Remember how Jimmy Carter personified the concept of national gloom & malaise? A new mopey moonbat has taken up his mantle:
People are noticing how little Pres Obama seems to enjoy his job.
His two main emotions on display are regret and indignation. He's either lecturing about the problems facing the country in a slightly patronizing tone or expressing his disgust with someone who won't take his "lesson" to heart.
A standard Obama rally goes something like this: A mild joke at the expense of some dignitary present (Congressman Hornswaggle can't bowl to save his life), a sad story tweaked, bordering on pathos (Suzy Creamcheese and her 15 foster c h i l d r e n and five shelter dogs are being forced out of their home unless you pass my spending bill), the identification of her tormentor (rapacious banks & the greedy rich), and finally a promise to seek justice for the afflicted despite the political cost to himself ("It may not be good politics, but it's the right thing to do.").
Rather than being energized by trying to solve problems at a level of maximal achievable good, Obama and his team speak to the American people with the enthusiasm of an Army bereavement officer. It is their sad duty to inform you that they must overhaul the health care system, they regret that the former administration has forced them to run up a $16 Trillion debt, etc.
As Washington Post Editorial Page Editor Fred Hiatt wrote, Obama needs to show the American people "he's happy we hired him" and to ditch the "lugubriousness."
After all, if almost one else is happy we hired him, at least Obama should be.
Part of the funereal vibe may arise from Obama's self-regarding nature. He never absorbed a crucial bit of wisdom: You can take your job seriously without taking yourself seriously.
It's not all narcissistic self-pity�
There is still another reason for the pres to approach his job with such high-minded regret: avoiding blame.
From the first days of the Obama presidency, we hear the same thing repeated over and over: He had no choice.
Obama presents himself so often as a victim of circumstances. He didn't want to bail out Wall Street, nationalize General Motors, put us $16 trillion in debt, send two troop surges into Afghanistan & start a war in Libya, or propose a coercive package of fines and taxes to force people into a new health system. He just had no choice! It's sort of like Judge Smales in Caddyshack stating that he's, "sent boys younger then you to the gas chamber! I didn't want to do it... I felt I OWED it to them."
The biggest howlers from the Obama admin. have come when we are told that he is a "fierce" defender of the free market or "pro-business" despite policies that demonstrate he likes heavy regulation and favors businesses that support his agenda (G.E.) but not the ones that don't. �
While the straw men Obama creates in each speech say he should do nothing, the pres. says he is compelled to act, even if the only option is unpalatable. It's a rhetorical trick that helps Obama avoid the label of hard-Left liberal.
But it also helps perpetuate Obama's image as a gloomy pessimist, a label that may be even more damaging.
So buck up, Barry. Admit that you're a socialist and take some pride in the long-term damage your deficits will do to our free market system, whether or not you're able to thoroughly cripple it with ObamaCare or Tax & Charade.
