For the president, a lesson in limits
From The Washington Post:
Seven days cannot encapsulate the whole of a presidency, but the past week was a vivid illustration of the arc of President Obama's first year in office.
The main events of the week for the White House -- a speech on the Afghanistan war and a jobs summit -- provided fresh insights into the limits to Obama's ambitions and the scale of the risks he has taken on for himself and his party.
Begin with the president's ambitions. At the opening of his presidency, there was hardly a problem that Obama wasn't prepared to confront aggressively. The economy? Bailouts for banks and automakers, and a huge stimulus package to short-circuit the recession. Iraq? Set a date for withdrawing promptly. Health care? Go for it immediately, and with primary colors, not pastels. Energy and climate change? Ditto. Afghanistan? Send the brigades long advocated as a candidate.
Some of these were decisions of necessity (the economy). Others reflected campaign promises he could not afford to break (Iraq). Still others represented promises that might have been deferred but were not (health care).
Taken together, they signaled the enormous ambitions that came to define Obama's conception of his presidency. They also helped to create an increasingly contentious political climate in reaction to that agenda.
The amount of money he has spent on economic recovery and that he wants to spend on health care have produced record projections of red ink. To do more, he must scrounge for money and check his appetite.
His advisers say he will probably tap some of the money remaining in the Troubled Assets Relief Program for more job-creating initiatives. That is a sign that dealing with the deficit will continue to take a back seat to the human and political problem of unemployment. But there are limits. The fiscal squeeze has grown acute during his presidency. That will rule decisions for the remainder of his time in office. Passage of a health-care bill will virtually guarantee no room for big initiatives later.
Obama has tied his party and his presidency to policies that could make 2010 extremely difficult for the Democrats . . . .
Seven days cannot encapsulate the whole of a presidency, but the past week was a vivid illustration of the arc of President Obama's first year in office.
The main events of the week for the White House -- a speech on the Afghanistan war and a jobs summit -- provided fresh insights into the limits to Obama's ambitions and the scale of the risks he has taken on for himself and his party.
Begin with the president's ambitions. At the opening of his presidency, there was hardly a problem that Obama wasn't prepared to confront aggressively. The economy? Bailouts for banks and automakers, and a huge stimulus package to short-circuit the recession. Iraq? Set a date for withdrawing promptly. Health care? Go for it immediately, and with primary colors, not pastels. Energy and climate change? Ditto. Afghanistan? Send the brigades long advocated as a candidate.
Some of these were decisions of necessity (the economy). Others reflected campaign promises he could not afford to break (Iraq). Still others represented promises that might have been deferred but were not (health care).
Taken together, they signaled the enormous ambitions that came to define Obama's conception of his presidency. They also helped to create an increasingly contentious political climate in reaction to that agenda.
The amount of money he has spent on economic recovery and that he wants to spend on health care have produced record projections of red ink. To do more, he must scrounge for money and check his appetite.
His advisers say he will probably tap some of the money remaining in the Troubled Assets Relief Program for more job-creating initiatives. That is a sign that dealing with the deficit will continue to take a back seat to the human and political problem of unemployment. But there are limits. The fiscal squeeze has grown acute during his presidency. That will rule decisions for the remainder of his time in office. Passage of a health-care bill will virtually guarantee no room for big initiatives later.
Obama has tied his party and his presidency to policies that could make 2010 extremely difficult for the Democrats . . . .
posted by Sid Cottingham | 9:43 AM
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