Obama's Lack of Awareness

Denial, arrogance and self-pity are ingredients for a pretty toxic cocktail. And yet it seems that the occupants of the White House bunker, shell-shocked by Scott Brown, are coping by mixing all three with a little Kool-Aid.

[. . .]

I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American people."

[. . .]

according to CBS News, Obama has delivered 411 public "speeches, comments and remarks" and 158 interviews.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/obama_kool_aid_WzMe9pOLiBCI8Oq0hjU82H

Obama's Kool-Aid

Prez's pathetic take on Mass. revolt

New York Post

Last Updated: 10:24 AM, January 22, 2010

Posted: 2:59 AM, January 22, 2010

Denial, arrogance and self-pity are ingredi ents for a pretty toxic cocktail. And yet it seems that the occupants of the White House bunker, shell-shocked by Scott Brown, are coping by mixing all three with a little Kool-Aid.<p> </p><br> In an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, President Obama offered his nuanced analysis of the Bay State Gotterdammerung and his first year in office.<p> </p><br> In short: I did nothing wrong. Well, with one caveat: "One thing I regret this year is that we were so busy just getting stuff done . . . that I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American people."<p> </p><br> Look, Fidel Castro can get away with saying something like that. He's been cloistered away on life support, unable to give his epic speeches to rent-a-crowds. But Obama?<p> </p><br> In his first year, according to CBS News, Obama has delivered 411 public "speeches, comments and remarks" and 158 interviews. Next week, he'll give his first State of the Union address. If that seems strange, it's because it will be his third nationally televised address to a joint session of Congress.<p> </p><br> The only way the White House communications shop could cram<p> </p><br>moreObama down our throats would be if it required, as part of the health-care bill, that we have Obama-message receivers installed in our fillings.<p> </p><br> The arrogance runs deeper. Over and over, Obama says he's gotten all of the policies exactly right. Whenever Stephanopoulos asked him if he did anything wrong, Obama responded that he had no choice but to tackle the "big problems."<p> </p><br> "Now, I could have said, well, we'll just do what's safe. We'll just take on those things that are completely noncontroversial."<p> </p><br> What nobility! What courage! What a crock.<p> </p><br> The question isn't, "Do you regret tackling these issues?" The question is, "Do you regret<p> </p><br>howyou tackled these issues?" According to Obama, there was no other way than his way. And these ungrateful, confused, angry voters just don't understand that.<p> </p><br> The whole interview oozes with almost Bill Clintonesque self-pitying dishonesty (Obama should learn to bite his lower lip): I've been working so hard. It's the GOP's fault. The system is to blame. People are ignorant of the healthcare plan I have explained literally 52 times.<p> </p><br> Obama blames the political culture he promised to change but has made worse; he casts extremely partisan and ideological decisions as absolute necessities. And he claims credit for "tough" decisions<p> </p><br>hedidn't make (TARP was Bush's tough call). A stimulus bill might have been necessary, but the partisan Porkzilla Obama pushed certainly wasn't. Obama would have us believe he's been focusing on the economy, but voters don't confuse ObamaCare and his Copenhagen trips with anything of the sort.<p> </p><br> Besides, Obama whines, why aren't you people mad at George Bush? "The same thing that swept Scott Brown into office swept me into office. People are angry, and they're frustrated. Not just because of what's happened in the last year or two years, but what's happened over the last eight years."<p> </p><br> Wait a second. Obama was carried into office on the wings of "hope" and "change," not "anger" and "frustration." Besides, if voters are frustrated with the slow pace of reform, why elect a guy promising to slow down Obama's agenda?<p> </p><br> Not only is the White House in denial that giving Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid control of domestic policy wasn't what voters wanted in 2008, it's in denial that it isn't what voters want in 2010.<p> </p><br> Instead, the Obama team is going to play the populist card, attacking the banks they bailed out and the insurance companies they struck sweetheart deals with. The president who mocked Scott Brown's truck is now going to grab a pitchfork and join the mob at the White House gates.<p> </p><br> I don't know how they'll do it, but one thing's for sure: We'll get even more Obama.<p> </p><br>

Jonah Goldberg