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Meacham: Obama 'In The Wrong Business, Doesn't Particularly Like People'

By Mark Finkelstein | November 22, 2011 | 09:14

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When it comes to the MSM, it's hard to get more mainstream than Jon Meacham.  Former Newsweek editor. Current Random House editor.  Picked for a Pulitzer Prize.

So when someone of Meacham's genteelly liberal ilk unloads on Barack Obama in such stark terms, it's newsworthy.  On today's Morning Joe, Meacham flatly stated his belief that President Obama "doesn't particularly like people and politicians who don't like people are kind of in the wrong business."  Video and more after the jump.



2011-11-22MSNBCMJMeachamFord.JPGAs you'll see in the screengrab and video, Harold Ford, Jr. was so shocked that, laughing nervously, he literally launched out of his chair.  Watch Meacham make his remarkable statement.

 

WILLIE GEIST: Hey Jon, historically, do we romanticize the relationship presidents and Congress have?  We talk a lot about Reagan and Tip O'Neill and all these relationships.  Is President Obama's--let's call it a lack of relationship with Congress--is it exceptional? Is it worse than normal?

JON MEACHAM: It's a little worse than normal.  Because even though he was there, my sense is he doesn't particularly like people and politicians who don't like people are kinda in the wrong business."

HAROLD FORD, JR.:Kinda.

MEACHAM: Kinda. I really believe this. So, Reagan wanted to perform for people.  So you could bring him in, and he, it would be a small audience. George H.W. Bush: all of his life was one long reunion mixer. Bill Clinton, uh, loved people. So I think this is a personality distinction.
 

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Mark Finkelstein is a NewsBusters Senior Contributor. Click here to follow Mark Finkelstein on Twitter.
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Comments

Too be fair that's Beltway B.S.

Submitted by Bill C on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 9:37am.

There are a TON of faults with Obama but to say that it is not being schmoozing and back-slapping fake (which he comes off as anyway) is what disqualifies him shows where the DC media's priorities are.

"Hey this guy plunged us deeper into a historic recession, screwed up our healthcare, skyrocketed our debt, and got our credit downgraded. But if he was more like Joe Biden he'd be just a dandy President and a heck of a pal at Happy Hour to boot!"

USELESS HACKS.

Meacham's right.

Submitted by motherbelt on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:05am.

Obama's not a "schmoozer" because he's unable to hide his condescension for just about everyone he considers "beneath" him, which IS just about everyone

. If you consider all the times he starts out talking seriously about a subject, and then can't resist slipping in the snide 7th-grade level dig,

(the election's over, John; I won. No, they can't have the keys back, they gotta sit in the back seat. Take off your bedroom slippers and put on your marching shoes! )

it becomes plain that he just can't help talking down to people.

Obama is a narcissist

Submitted by Galvanic on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:24am.

I don't agree with Meacham that he doesn't like people. What he doesn't like it criticism. Narcissists are suspicious of people, particularly those who criticize them.  In their minds, people are envious of them, and therefore not to be trusted.

Hence, Obama likes his trusted inner circle because he knows they are dedicated to feeding his narcissism.  He is also energized by adoring crowds because all he has to do is shale a lot of hands.

But as I have posted in the past, I don't think Obama enjoys the job of President, because he hates his critics and he hates having to make decisions that draw more criticism.  He lacks the political skills to bring about compromise and he lacks the leadership experience to inspire and rally to success.

And as more and more Democrats distance themselves from Obama, his resentment and suspicion grows.

Obama usually looks exhausted.

Galvanic

Submitted by amyshulk on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 4:27pm.

IMO he's an Obamaist - he believes he is above *everyone*

I'm reminded of the 4 panel political cartoon I thought of {imagined} shortly after he was elected;

Pres. Bush: alone in the room, arrow to him as the "Smartest guy in the room"
Pres. Bush; in a room with his advisers, arrow to all *but* him as "the Smartest guy(s) in the room"
Pres. Obama: alone in the room, arrow to him as "Smartest guy in the room"
Pres. Obama: in a room with his advisers, arrow to him as "Smartest guy in the room"

This is how I see him. He can't surround himself with real advisers because he doesn't respect them, won't listen to them, and as you note, constantly needs positive feedback to feed his ego.

I tried to explain to my sis how bad this was going to be, and while I disagreed with Pres. Bush on many choices he made, at least he was smart enough to know he couldn't know everything!!!

The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
Ronald Reagan

I think Obama just doesn't like the Executive part of . . .

Submitted by Galvanic on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 4:43pm.

. . . the Executive Branch. He's a promoter of nebulous ideas like Hope and Change, but he's not a details guy, nor does he surround himself with details people. Not accustomed to making decisions, he didn't understand how critical it was to get the inner circle right. Unfortunately, as he discovered, a campaign staff does not necessarily function as a WH staff.

Now he senses increasing isolation politically. He's trying to get some of the old magic back on the road, but even if that works, it's only temporary, because he doesn't know how to make the Executive Branch function, And what's worse, I don't think he cares any more at this stage.

So, the solution as Otter and Bluto would say: "Road trip."

He's out campaigning because every minute he spends in Washington reminds people how ineffective he is.

Barry said the oceans would stop rising

Submitted by Ashrak on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 9:39am.

but he is now seeing the tidal wave coming toward him and he is going to wish it was only as damaging as the one that hit Japan.

