Portents
Sometimes its little things which can be significant. We do not like to make predictions about politics. After all, a week in politics can be a long time. A very long time. But sometimes portents appear of the future. Take President Obama. Will he be a shamed one-term president?
Try this for a little portent: yesterday House Republicans forced a vote in Congress on President Obama's proposed budget. The result: it was defeated 414-0.
Last year, the Senate voted on Obama's proposed budget back then. The result: it was defeated 97-0. And this at the time when US government debt is right up there as a candidate for Public Enemy Number One.
Some constitutional scholars have argued that the essence of power in the presidency is the power to persuade. If that is correct, Obama must be one of the weakest, most ineffectual US presidents in modern history.
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