1. he shouldnt care about public opinion. that is a positive, not a negative. not sure why you give a damn about that. 2. what specifically should he do about the oil spill? go down there and say "work harder!"?
I can see the difficulty you might have in wrapping your mind around such observations of Obama's upcoming weekend and how it is perceived. It must also baffle you to see that someone can be capable of admitting to being incorrect on something. I can also admit to something else. You were correct with something you said earlier. "it only takes a few seconds" Placing you in the ranks of intelligence on here was indeed process done quickly. Sorry, but you didn't grade well. I know you're not terribly disappointed though, so no harm done. As for this thread, it certainly has merit. With the situation here on the gulf coast, SOMEONE needs to step up to the plate. Who better than "the most powerful man in the free world"? We don't need him down here doing cleanup himself. However, his presence has been sorely needed for quite some time. There is a general feeling that he is far disconnected from the realities of what is going on. Or actually from the realities of the inaction of people involved in the (lack of) prevention and (lack of) cleanup. When the president speaks, people listen. That's simply the way it is. We can only hope that he is able to ascertain the situation during the limited time he is here tomorrow. The time for vacationing is later. The time for action is now.
But he does care. Which is why he reprimanded reporters for tough questions. It is shaping public opinion and making him look bad. If he didn't care, he would not have done this. The perception is that he is not in control of the situation, even if he actually is in control. And he is getting blasted for it from the left also. If you don't understand the reality of public relations to any politician, then there is nothing to help you. Doesn't matter if it should be that way; it is that way.
1. Agreed. We need leaders that act in the best interest of our country rather than in the best interest of their political futures. I am not so sure such a leader exists though. 2. Yes, saying just that would actually have a great impact! his word is a tad bit more important than that of 99 or martin. Also more important of local and state political leaders who at this point are helpless to induce progress of federal agencies.
again, you should have just answered my questions when i asked you directly, then you would have been quicker to realize your mistake. i didnt ask you to rank me, i asked you who was the smartest. please pay attention. cant answer? think it is you? i wont insult you if you think you are the smartest. i like confidence. again, my question to you is what should be done. do you have an answer? specifically what should obama do? get on a boat with a megaphone and yell at the guys fixing it?
get back to me when you start caring about something other than the political ramifications of his perception. what matters is actual policy. bush fought unpopular wars and everyone hated him. so be it. he is a hero for that in my book. perception is crap. get elected, serve the people, dont worry. lead, dont follow. sometimes i wonder why officials bother to go do irrelvant buckets of nothing at places, for little more than a photo op. now i know, it is because people like you care about such irrelevant crap.
James Carville said it well yesterday when he said that a President's approval rating in the time of crisis should always go up, because that President should always be doing whatever he can saying whatever he can to assure the American people and in this case the people of our State that this is going to be fixed, and the people of this great State are going to be reimbursed for their losses. Our President isn't doing that, and is really acting like this just isn't that important. I hate to say it, but if GW would have acted like this he would have been roasted alive.
james carville is right, but james carrville analyzes things that way because he is a campaign manager. he cares about approval ratings. you and i shouldnt give a damn about that. they have really no correlation to actual good leadership.
No, that is all that what matters to you. Political ramifications are part of politics. Your utopian rants notwithstanding. If you have a comprehension problem, you really should not let it show so blatantly. I made it clear in my earlier posts that I don't care about him going down to La for a photo op, and that he can do his job from anywhere. However, I do live in reality and accept that more is expected of him than he is currently doing. Perception is reality in politics, regardless of your outrage.
