Bursting Obama’s Balloons

Poor Newsweek. Howard Fineman knows the reality of the world. He sees it. He lists it in this article (or at least starts to), and one can easily see that he wants to lower the expectations for Barack Obama. He just can’t. He just can’t dust off the confetti yet.

I understand why Barack Obama was lingering over the shave ice in Hawaii. Once he hits the ground here in Washington, his famous aloha spirit is going to be tested even before he is inaugurated.

Yes, that’s right. In the first half of this sentence Fineman excuses Barack Obama for suddenly going quiet on all the challenges facing the next President. Then, in the second half of the sentence Fineman recognizes and admits that Obama is going to be challenged before even getting Inaugurated. Problem here is…that time is NOW. Barack Obama is being challenged NOW. Some can hide or excuse or apologize for him by saying, “He’s not officially President yet,” but that’s like allowing a drunk driver to get off on a technicality. Obama railed constantly, all day/every day about every single problem that the next President would face, AND about how he would solve them. As a Presidential candidate, the man was on at least one cable news show every hour of every day for two years. Now, as a President-elect, with the power to actually start taking action (even if the action is in support and/or agreement with President Bush), the guy’s silent. Oh yeah, we got CHANGE alright. A change from constant whining, promising, complaining, suggesting, proposing, and so forth…to silence, inaction, leadership that’s left his party in disarray, fractured, and confused. A man with such great leadership that even his party base-the people who voted for him, sweat for him, gave all their money…those are the people who are actually LOUDER than Republicans?!

Oh Howard, have no fear. Expectations of Obama’s greatness are already dissolving. What’s interesting is that the decline in expectations is coming from the left, from his supporters, from his party, and now from his media (TIME, Newsweek, MSNBC, NYT, even Al Jazeera). Meanwhile, those who have the least expectations of Obama’s Administration, are enjoying popcorn.