It’s being reported that today, the great investigative journalist, Oprah, asked the President to grade himself on his first year in office.
And, Obama carefully delineated the rationale for him giving himself a B+ for his accomplishments, carefully noting that if he had his healthcare bill signed, he would give himself an A-.
Which leads this ol’ cowpoke to a coupla’ observations.
First, isn’t it amazing’ that Oprah, an entertainin’ talk show host never before suspected of being a fer real journalist, is actually askin’ Barry some reasonable questions … ones the mainstream media won’t ask fer themselves!
And second, isn’t is interesting what ol Barry’s self grading reveals?
A B+ to an A-.
After only a year in office.
Now some might feel that his grading is presumptuous or arrogant.
Maybe even a bit preposterous.
But really what it is is terribly depressing.
Because you see, Barry knows himself better than anybody.
He knows best what his aspirations and capabilities are.
He knows best what his vision, his mission, his hope for this country really is.
And what he told us in that answer is that his vision isn’t much.
When I was studying journalism at Chapel Hill, I had a professor who told us on the first day of calss that he did not believe in giving out A’s.
That the best you could expect in his class was an A-.
Not because he didn’t think some of his students wouldn’t do some exemplary work, but rather because he failed to give up on the concept of unlimited human capability to achieve.
He simply refused to believe that no matter how good someone did, someone else couldn’t at some point do better.
Which brings us back to Barry’s B+ / A-.
Most observers are now raising questions about whether much of what Obama’s programs have actually accomplished.
If the TARP funds were essential to avoid an immediate and total collapse of the financial system, why have over 1/3 of the total authorized funds, pushed through on an emergency and crisis basis, not yet spent?
If the stimulus package was essential to avoid unemployment going above 8%, why is it now at more than 10% and climbing?
If healthcare reform is so good and so beneficial for the country, why is it that Obama can’t even get his own Dems to agree on it, much less agree to be covered by it?
He has all the necessary Congressional support and majorities to push through pretty much anything he wants to do (regardless of Republican opposition), and yet, his successes have been less than stellar.
He continues to blame things on the previous administration, even though what is now happening is a direct result of what he himself has set in motion over the past twelve months.
And yet he gives himself top grades.
To true patriots, that’s not just disappointing, it’s outrageous and scary.
Scary because it provides a rare look into what Obama really believes.
See, this country has always had a “can do” attitude.
A sense that there was no challenge too great to tackle or overcome.
Take on Japanese or German threats to the free world? No problem.
Give generously of our food, resources, and people to undeveloped nations, or nations experiencing natural disasters? Certainly.
Put a man on the moon? No doubt.
Those kinds of dreams caused us to reach, to stretch the capabilities of this country and its people.
They were initiated by presidents with true qualities of leadership and vision.
They required leaders with optimism, with hope, with an understanding that we could always do better.
Much like my old J-school professor.
Obama’s self grade of a B+ to an A- tells us much more about what he thinks he is capable of than what he has accomplished.
He alone knows best how to measure what he has accomplished against what he hopes to achieve.
But then it’s hard to have vision when your eyes are focused on yourself.
“Winners compare their achievements with their goals, while losers compare their achievements with those of other people” --- Nido Qubein
“None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone.” --- Ralph Waldo Emerson
