Word: reaganism
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...only virtue holding him back from pursuing an autobiographical project: “I haven’t figured out the genius of organizing it yet,” Gomes said, adding that 67 years have afforded him a bevy of experiences—swearing in Presidents Ronald W. Reagan and George H.W. Bush, no less—that would intensify the challenge of documenting his life...
...life. Obama is in many ways an ordinary guy (not unlike brush-clearing Bush and shorts-wearing Clinton). Scenes of him rhapsodizing about ESPN or headed out for burgers serve to humanize Obama and are certainly an appealing window into his real-life self. But through stagecraft and style, Reagan was able to be both an accessible and a towering figure. The Democrat in the White House needs to be more imposing and less familiar in order to wow his friends and strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. Plainspoken speeches, richly symbolic events and well-timed humor...
...Create more Obama Republicans. Candidate Obama had broad appeal for Republicans and conservative-leaning independents. Now his image and agenda have left him without any calling card to widen his support (essential for winning policy fights and elections). The Gipper wooed so-called Reagan Democrats by finding common cause with them on key issues such as national security and lower taxes while still keeping his political base solidly on board. Education, spending cuts and maybe even health care are all ripe areas where Obama can make another effort to reach out to voters, if not intransigent Republicans in Washington...
...media get you down. By the time Reagan reached the White House, he had been trapped in the glare of press scrutiny from his days in Hollywood through his time in the California governor's mansion. Obama, meanwhile, glided into his Illinois Senate seat and into the White House with very little negative attention from the press (beyond brief, isolated incidents like the Rev. Wright dustup). Now, hammered nonstop by both the conservative and mainstream media, Obama has to thicken his skin. Reagan wasn't crazy about the coverage he got either, but he sloughed it off and followed...
...national security to strengthen your hand at home. Obama needs to frame future foreign policy successes in way that gives him leverage with voters and Congress. Reagan deployed his standing as a successful Cold War President to rally the public around him, and then used higher approval ratings to advance his agenda. Obama is governing in a more partisan era, but he can break the bonds of a divided Washington to turn his domestic agenda into a patriotic one - by pushing for energy independence, for example - rather than one side of a left-right slugfest...