Saturday, February 28, 2009

A thoughtful U.S. President for a change

Some Americans seem amazed that they have a President who appears to know what he's talking about and is intelligent. Typical of the reactions this week were David Brooks and Mark Shields on PBS News Hour yesterday:

DAVID BROOKS: Well, I guess the first thing that comes across is that he does project an air of confidence, and not only confidence he projects -- one does tend to have confidence in him when one hears him. And I certainly, just as a viewer, certainly had a sense, "Well, this guy is taking it seriously." ...

MARK SHIELDS: I thought -- David's right. He does project incredible reassurance. I mean, if you look at what he did this week, both on the budget and this, it's a combination of boldness and sort of reflectiveness. I mean, you get a sense of -- I mean, it really is a major, major change in the way the government will be run and what it will do, but it's -- there's also -- I'm just trying to think -- thoughtfulness about him that is reassuring, especially as you listen to him in the interview with Jim.
Shields and Brooks Weigh Obama's Troop, Budget Plans
After 8 year of George W. Bush, it's a refreshing surprise for many.

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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Kevin, I believe the President is very serious about change but fear that the entrenched establishment will attempt to thwart this.

It will be interesting to watch what ensues over the next three years.

You might find this letter of interest.

Dear

Last night, I addressed a joint session of Congress for the first time.

To confront the serious economic challenges our nation faces, I called for a
new era of responsibility and cooperation. We need to look beyond short
term political calculations and make vital investments in health care,
energy, and education that will make America stronger and more prosperous
well into the future.

Watch a few highlights from my address and share it with your friends now:

http://my.barackobama.com/presidentialaddress

A little more than a month into my administration, we've already taken bold
steps to address our urgent economic problems.

Through the Recovery Act, the Stability Plan, and the Housing Plan, we're
taking the immediate necessary measures to halt our economic downturn and
provide much-needed assistance to working people and their families.

But to set our country on a new course of stability and prosperity, we must
reject the old ways of doing business in Washington. We can no longer
tolerate fiscal deficits and runaway spending while deferring the
consequences to future generations.

That's why I pledged last night to cut our deficit in half by the end of my
term. Achieving that goal will require making sacrifices and hard decisions,
as well as an honest budgeting process that is straight with taxpayers about
where their dollars are going.

Watch some key moments from my address now:

http://my.barackobama.com/presidentialaddress

Central to this plan will be a renewed commitment to honesty and transparency
in government. Restoring our country's economic health will only happen when
ordinary citizens are given the opportunity to hold their representatives
fully accountable for the decisions they make.

I look forward to continuing to work with you as we bring about the change
you made possible.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

Kevin Rennie said...

Looks more like a liberal every day. The Congress will start putting up road blocks. If Rudd thinks he's got problems with introducing an ETS, they will be a stroll compared with US political reality.

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