The Snooze Factor
What is that Barack Obama is saying? Or more to the point, what is he not saying?
In yesterday's MSNBC interview, Keith Olbermann keeps throwing Obama easy soft balls in the form of short, pithy lines that go straight at the blatant lies at the core of the recent rebound of the Republican ticket, and Obama fumbles every single one, coming off as the most scripted, cautious politician ever. Finally a somewhat exasperated Olbermann asks the candidate if he has given any thought to "simplifying your message." And then, to be even more helpful, he adds, "Like Reagan did when he reduced everything to 'Are you better off than you were 8 years ago?'" Obama replies in the affirmative, then goes off on an explanation of his simplified message which runs for several paragraphs. MSNBC meanwhile runs a text underneath reading "Can Obama Keep It Simple?"
But verbosity is not the only problem. Obama's comments on the Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae meltdown suck all the politics from the issue and reduce it to a matter of competency. The crisis, according to Obama, is merely "a structural problem that needs to be fixed. He further notes, "I have to be fair on this one, Republicans and Democrats I think, in Congress, did not pay enough attention to the structural problem." And what is the structural problem? "Not regulating the financial markets generally," and specifically "not updating some of our financial regulations... This has ironically hurt the market... a little bit of well-applied regulation and transparency and accountability actually helps the market, helps the economy grow, and that's what I want to restore when I am president."
Right.
VOTE OBAMA/BIDEN: "THEY'LL PAY ATTENTION TO STRUCTURAL PROBLEMS!"
Umm.
How about this instead: "We need to rescue Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to protect American's investments in their homes. But if the government can lend a helping hand those at the top of the economic ladder, it can and must lend a hand to those at the bottom. My plan balances both. John McCain's just helps the rich."
Was that so hard?
This comes just days after Obama's assertion on Fox News that the troop surge in Iraq "succeeded beyond our wildest dreams." Not only a stupid thing to say, but flat-out wrong.
According to Richard Cohen's op-ed in today's Washington Post, Obama's performance on ABC's This Week was no better:
Obama was cool, diffident, above it all -- unflustered, unflappable, unexcitable and downright unexciting. These "uns" ran on, a torrent of cool that frosted my flat-panel TV... Pathetic... Maybe he's worried about how America would receive an angry black man or maybe he's just too cool to ever get hot, but the result is that we have little insight into his passions: What, above all, does he care about? The answer, at least to the Sunday TV viewer, was nothing much.
Ouch.
I have heard all about Obama's cool disposition, and how this supposedly qualifies him to be commander in chief, but unless he can show some fire he is never going to get there. More than that, this is not just a question of style but substance. McCain's program is just more Bush/Republican corporate giveaways. Welfare for the rich. Obama can save all that "well-applied transparent regulation" for "structural problems" for the classroom, which is where he may end up if he keeps up like this.
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Aargh! Even though I'm merely an interested Canadian observer with no vote, why can't the Democrats just come out and say, "Yes, the Republicans lie all the time to the point where they and their supporters actually believe what they are saying"? Whose votes are they going to lose by merely stating the truth? I think they would win over the majority of "independents" through simple honesty. You Americans still do recognize honesty, don't you?
Olbermann throwing softballs to Obama???? No way!!!! Mr Objective Journalist
I hated when he (Obama) stated "they're not being truthful" or "they're not telling the truth".
A liar is a liar, stop pussyfooting around!
I dunno...I had a hard time watching him too. But, it's a calculated risk. He does not want to accidentally give the Repubs anything to hang him with, and so far, they're being called on lies, and they've got nothing on him.
He's also fighting the fact that he's a strong black man.
If his surrogates come out strong, he can be the statesman, and focus on running the country.
But that's a big IF.....
I had the same reaction and came to the similar conclusion - he's playing it safe with an eye on the repug attack machine. But I must admit, his performance was painful to watch.
I thought he looked stronger on his O'Reilly stint. I thought he answered well and I like him even more now.
Agree. He does well under pressure. So I hope McCain goes on the attack in debates - he wont' know what hit him!
i think mccain will cream him in debates. obama has a personal aversion to confrontation, and that will not win him any points during the debates or press interviews. it will also not win him any points on foreign affairs. americans like bush - "tough" with "resolve". obama is anything but...
scary.
You have got it all wrong. It's the OPPOSITE. Watch the O'Reilly interview. O'Reilly kept the pressure on him, and Obama responded in kind. He was great. But when a fawning interviewer like Olbermann gives him softball questions, that's when he appears to be weak.
By all means, bring it on McCain! That's when our guy is best, under pressure.
Bob makes good points.
And this is the main reason so many feel they don't know who this guy is. He's too aloof.
