Barack Obama is having one lousy week. It's as if a few good jabs from Hillary showed us a glass jaw and a fast fade onto the canvas. His supporters manage to make him look even more fragile. If he doesn't win now, he'll pack it in.
Meanwhile in the Clinton campaign, it's Samantha Power Day: Obama's foreign policy coach is the gift that keeps on giving.
Earlier I agreed with David Corn's assessment: Why does Obama get nailed for Power's "monster" comment, while HRC's people are allowed to denounce others as "Ken Starr" - certainly a monster in my book, and not be bloodied? It seems unfair. Then I read Yglesias, and agreed with him, when he wrote of the demand that Power throw in the towel:
but this sort of ritualized calls for resignations is all in the game. Having her resign, by contrast, is just playing the game poorly
That glass jaw again. Obama fighting poorly.
But in fact "monster" probably had nothing to do with Power's resignation. Instead it was her pathetic performance in an interview on BBC's Hardtalk. (Not in anyway to be compared to Hardball. Their host thinks.) Prof. Power states that one cannot actually expect Obama to keep to his campaign rhetoric on withdrawing from Iraq - it's all subject to review in January. She then fails to offer a reasonable explanation why Obama would happily talk to Ahmadinejahd, but not to Hamas. Obviously smart and knowledegable, and completely clueless as to how elections are won.
Guys like Andrew Sullivan and Al Sharpton don't help Obama either - with their childish threats that Obama's supporters will fade away if their man doesn't get the decision.
This week, Obama's corner can only be described as bush league; not ready for the main event.
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