President Obama, during a speech about job gains in Hyattsville, Md., on June 4, 2010
A Short History of the Obama Administration, by the Chattering Class:
Nov. 5, 2008: Barack Obama is elected the 43rd President of the United States. Bring on the hope, bring on the hype, bring on the change.
Jan. 20, 2009: Obama is sworn in with pomp and grandeur; what a great moment for the country! Isn't it exciting, all the big things he plans to do — and it's all so bipartisan!
February 2009: A multibillion-dollar stimulus bill passes with almost exclusively Democratic votes. Isn't it exciting, all the big things Obama plans to do! Of course, the result might not have been bipartisan — but he'll get to that on the next one.
March 2009: Obama engineers a huge federal bailout of the Detroit auto companies. An amazing feat by Mr. Double Down, but bipartisanship is now on life support, and boy, this guy is running up some huge spending.
May 2009: Obama nominates Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. It's a brilliant pick politically and/but amazing that the left would be satisfied with her.
Summer and fall, 2009: Obama fights in vain to pass a health care bill and fails to take control of the process. He stupidly insists on bipartisanship. But hey, why can't he get a bill through that is bipartisan?
October 2009: Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize. Jeez, that was premature.
January 2010: Scott Brown wins Ted Kennedy's Massachusetts Senate seat in a special election, after the GOP wins in the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial contests. The only thing deader than health care is the Obama presidency.
March 2010: Health care passes with only Democratic votes. We knew that would all along, and boy, this guy is running up some huge spending, and the only thing deader than the Democrats' chances in the midterms is Obama's chance of being re-elected.
May 2010: Obama nominates Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court; brilliant pick politically and/but amazing the Left would be satisfied with her.
Spring 2010: Obama faces BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He's Jimmy Carter, hostage to events. He's George Bush, tone deaf to symbolism and suffering (is this Obama's Katrina?). He's no Bill Clinton, able to feel the nation's pain. When is Spock going to "go off"?
A Short History of the Obama Administration, by the Left:
Nov. 5, 2008: Barack Obama is elected the 43rd President of the United States. Life will never be the same again.
Jan. 20, 2009: Obama is sworn in; it's so inspirational and history making! — but, er, did he really keep on Bush's Secretary of Defense? (We are getting a strange feeling about this guy ...)
February 2009: A multibillion-dollar stimulus bill passes with almost exclusively Democratic votes. The thing's really not big enough, but at least he didn't let Republicans push him around (too much).
March 2009: Obama engineers a huge federal bailout of the Detroit auto companies. That solves another problem that Bush left hanging — and Obama is reshaping the role of a new, activist federal government. We're hopeful!
May 2009: Obama nominates Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. We like her and appreciate the symbolism, but the next pick better be someone further to the left.
Summer and fall, 2009: Obama fights in vain to pass a health care bill. We killed ourselves to get this guy elected, and he abandons single payer in a vain and naive search for Republican support. We're steamed!
October 2009: Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize: Oh, snap, George W. Bush!
January 2010: Scott Brown wins Ted Kennedy's Massachusetts Senate seat in a special election, after the GOP wins in the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial contests. The White House political operation has no idea what it's doing. We're panicked!
March 2010: Health care passes with only Democratic votes. Screw Fox News and Rush Limbaugh and every Republican in America — we'll take our three-quarters loaf and go home. We're chuffed.
May 2010: Obama nominates Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. We like her fine, but the next pick better be someone further to the left.
Spring 2010: Obama faces BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Now is the time to pass energy reform and punish the oil companies.