My Christmas offering to the White House

Now comes this, from the sigh-heaving National Journal:

Just as occurred with Rice, the U.N. ambassador whose prospective nomination as secretary of State ... flamed out in the face of widespread criticism of her, President Obama appears to be rethinking his choice for Defense secretary.

Generals, it is commonly observed, always fight, or prepare to fight, the last war--a martial failing that is seemingly, regrettably underway in the White House. Doubtless Obama's political generals are tired. They've been through a long and bloody campaign--grueling hours and dozens of crucial decisions each day, all with decency's future hanging in the balance. It's an exhausting, brain-numbing burden; indeed it's enough to make a political strategist survey the next war's pressing enormities and think: How about we just do what we successfully did last time?

Because "last time" was brilliant. Last time worked. Last time entailed a daring, pragmatic long-game that though irritating as hell to the left's anxious idealists was in reality the best possible strategy to achieve incremental victories, demonstrate patient leadership and a compromising spirit to swing voters, and thus win reelection. But that was then, and then is not now. Unlike early 2009, now means another four presidential years whose presiding influence and power will endure for only about two.

The White House can no longer afford to play the long game, because the game is now politically and Constitutionally shortened--the evisceration of lame duckism looms and reelection is removed from the governing equation. Hence any WH notion that political capital preserved today on, say, cabinet nominations, won't suffer immense devaluation tomorrow on, say, the debt-ceiling issue, is catastrophically, anachronistically misguided.

I've never made any secret of my deep admiration for the Obama administration; in fact I have frequently compared it to Lincoln's and declared it the progressive-conservative successor to FDR's. And if I didn't admire it and wish it every possible success, I'd keep my critical mouth shut and thereby do it the greatest possible disservice.

If one sees a valued friend going down the wrong road, one intervenes bearing the truest gift of friendship: corrective advice.

Therefore my Christmas gift to the Obama administration: Stop this. Stop this right now.

Comments

[sueme]

I agree, P.M. Whenever the President gives an inch it only emboldens these assholes to take more. I think the public wants to see Obama push back ... hard. In my view he doesn't need to compromise any longer. Let the Bush taxes expire, then fight for middle class tax cuts and make them retroactive.

[Peter G]

If generals always did as you suggest wars would always have been fought with clubs and there would be few notable generals. It is more true to say general staffs always prepare to fight the last war. Great generals share one characteristic and that is an eye for proper ground and maneuver. Politically we have before us a new situation. I will not pretend to have even a fraction of the knowledge you possess on American political history but my own readings on that subject reveal no comparable situation. This is not merely a matter of divided government. The government of the United States is becoming paralysed, slowly but surely, and it needs to be stopped.
New ground for combat such as never been seen requires new tactics and new strategies. I honestly think the Obama administration has been on a learning curve with regard to Republican intransigence and Democratic disunity. But they cannot seriously be said to underestimate their foes.
Congress is essentially fixed until the next elections but there are crucial decisions to be made and legislation to be passed. So how can this be accomplished? The only way forward I can see is to drive a split in the Republican caucus along the natural cleavage lines. The ideologically driven tea partiers must be divorced from the rest of the Republican party and I believe that is the process I am watching right now. Divide and conquer is an old strategy but the tactics are what interest me.
They are using negotiations to drive the wedge. They are erecting straw men like Hagel and Rice to draw fire and expose Republicans not merely as the party of no but the party of nothing. That is the reason I think they have delayed so long in putting forth a real cabinet slate of candidates And all the while increasing public support for the administration. The showdown is coming I think and it will be epic.

[shsavage]

"Amateurs talk about tactics, but professionals study logistics."
- Gen. Robert H. Barrow, USMC (Commandant of the Marine Corps) noted in 1980

‘C'est la soupe qui fait le soldat.’ - Napoleon