How did we get to this point? Barack Obama's descent into unpopularity began in July when he overstepped his bounds and went out of his way to attack a hard working police officer who was rigorously questioning a man who may have been breaking into a home. The man in question was Obama's friend, a black Harvard professor. Within days it became clear that Obama had gone too far in getting involved with this local matter, and injected race where it should not have been injected. He then tried to smooth things over with his "Beer Summit" but it was too little, too late by that time. Obama had lost his moral authority and his credibility was shattered. In August, the health care debate erupted in town halls across America and the intensity of opposition was fully revealed. And Obama was seen as a man who represented the elites against the common man.
It did not have to be this way. He seems to be simply following the lead of Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi rather than leading them. In some ways, Obama cannot lose in this election, if he plays it smart. If the Democrat wins, then he maintains his 60 vote filibuster-proof majority. But if the Republican wins, then Obama would be smart to shift to the middle and thus may blunt the most fervent opposition to his policies.
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