Yes We Will
President Obama made a crucial strategic, rhetorical and political pivot in his speech to Congress last night. He shifted from warnings of “catastrophe” to an assertion of confidence: “We will rebuild, we will recover.”
More than with most politicians, Obama’s words are worth paying attention to. Because, as a writer, he pays attention to words. No President has paid more attention to words since Ronald Reagan.
Both Presidents Bush seemed lost with words.
So the pivot to optimism was carefully planned.
Obama’s tone was confident. Probably because polls show him winning – for now – the rhetorical battle with Republicans. One national poll showed him with an approval rating of 63 percent.
More striking, a New York Times poll this week found that three-fourths of Americans said they are “optimistic that the economy will get better during the next four years under Obama.”
That is a surprising level of optimism in a pessimistic time.
But, given the high economic stakes and the high anxiety level of Americans today, Obama should remember that both Jimmy Carter and George Bush I had high approval ratings. Then they crashed.
The other thing clear from Tuesday night is that the Republican Party had realized it was a mistake over the past five weeks to let the face of the party become a series of angry white Southern congressmen.
So, presto! The GOP produced a different face, Bobby Jindal, to respond to Obama. (Just as Obama’s election led the GOP to elect an African-American chairman.)
Jindal may be the future of the Republican Party. But his performance Tuesday night clearly showed that that future is not yet ready for prime time.
Click Here to discuss and comment on this and other articles.
Yes We Will
President Obama made a crucial strategic, rhetorical and political pivot in his speech to Congress last night. He shifted from warnings of “catastrophe” to an assertion of confidence: “We will rebuild, we will recover.”
More than with most politicians, Obama’s words are worth paying attention to. Because, as a writer, he pays attention to words. No President has paid more attention to words since Ronald Reagan.
Both Presidents Bush seemed lost with words.
So the pivot to optimism was carefully planned.
Obama’s tone was confident. Probably because polls show him winning – for now – the rhetorical battle with Republicans. One national poll showed him with an approval rating of 63 percent.
More striking, a New York Times poll this week found that three-fourths of Americans said they are “optimistic that the economy will get better during the next four years under Obama.”
That is a surprising level of optimism in a pessimistic time.
But, given the high economic stakes and the high anxiety level of Americans today, Obama should remember that both Jimmy Carter and George Bush I had high approval ratings. Then they crashed.
The other thing clear from Tuesday night is that the Republican Party had realized it was a mistake over the past five weeks to let the face of the party become a series of angry white Southern congressmen.
So, presto! The GOP produced a different face, Bobby Jindal, to respond to Obama. (Just as Obama’s election led the GOP to elect an African-American chairman.)
Jindal may be the future of the Republican Party. But his performance Tuesday night clearly showed that that future is not yet ready for prime time.
Click Here to discuss and comment on this and other articles.