How Obama Makes an Omelet
June 19, 2009 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
The strongest material in politics is Teflon. This was a law of political physics established by Ronald Reagan: No matter how dubious his policies were or proved to be, he himself remained hugely popular—a popularity that helped carry the day for his dubious policies. The two polls that were released this week, by the Times and the Journal, establish, in Barack Obama, a new strength for Teflon. The nation is widely suspicious about how the Obama administration is proceeding on its two biggest challenges—fixing the economy and implementing health care reform—and yet remains just about as staunchly enthralled with Obama himself as it is possible for an electorate to be. Teflonism usually implies that the electorate is dense and gullible. Or, in the case of Reagan, that he himself appeared so remote from the details of his own policies it seemed somehow unfair to blame him. The guy got a permanent pass for geniality. The Obama Teflonism seems less a fluke of personality than a method and opportunity. I have argued here in the past two days that the administration’s approach to health care and to Iran is to stress the president’s personality—his rhetoric, in the case of health care, and his angst, in the case of Iran—rather than the particulars of each of these intractable situations. CONTINUE READING at Newser.com ??
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How Obama Makes an Omelet
August 2004: An excerpt from Ronnie and Nancy
May 28, 2009 by Administrator · Leave a Comment
The famous love story had a rocky start. Ronald Reagan was still pining for his ex-wife, Jane Wyman, in 1949, running up $750-a-month nightclub bills and throwing himself into his job as president of the Screen Actors Guild. Nancy Davis, proper Chicago debutante, was struggling to launch her own movie career while tongues wagged about her friendship with an MGM executive. In an excerpt from his new book, Bob Colacello lifts the veil on a courtship that was sparked by Hollywood’s anti-Communist frenzy and would change the political map forever.
Continue here: August 2004: An excerpt from Ronnie and Nancy
