Obama is no Reagan:
His is a Personal Narrative, the Gipper’s, Philosophical
His is a Personal Narrative, the Gipper’s, Philosophical
On George Eliot’s birthday, Glenn Reynolds linked a Maureen Dowd column which showed that while the New York Times columnist does have a jaundiced view of the GOP, she does at least understand part of Sarah Palin’s appeal, what she calls the “visceral,” her ability to connect with people, a capacity that Barack Obama had on the campaign trail, but appears to be losing in the White House:
He’s a highly intelligent man with a highly functioning West Wing, and he’s likable, but he’s not connecting on the gut level that could help him succeed.
The animating spirit that electrified his political movement has sputtered out. . . .
Like Reagan, Obama is a detached loner with a strong, savvy wife. But unlike Reagan, he doesn’t have the acting skills to project concern about what’s happening to people.
Obama showed a flair for the theatrical during his campaign, and a talent for narrative in his memoir, but he has yet to translate those skills to governing.
Dowd, however, is only half right about the Gipper. He was able to project concern because he really did care what was happening to the people. And the animating spirit which electrified his political movement wasn’t just his image but his ideas.
Perhaps, if, like Ronald Reagan, Obama had a knack not just for personal narrative, but also for an ideological/philosophical one, he would not be losing favor with the American people as rapidly as he has while leading his Administration which seems adrfit. A ”dean in the Beltway foreign-policy establishment” (and lifelong Democrat) called Obama’s latest foreign policy initiative “Amateur Hour at the White House.” On domestic issues, he seems to have found a rudder not in his own convictions, but with the left-wing congressional leadership.
One liberal pundit claims that the President is now looking to one of his most sucessful forebears for inspiration. Howard Fineman is right that the incumbent has much in common with the Gipper; both men have a warm public presence and a flair for public speaking. This comparison, however, only works up to a point. Even Fineman, with his strong bias against the Gipper’s policies acknowledges, “following Reagan’s script is harder than it looks. It requires an obstinate clarity of message that the current president has not always achieved“.
Reagan, as Jennifer Rubin puts it, “had a firm vision of where he wanted to take the country, and it defied conventional, Beltway wisdom.” It’s that firm vision which differentiates the gipper from the incumbent. Just compare the speeches which catapulted each to national poltical prominence. Obama’s 2004 address to the Democratic National Convention was “cotton candy,” a paean to the idea of e plurbus unum. The Gipper’s speech in 1964 on behalf of then-Republican Presidential nominee Barry Goldwater was a paean to the idea of liberty and a criticism of liberal policies which threatened that liberty.
If Obama wishes to emulate the Gipper, then he need focus on better articulating his vision for America–and better show how his policies fit into that vision.
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Where’s the stuff about the 3.5 3rd quarter growth being down graded to 2.8, none of which was consumer buying, and the fact that FDIC went into the RED at the end of September?
Comment by Steven E. Kalbach — November 24, 2009 @ 8:12 pm - November 24, 2009
Dan, I even take issue that Obama is likable. I find him very arrogant, aloof, smug and mean. Reagan was funny, engaging and enjoyed being around the American people.
Comment by Bruce (GayPatriot) — November 24, 2009 @ 9:37 pm - November 24, 2009
‘Perhaps, if, like Ronald Reagan, Obama had a knack… he would not be losing favor with the American people as rapidly as he has”
Hmmm. Then how do you explain the fact that Reagan lost favor with the American people at the same rate, or even slightly faster, during his first year?
Comment by Tano — November 25, 2009 @ 1:11 am - November 25, 2009
Hmmm. Then how do you explain the fact that Reagan lost favor with the American people at the same rate, or even slightly faster, during his first year?
Reagan was faced by a hostile media and Congress controlled by the opposition. Obama, faced with a fawning media and Congress controlled by his party.
How do YOU explain that Obama has lost favor at all? Seriously, if we use the analogy that “favor” is a Viking longboat and the President is the captain, Obama has an eager crew and hefty tailwind, whereas Reagan had a mutinous crew and howling headwinds. And Obama is pretty much where Reagan was….
Not a good comparison for you to make.
Comment by Bikerdad — November 25, 2009 @ 7:46 am - November 25, 2009
Actually, Biker, Reagan had a very significant one-off boost to his popularity that came about through sympathy when he was shot – an artificial boost in the sense that it really had nothing to do with his job performance. And nonetheless, he still fell faster than Obama is. And BTW, the GOP had control of the Senate for his first 6 years.
Your whining about the media is absurd. If the media kept him from sustaining a good approval rating, then how was he able to win election in the first place, or to turn his approval slide around and go on to win a near-landslide reelect?
Reagan lost favor with the people because the economy went south on him, as a result of his policies. Obama is losing favor because the economy is not rebounding as fast as we would all like it to. When the economy did turn around, Reagan’s numbers started climbing. Same will happen with Obama.
Comment by Tano — November 25, 2009 @ 9:32 am - November 25, 2009
yeah, he’s no Reagan, and thank god for that. His brain isn’t mush like Reagan’s was. Obama is a brilliant man. Reagan had an average, if best, mind and didn’t/couldn’t think for himself. To compare that fraud, ronald Reagan, with the brilliant Barak Obama is a disgrace.
Quit fooling yourselves.
Comment by buckeyenutlover — November 25, 2009 @ 4:08 pm - November 25, 2009