Posted on 07/01/2011 2:43:14 PM PDT by Biggirl
True, but only if the public figure has a likeable personality and a compelling background, which could apply to Barack Obama.
I remember how Cassius Clay/M. Ali acted in a similar fashion (at least he had achievements to brag about) in the ‘60’s and I thought that would be his downfall with the public. But, no-—the people ate it up.
I remember Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) too. He was arrogant but in a likeable way (the humorous braggadocio, alliteration, etc) and he was an Olympic gold medal winner at 18 and boxing's World Heavyweight Champion by age 22, so Clay had reason to be admired, but his conversion to Islam and subsequent refusal to be drafted (based on his new-found religion) is what eventually cooled public adoration of 'Muhammad Ali' and harmed his athletic career. However, Clay/Ali had a sense of humor, something Obama lacks, unless it is directed at a Republican.
I don’t claim to understand it for a minute but I think we are seeing something similar with Zer0, which might explain why voters rate his policies at 32% approval while he comes in personally at nearly 50%.
Obama's big grin and meteoric rise to power (on the basis of noting at all but deliberate media deceit) can help explain his 'personal' popularity. That, and the fact that he always blames everyone else for his failures, as all liberal politicians reflexively do. I also see his profound contempt for America and his narcissistic personality, which somehow seem to escape the perception of the media and much of the public, which is maddening. The MSM's relentless cheer-leading for Obama has to help his 'personal' approval numbers with the majority of Americans who are not really engaged with presidential politics. However, as the economy craters and more ordinary people are hurt by it, I expect that Obama's 'personal' popularity will take a big hit.
However, Bill Clinton, even while embroiled in a sex scandal that led to impeachment (but not removal from office) held high approval numbers (I should add the caveat: in a decent economy). I don't believe a big smile and a lot of happy talk with no discernible results in improving the economy will keep Obama in office another four years. However, Harry Truman, with a crusty personality and in a dismal economy, managed re-election against an arrogant, out-of-touch Republican (Thomas Dewey) back in 1948 so anything is possible. But even with the massive voter fraud Democrats will pursue in the 2012 election, I believe that Obama will lose. Correction: I not only believe it, I pray for it.
The whole strutting arrogance schtick actually began with wrestler Gorgeous George, of whom Ali was a keen observer.
(even George based his act on that of an earlier “rassler,” “Lord Patrick Lansdowne.”)
Those guys were at heart entertainers and people enjoyed their stuff but I never thought it was a good thing to promote in society. Now you see it in all sports and among certain politicians, who take on the egomaniac persona as an attention-getter, apparently.
Hussein, however, is NOT engaged in an act and he is most certainly NOT entertaining. The chin-in-the-air, Mussolini pose seems to be his natural posture. It reflects pathology to me although I am in no way qualified to diagnose him.
To me, he behaves like a spoiled little punk whom everyone he has ever dealt with praises and brags on-—all artificially, of course. Those traits read OBNOXIOUS to me, yet nevertheless approximately 45% of the voting public approve of him “personally” which I find completely mystifying.
It’s not so astounding, way too many people see their approval of Barack Obama as being open minded, more educated than others. It’s a matter of self image as much as it is about what others think of them.
Maybe so but you would think that 2 1/2 years of economic disaster would really “educate” them about their faux “messiah.”
I completely agree with your analysis. Obama is definitely a spoiled punk who has known nothing but undeserved praise and promotion his entire life, making him psychologically unfit to deal with the rigors of the presidency. That the MSM and Obama's handlers have been able to keep the illusion of Obama as 'brilliant', affable and hard-working seems to be nothing short of miraculous. However, I don't think it will last. Because of Obama's lack of opposition his whole life, he has few personal resources to draw on to help him deal with outright condemnation, which, you know, he'll take 'personally'.
Although the media can shield and/or defend him (to a point) from Republican and even a few Democrat attacks on his policies and the MSM completely cover his gaffs and stumbles, they won't be able to save Obama from his own hubris. In the upcoming campaign, assuming we get a conservative challenger and not a RINO, Obama will have to engage in face-to-face opposition and I think he'll make more than one grave error in that situation which will drastically undermine his fictional affability and help the politically apathetic American voter see him for what he is, that "spoiled little punk" as you aptly described him. After that, with the sour economy he can't improve, it'll finally be 'game over' for Obama.
Oh, and to explain his loss? He'll claim it was due to Americas inherent racism, what else? Deliberately ignoring the fact that a majority of white Americans voted for him in 2008. Well, that and 'sinister forces' out to 'get' him - because he was opposing 'the rich power brokers'. The MSM will run with this lie, guaranteed. Leftists always refuse to be responsible for their failures - and Obama is certainly no exception. In fact, he's now the poster boy for the classic leftist's refusal to be held accountable for their actions. That position was formally held by Barney Franks and Chris Dodd.
These are union workers that we are talking about and Obama has a third stimulus plan in the works. The bills are all drawn up and sitting in committee in the Senate. This time they broke down the individual grants and subsidies into small bills that will have to be turned down one at a time, so that the Republicans in the House will be divided over each and every bill and have to fight each other.
Did you see the list of infrastructure related bills for transportation, rail, port, internet? The list goes on and on. Interestingly, the transportation bill for the Gateway project excludes dredging, which is the one thing that the Republicans in South Carolina were asking for.
I don’t know about you, but Steve Wynn jumping in as an independent worries me quite a bit.
He might shave just enough away from the GOP candidate to hand Obama a key state or two on a silver platter.
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