President Obama may be totally ineffective in solving the big problems the country faces but he prides himself on being cool. Calm, unruffled, and hip. The epitome of a good husband and father. A leader who plays a mean basketball game and what appears to be a golf game no one would want. Despite all the time spent on the golf course. A Hollywood dude. A guy who invites a cop he trashed with the race card down for beer in the Rose Garden. Someone who you would talk with across the fence if he was your neighbor. All of which adds up to the high likability rating he gets from the public.
He’s starting his second term like a pit bull with rabies. Every public speech is a snarling attack against those damned republicans who are keeping him from doing what he wants to do. Bush is long gone, unemployment is not. Someone has to take the blame and it won’t be this president. Maybe that explains the difference between his basketball and his golf. In golf you can’t blame the other guy. Flop and claim you were fouled when you throw up a brick. And, you are not supposed to cheat. If you do, you play a lot by yourself, which Obama seems to do.
It’s really hard to understand the level of nastiness this president is serving up as he starts his second term. Is he trying to wipe out the republican party as his legacy? Or, is he still finding scapegoats, knowing his legacy looks grim? One thing is for sure, if he keeps this up for four years he will not be seen as a potential desirable neighbor. As the hair gets gray and the man begins to look more like a grandfather than a hip young father, the attacks and the lack of progress will be harder to hide.
We knew he was arrogant. We saw that in the first term. We knew he was narcissistic. He makes zero speeches without using the “I” many, many times. We knew he abandoned many who helped him win his first term. Many books were written documenting this. Ask Oprah. We watched as he campaigned for four years in the first term, attacking like campaigners do. We saw him get reelected despite his record. Those of us who voted against him because of the record hoped his legacy might mean more to him in the second term. We hoped the gray hair might bring wisdom not constipation. Perhaps this man might learn what every leader learns, it’s important to build a constituency with the naysayers to get progress. Only dictators need not do that.
It would appear this president, who may have zero friends across the aisle and not that many in his own ranks, is out to top that record. He’s throwing brickbats when none are needed. He has raised his level of attack on republicans like a man campaigning against a whole party since he has no one person to campaign against. He’s bringing it and most of the country is wondering why. Who’s he mad at to cause him to go off so hard and so often?
Maybe it is just constipation and a little adjustment in the diet or laxative will fix this. If not, Brickbat Barack for four years is going to give the whole country constipation.
