You could say Obama likes "real people." He just doesn't like hanging out with Washington pols. For this he deserves respect: he has a healthy relationship with reality and authenticity. The New York Times, though, seems to think it's a problem.
Mr. Obama, in general, does not go out of his way to play the glad-handing, ego-stroking presidential role. While he does sometimes offer a ride on Air Force One to a senator or member of Congress, more often than not, he keeps Congress and official Washington at arm’s length, spending his down time with a small — and shrinking — inner circle of aides and old friends. ...NYT
I dunno, but respect goes a long way with me, way longer than playing political games or, worse, the charm game. Bill Clinton was a charmer; Ronald Reagan was a charmer. In human terms -- in terms of respect -- I wouldn't want to stay in the room with either of them once the business meeting is over. Obama is another matter.
White House officials ... counter that Mr. Obama’s detachment from Congress could end up benefiting him politically. After all, many Americans regard this Congress as dysfunctional, with abysmal approval ratings.
“We have a culture here where people actively dislike everything about this whole city,” one senior administration official said of Washington, adding, “the only leverage he has right now is as an outsider.” Another official argued that Mr. Obama’s perceived distance from Congress is partly why he is viewed as the clear winner of the payroll tax cut fight.
In fact, Mr. Obama’s re-election strategy involves running against Congress, particularly the Republican-led House, calling attention to its inability to pass even the simplest legislation without resorting to threats to shut down the government or default on the country’s debt.
With that in mind, another senior administration official said, the last thing the president wants is to provide more photo ops of himself golfing with Speaker John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, as he did this summer in a frustrated effort to resolve the torturous fight over raising the debt ceiling. ...NYT
Smart. Honorable. Presidential. Respectable -- a word, I know, that doesn't resonate much in these precincts these days. We know who gets Obama's respect if we pay attention -- who deserves respect. Obama seems to like best those who do their jobs, who work for something other than themselves.
Despite the narrative in Washington of Mr. Obama as a loner, his friends and aides say he likes people just fine. He looked positively ebullient when he worked the crowd at a hangar last Wednesday at Fort Bragg, N.C., reaching out to nearly every one of 3,000 troops returning from Iraq. ...NYT
