Peggy Noonan's article about how unlucky Obama seems to be is a must read. She nails the reasons for the sense of malaise that prompted this weekend's music. Her article reminded me of what my first submarine skipper told me when I was a youngster just out of seminary, "If you're not lucky, we can't use you." (Rumor has it that Gene Hackman modeled his character in Crimson Tide off of him; if you knew the skipper, you would believe it.)Some gems:
Normally presidents have had a printed copy of the speech in their hands or on the desk, in case the teleprompter freezes or fails. Mr. Obama's desk was shiny and empty.
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There is still a sense about Mr. Obama that he needs George W. Bush in order to give his presidency full shape and meaning. In this he is like Jimmy Carter, who needed Richard Nixon...
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There is a growing meme that Mr. Obama is too impressed by credentialism, by the meritocracy, by those who hold forth in the faculty lounge, and too strongly identifies with them. He should be more impressed by those with real-world experience.
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