How can I beleive he will fight for my interests when he's seems unconcerned about fighting for his own interests.
I think this guy has been insulated by adoring acoloytes so long he has no idea how he's perceived outside that circle.
In 2006 he said he would not run because he wasn;t ready -- he should have followed his advice.
He was never prepared for a general election.
Because of the media and GOP, Obama has to be careful in his answers. You guys are looking for any little thing to pounce on him about. If he gets 'passionate' as you call it, the GOP will create a video of that passion and scare folks into believing he's an ANGRY BLACK MAN. If he stays cool under pressure, like what I want MY president to be able to do, he's too lackadaisical. Why can't Obama just simply be Obama? That is why he has my vote. He doesn't change his stripes for a different audience.
I disagree. I think he sees this interview as more about reaching out than rallying the base. He knows that those of us who want him to get angry are people who are going to come out for him in November. The people to whom he is talking are the people that want to hear more from him about how he differs from John McCain.
Remember the hype about how people don't know him? The BS about him being full of rhetoric and lofty words? He's shutting that down. He's giving people specifics about his plans and hammering home (maybe not as forcefully as we democrats might like) that John McCain is more of the same.
Yeah, we all want him (and Biden, and especially Hillary) to take it to the hole on McCain and call his axx out, but that's not his position. He doesn't take the shot unless he knows he can sink it and he knows that a charging foul might cost him right now.
(sorry to go off on the Bball metaphors.
It must be me because I see where he has hit back......
I am so frustrated w/ Obama. Keith gave him every opportunity to express himself and he couldn't or wouldn't. We saw some real fire at the convention but little before and none since... sure, he's smart but smarts is not enough. People want and need to see some heart along with smarts.
Unfortunately, the Repubs know how to show heart, even though ignorant and misguided, they still come across as passionate about their beliefs. Obama is muddled in his messages. This has nothing to do with being mean or nasty - it is all about expressing core beliefs in a focused, crisp and passionate way that gets people's attention.
Does he care? I think so, but I'm a supporter. If I was undecided, he said nothing to Keith that would grab me. He's on his way to losing if things don't change dramatically.
AND, if Obama or Biden complement their opponents one more time I want my money back!
I agree w/everything you said and just want to add one more thing. I was really disgusted with Obama the other day when he was on the O'Reilly factor. What the hell was he thinking when he said that the surge worked beyond wour wildest dreams. As it was pointed out in this post, it was inaccurate. Flip flops like that will just make it more difficult for Obama to prove that he is different from McCain.
I agree with you both, especially your point about the surge. That was a true gaffe on Obama's part.
And if I were an independent these interviews would give me pause - but then, seeing the McPs would send me straight to Obama if I had even a lick of sense. If Obama loses this thing we will all have to hang our heads in shame. I can't believe America would be stupid enough to vote in four more years of bush and worse.
You know, I thought about it deeply and the advice of my father came to light "Think before you Leap". You need to find out which form of attack is most proficient before doing it. I think we will see a blitzkreig of assault next week on. Let the repub have a week all to themselves as people get to know who McSame choose as his running mate.
I remember all these war of words between us Barack Obama followers when Hillary was slamming him during the primaries,he didn't lose his mind but we did it and we were outside asking for blood while he kept his message...
I'm starting to think that he knows something that we don't know,i trust Senator Obama when he said "let the dust settle"...
Its no good going nuts over this. McCain/Palin are ahead. THEY SHOULD BE AHEAD. This is a week after the convention, polls reflect the convention bounce. Polls are meaningless. Even state-by-state polling at this point is. It's a snapshot in time that will again change in the debates. If Obama flubs the debates then it's time to worry but until the debates its a waste of time.
Secondly, it's bad tactics to hit your opponent hard in early September when they have two months to recover. Instead wait until October. THAT is the October surprise, to hit your opponent hard when he doesn't have time to recover. I suspect that beginning after the first debate and continuing until November you will see a steady uptick in the attacks against McCain by Obama. Culminating with the hardest hitting attacks near Nov, all designed to put McCain on the defensive and making people go into the voting booth with questions about McCain.
Instead of worrying, donate money to the Obama campaign and the DNC, volunteer to make calls, etc.
Bob, you need to run for president. NOW!
After all, don't you know better how it's done than all the people who are actually doing it?
Also, did it occur to you, Bob, that both Obama and Hillary (in her refusal to make Palin the focus of her campaigning for Obama) are following the ancient Chinese proverb: "Do not wrestle with a pig. You'll both end up in the mud, and the pig loves it!"
Fire Plouffe.
When sarah lies, she smacks her lips and smiles. Obama doesn't have to get 'angry' he just needs to make his point with less words. I think this is all part of him being a lawyer and professor for so many years.
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