Obama has as many trophies as he did when he was first offered the Nobel. To date, Obama might want to think about how many pieces of gum he can really stuff in his mouth.

Just to really stretch this metaphor thingy painfully out of shape – taking on an incredibly ambitious agenda, President Obama has been more of a “swinging-for-the-fence-at-every-pitch” kind of guy than a “let’s-get-on-base” steady player.

With the great expectations of his oratory prowess prior to the election, many thought he might actually pull off all his promises and demands pretty much anytime he wanted.

To be fair, we all know Obama has feet of clay, but who would have thought his particular clay would be his own abilities?

Stringing up a series of lack-luster speeches abroad, backing off point by point his stated goals for health care reform, doing the “oopsy Two-Step” with the closing of Guantanamo Bay, leaving “Guantanamo Bay” on the cutting room floor and now failing to find his place in history at the Climate Summit in Copenhagen.

President Obama is losing the support of even his own team; the Far-left.

I have said before one of Obama’s greatest weaknesses is his ability to believe that his mere words would bring to reality that which did not heretofore exist.

That is, he seems to think that his power to achieve is Descartian; he speaks, therefore it happens.

Except that it doesn’t….really….at least not yet. In fact, the more this man speaks, the less things seem to come to pass at all!

At an emergency session of the major countries represented at the Climate Summit, Obama sat as equal to the assistant deputy ambassador of China.

OK, this is the president of the United States having a man-to-man with a man who has no power whatsoever to offer any decisions on the matter at hand.

China did worse than boycott – they sent the water boy of the Little League team to negotiate with the owner of the Yankees!

It was less than an insult; it was ignoring.

Maybe Obama’s handlers should inform him he needs more than his golden pipes to move heaven and earth.

What he needs is credibility, what he really needs is to apprehend is reality, what he really needs to offer are real answers.

While the President’s approval ratings naturally dip post honeymoon, it is usually boredom and malaise pushing the numbers down.

In Obama’s case, it is reality that has the masses leaving their hope – that is, his mouth has written checks his hind quarters can’t cash.

It may not be so much that he has taken too much on, than he does not actually know how to accomplish what he has taken on in the first place.

One can only imagine the day after the election of November 2007. McCain went back to Arizona, Palin found the tundra of Alaska, and Obama was handed the same United States Security briefing President Bush had been receiving since the day he was elected.

I can just see him standing there, silent, stunned and muttering to himself, “Oh, that’s what they meant…hey Joe, when did I say we would close Gitmo?” To be sure, America needed a shot of hope.

But we needed real hope of real helpful change. We may yet get it, but as long as reality and elocution don’t run parallel courses, Obama will continue to slide in the polls and America will grow more and more cynical.

If President Obama ever asked for my advice (I know, snowball’s chance and all) I would offer this: “Mr. President, slow down, tell us the truth, and listen to the American people.” Oh yes, and maybe give him permission to put his gum away for a while.

Source: Rick Krug

 

Editor’s Note: We would like to know what you think. dan@goldcoastchronicle.com