Word: whiteness
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...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 are Reagan tools that Obama could employ...
...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...
Still, the White House is guaranteed about an hour tonight with all eyes on its star at center stage, when the Commander in Chief can tower over his opponents. If there is to be an Obama comeback in early 2010, it begins on Wednesday night. Here are the five metrics and tea leaves that will determine success or failure...
...Does the press focus exclusively on process? The media are consumed with a proverbial turning-of-the-page, the tension between the White House and Democrats on Capitol Hill and the perils-of-Barack drama. Obama has to get the postspeech coverage to evaluate the substance of his proposals and his thematic vision of the country, rather than just focus on his droopy poll numbers and the loss of that Massachusetts Senate seat...
...Republicans clap? Liberals and some White House aides have given up on ever getting meaningful cooperation from the opposition party on a legislative agenda. Obama doesn't have that luxury. GOPers will not like much of what the President says - and they smell both blood in the water and victory in November's midterm elections. But Obama has to find some areas of common ground to renew his campaign pledge to reduce the partisan bitterness and lack of cooperation that has come to dominate Washington and the nation's politics...