Obama: The First Term Did It by Elizabeth Drew | NYRblog | The New York Review of Books

Elizabeth Drew identifies persuasively failures of governance by President Obama - for which he is paying a price - as are we in the stumbling roll-out of the Affordable Care Act, its success still not assured, and its popularity even less assured.
- GWC
Obama: The First Term Did It by Elizabeth Drew | NYRblog | The New York Review of Books:

The first term is when the president makes fateful decisions about what kind of people he wants in his White House, how he wants them organized, the nature and role of his cabinet members (are they essentially staff, as most tend to be in the Obama administration?), which initiatives he selects as his most important, whether he builds a strong cadre of outside allies, how he deals with the Congress and how hard he is willing to fight for what he wants.
Not unlike some other presidents, Obama essentially surrounded himself in the White House with his campaign staff, or others he knew well, rather than finding people experienced in governing. Newly elected presidents pay a heavy price if they are themselves inexperienced in governing and select top staff who lack a broad sense of what it means to run a federal government.

'via Blog this'