“The president has a problem. For, despite a great election victory, Mr. Obama, it becomes ever clearer, knows little about Americans. He knows the crowds–he is at home with those. He is a stranger to the country’s heart and character.” (Dorothy Rabinowitz, writing in “The Wall Street
Journal” on 8-11-09)
I’d put it a little differently. Obama knows how to speak to the crowds–but not to the individual. Obama understands collectivism, socialism–but knows little about (and cares little for) the rights and perspectives of individuals. He believes in compassion only in the abstract–and in the context of huge amounts of government spending so the elites may say (to themselves and each other), “Job well done.”
Concrete facts of reality–including the concrete consequences of these elite actions–do not matter. In fact, Obama becomes angry at their mention. The very mention of these things disturbs his abstract view of the world, an abstract view detached from reality–a reality described by Rabinowitz as, “the country’s heart and character.”
Policies and actions with no connection to reality will have no heart and character. This is why, in 2008, millions applauded the notion, “Health care for all, without compromising competition or harming the budget.” As facts overwhelm this claim in 2009, Obama (and his remaining supporters) are up against a brick wall of reality. They’re not taking it well.