Enter
this column, then these are some
really unoriginal sins. Her fellow
Times columnists, David Brooks
and Thomas Friedman, have made
a cottage industry for themselves
making the same arguments — that
Obama’s major failing is that he
has not managed to find the right
rhetorical flourish to weaken the
opposition. (Of Brooks’ similar
argument, Mataconis opines that
he has “a point.”) If Obama would
only find the right combination of
magic words, the leadership surrealists argue, he would melt the hard
hearts of the intransigent GOP, and
turn recalcitrant Democrats away
from the incentives they follow to
retain their seats. (At least Dowd
cited The American President as
her cinematic inspiration. Friedman
cited Tin Cup, for some reason.)
For spouting the same bilge
as Dowd, people like Brooks and
Friedman are treated as influential thinkers, and they’ve amassed
many followers. David Ignatius
has lamented the fact that Obama
hasn’t made enough “clear, firm
presidential statement[s] that
speaks to everyone onboard.” Ron
Fournier advised the president to
give a speech similar to an op-ed
he read in the Green Bay Press-Gazette, because it was crazy-magical.
LOOKING FORWARD
IN ANGST
HUFFINGTON
04.28.13
And when it comes to strong-arm
tactics, you can’t beat Bob Woodward’s contention that Obama
should just ignore the Constitution.
Look, you can’t blame Dowd for
getting into the spirit of “everyone
else is doing it, so why shouldn’t
I?” She’s watched her colleagues
grow in esteem making the same
arguments, paying little consequence for them. Chances are, the
“x-factor” here is a simple matter
Chances are, the ‘x-factor’
here is a simple matter of
institutional sexism — once
the same arguments are flowing
forth from her keyboard, they
suddenly look rancid.”
of institutional sexism — once the
same arguments are flowing forth
from her keyboard, they suddenly
look rancid. The point though, is
that this was an always dumb set
of contentions to make. I trust that
going forward, we won’t tolerate it
from anyone, and whoever attempts
a similar feat of whimsy will have
all of the critiques that have been
laid at Dowd’s doorstep read back
to them, verbatim.
I hope, anyway!