Fred Barnes has a first-rate article in the Weekly Standard in which he reviews Barack Obama's strange, turbulent first month as United States President. Barnes' reflections revolve around 5 themes. Excerpts from each are printed below.1. Campaigning is governing. Does Obama loathe Washington? It sure looks that way. In the midst of an economic crash, he's spent a surprising number of days away from the White House, delivering speeches to stir support for his stimulus and housing programs and, at least once, to denounce Republicans. In his first month, his trips covered 11 days, including four days in his hometown of Chicago. And that's not counting the two days he spent at Camp David and his visit to Springfield, Virginia, to talk up his stimulus bill...
Obama's job is less the shaping of policies than the promoting of them...
2. Obama and Democrats are in sync. This may explain why Obama feels he doesn't need to hang around Washington. Democrats have large majorities in the Senate and House and they aren't likely to deviate from his wishes. They agree on nearly every aspect of big government liberalism. And Republicans can't cause much trouble...
Obama and Democrats should be enormously encouraged by the stimulus vote. It means that Obama/Democratic initiatives on health care, global warming, housing and who knows what else stand a very good chance of passage. One reason is Republicans aren't likely to stay as united in opposition, particularly on any health care or environmental issues. This Congress may enact more of the hard-core liberal agenda than any since 1965. That's scary...
3. Obama the market killer. The Dow opened at 8281.22 on the morning of Obama's inauguration. Today it opens at 7465.95. That's a vote of practically no confidence in Obama's strategy for reviving the economy... Financial markets are a bet on the future. The market's view is that an Obamanomics-driven economy looks grim.
As best one can tell, economic growth isn't Obama's top priority or even in second place. There's no other conclusion, given the absence of any major economic stimulant or tax incentive in the stimulus package. Rather, it concentrates two things. One is to ameliorate the pain of the recession with government-created jobs, more food stamps, Medicaid, and welfare, and extended jobless benefits. The other is the foot in the door for liberal programs that will be hard to uproot by the next Republican Congress or president...
4. Bipartisanship, Obama-style. Who'd have thought bipartisanship in Washington meant that a president need only meet amicably with his opponents in the other party and he'd done his part? At that point, the opponents are obliged to support whatever the president talked to them about. Well, here is Obama's definition of bipartisanship with Republicans: I talk, you capitulate...
5. Obama's straw men. Obama may not be eloquent, but he is glib and clever and at times persuasive. One of his favorite rhetorical devices is setting up a straw man, then knocking it down. He invoked this classic ploy subtly in his inaugural address, crudely in his press conference. "We will restore science to its rightful place," Obama said at his inauguration. Really? Where had science been? "We are ready to lead once more," he said, as if we--America--hadn't been. He may have disapproved of the prior administration's policies in the world, but that doesn't mean it wasn't leading. Also in his inaugural speech, Obama said, "we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders." When we were indifferent? Not in Obama's lifetime...
