Who among us would like to be president of the United States in these turbulent times? Raise your hands. I thought so. Well, it is my belief that we have the right man at the right time in the right place (the oval office). Consider all that President Obama has had to face since taking office: an economy on the brink of a great depression; two wars; a Gulf oil spill; the Tucson AZ massacre; storms, blizzards, flooding, and wildfires throughout the U.S.; a devastating earthquake in Haiti; and now crises and revolutions in the Mid-East causing oil prices to rise; and an earthquake, tsnumai and threats of a nuclear power meltdown in Japan.
To say our president has his hands full is an understatement. But his leadership style is ideally suited for times such as these. He displays a presence that I would define as "calm assertiveness." This is a phrase coined by Cesar Milan, TV's "Dog Whisperer". Milan says that he, Cesar, "rehabilitates dogs and trains people." He tells owners that their energy affects their pets and creates the hyper or anxious behavior they bring him in to correct. I am always amazed by the end of his shows at the transformation the dogs and their masters go through. Cesar suggests to the owner they should make their body calm and their mind assertive. The calmness relaxes the dog and the assertiveness lets the animal know the owner is in charge or is the leader of the pack.
Both elements are essential in leadership. Obama has displayed again and again his calmness no matter the crisis, the name calling of the opposition, and the attacks from both sides of the political spectrum for his policies. Rachel Maddow of MSNBC who interviewed him as a candidate said "He is a calm and confident presence up close and from the base." His relaxed demeanor has often been misunderstood as complacent or lacking in emotion. Some of his own supporters such as Bill Maher and Arianna Huffington have expressed a desire to see him display more fire on certain issues. But that is not his style. The truth is that he is passionate and caring as his speech at the Tucson, AZ memorial and his recent press conference where he stated he was "heartbroken" about the disaster in Japan showed. He just knows how to channel his emotions in a positive way. It could be said that he is unflappable.
Right now we need a cool, calm, collected leader that does not fly off the handle, make panicky and risky decisions off the cuff, or rush into volatile situations with no thought to the consequences. Just because his style is very different from his predecessor doesn't mean he is not an effective world leader. In fact, it's just the opposite. There is a difference between aggressiveness and assertiveness. One is based on fear (the macho cowboy diplomacy of pre-emptive strikes) and the other is based on confidence (Obama has offered an open hand to the nations of the world.) I believe everything President Obama does is well thought out even when it seems he is doing nothing. He is an active behind the scenes guy consulting his advisors and planning very carefully his words and actions. He is a very adept tightrope walker keeping America's best interests and safety in mind. He has a good sense of balance and insight into the world's problems.
Just as FDR restored America's national psyche ("The only thing we have to fear is fear itself") during the Great Depression and World War II, President Obama, with his serene confidence, in two short years has calmed the financial markets, rescued the car manufacturers, improved the economy, lowered the unemployment rate (a work in progress), passed national health care reform, and overall given Americans hope for the future. All occurring while the world is in a state of upheaval. Cesar would be proud.
Is there a better person suited for this job right now? I think not.
I guess the other way to look at it is to see how he is with Bo, the First Dog. From what I can tell, Bo leads the way and attempts to be the pack leader when he's with Pres. Obama. FLOTUS exerts more dominance over Bo, probably because she has more time with him.
For the record, I love Cesar Millan.
I agree that he is calm, but I haven't seen much of the assertiveness. Can you provide an example of a time he drew a line in sand and stuck by it?
I'm not sure how you can use this sentence "Obama has offered an open hand to the nations of the world" as an example of assertiveness. That just isn't what the word means.
And btw, Cesar Milan is a terrible example to prove your point. He does preach to "the owner they should make their body calm and their mind assertive", but that is after they have asserted dominance!
I felt like he wasn't moving the DADT issue forward much. Eventually congress took over and it was repealed.
On health care he supported universal coverage in the campaign.By the time he got into office it was down to the public option. By the time it got passed that was gone.
(And perhaps this is a bit nitpicky, but I was really not pleased that he caved on the "death panels" provision. He knows that it was a good idea and would be beneficial for americans, but he didn't feel like arguing the point.)
Having said that, I do approve of the bill; i just feel it would have been a better bill if he had chose to push harder and maybe use his bully pulpit a little more.
I respect that you think his low profile shows confidence, but I think that sometimes it is wasting an opportunity.
(I took a look at the bills. I agree that some good legislation made it through congress.)
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He's only calmed the financial markets for the financial institutions. Depositors' & investors' bucks are still subject to misappropriation, deceptive practices & impending loss due to the lack of investigation & prosecution of those involved in the massive fraud schemes done as a matter of course - ref: http://4closurefraud .org/2011/ 02/13/in-referrellagard-time-to-put-a-fork-in-mers/
http://www .scribd.co m/doc/4882 7432/In-Re -Agard-487 50818-US-Bankruptcy- Court-New-York-Memorandum-Decision
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He has NOT passed healthcare reform. He did pass an insurance company-friendly version of healthcare insurance reform that leaves the US subsidizing private firms, Mega (owned by Goldman Sachs) in Maine, for example. Doing the latter, not the former created the Rube Goldberg mess we're in.
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correct on Detroit - but Detroit, like the securities are NOT the total economy.
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He gave many hope at the start of his administration. How much hope remains after 2+ years of poor results is a ? He still sticks by those who allowed the finance meltdown in the first place. A worse finance meltdown may be coming due to not pursuing fraud past & present.
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Wake up.
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If your theory is correct... then the president would have the Repubs eating out his hands since they'd know he was the owner and/or leader of the pack. Do you honestly see that to be the case????