Make no mistake, the Old Media is turning on Barry, seeing Mitt Romney as its last best hope for 2012.

That an individual right exists requires that some policy positions be removed from the table of debate.

Ashrak, don't think for a

Submitted by Kenny Bunkport on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 12:02pm.

Ashrak, don't think for a second that the MSM is really supporting Romney. They are repeating the strategy that was so successful in 2008.

They MSM finds the biggest RINO in the GOP lineup and lobbies for him. They know if he wins the nomination that it will alienate the more conservative elements, whom they hope will stay home in November, or better yet, put in a 3rd party conservative or libertarian candidate. They know right now, the only prayer Obama has in 2012 is a party split. Remember 1992 and Ross Perot?

Don't worry, after they get their GOP pick nominated, the media will turn on him like a rabid pit bull, as they did McCain in 2008. He even commented how the media coverage did a 180 on him.

The good news is that despite being being a possible RINO, Romney is still a better candidate than McCain, and lightyears better than Obama. Obama the Unknown ran as a moderate Democrat in 2008, he can't run as anything but a leftist now. Romney will chew him up in the debates. We just need to hope that Ron Paul doesn't f*&#k it up for America by running as a 3rd party candidate.

Republicans need to understand that ANY Republican will be better than Obama. Yes, it may be the difference between a quick or a slow decline for America, but I'm sure the passengers on the Titanic would have liked to slowed its sinking. Unfortunately, we don't have a 2nd coming of Ronald Reagan this year.

               A gun in your hand beats a cop on the phone.

It's amazing that Obama got

Submitted by motherbelt on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:03am.

It's amazing that Obama got elected ONCE by talking about how flawed this country is and he would "fundamentally transform" it.

I really can't imagine him winning a second time by telling us it's worse than he thought and he needs more time.

But in the Leghumper's TV

Submitted by killa37 on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:22am.

But in the Leghumper's TV interview the other day, he was talking about the similiarities between Boy Barry and JFK - and he said one of them was their ability to inspire people with their message about this country!!! Now, I remember what JFK said, and I remember what BS+BHO said..................and I was having a hard time finding any similiairities. I guess it was that they both gave a speech in Berlin???

What Obama likes...

Submitted by c5then on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:11am.

Golf
Trips to foreign countries
Vacations
bowing to foreign heads of state
Golf
Reading from a teleprompter
Vacations
raising money
Golf

 

Madison and Jefferson and Franklin built a Republic - Roberts killed it! 

I dunno............he sure

Submitted by killa37 on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:18am.

I dunno............he sure seemed to liked Bill Ayers, Rev. Wright, Saul Alinksy, Tony Revko, George Soros, Rahm Emmanuelle, David Axelrod, and these union thugs who constantly visit the White House...............I think he even liked his 'typical white' grandmother until he threw her under the bus - before she died unexpectedly.

He also really seemed to like it when everybody was buying into his 'hoax and chains' schtick, including the press. And we KNOW how much he likes himself!!!!

Awww, Killa!

Submitted by almostacowboy on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 11:45am.

You stole my thunder (again)! :-)

Obamugabe cannot connect with people who do not share the radical progressive-socialist dream. I use the word "dream" instead of "agenda" because they will never be satisfied and it is impossible to achieve - especially in America where people will fight back. If you do not share that dream it's just because you aren't smart enough to see how a protective, benevolent government is in your best interest [sarc].

He is narcissistic, condescending, and has the "daddy, please love me" thing going on.

Sorry about stealing your

Submitted by killa37 on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 2:02pm.

Sorry about stealing your thunder, cowboy - I had to get up to use the bathroom, and I looked around the news and threads for a few minutes before I went back to sleep. Actually, since I'm a few hours behind you guys - I'm usually running on the late side of these stories.

Yeah, that 'daddy' thing probably has some deep inroads into his addled brain - especially the kind of 'dads' that he's been influenced by.

Meacham is absolutely right.

Submitted by johnsonl on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 10:47am.

Obamao is an elitist, narcissistic academic. He is disdainful of others, whom he considers beneath him.

Academics are incapable of actually running anything like a business or a government. They love to pontificate abiout fairness and the like, but cannot accept that their ideas don't work in the real world. That's why they hide in the academic world of tenure, where they are guaranteed a cushy living. If they had to work for their money, they'd starve.

Obama - so why is he President of the United States?

Submitted by Gary Hall on Tue, 11/22/2011 - 1:41pm.

Needless to say, that was a rhetorical question in the subject line.

Who, this guy? He doesn't like world leaders or other politicians (either party), and clearly he doesn't like the views held by the majority of the country. I don't even think he likes the guy, or gal, on the street.

  • Our Divisive President -  Barack Obama promised a new era of post-partisanship. In office, he's played racial politics and further split the country along class and party lines. By PATRICK H. CADDELL AND DOUGLAS E. SCHOEN
  • During the election campaign, Barack Obama sought to appeal to the best instincts of the electorate, to a post-partisan sentiment that he said would reinvigorate our democracy. He ran on a platform of reconciliation—of getting beyond "old labels" of right and left, red and blue states, and forging compromises based on shared values.
  • Rather than being a unifier, Mr. Obama has divided America on the basis of race, class and partisanship. Moreover, his cynical approach to governance has encouraged his allies to pursue a similar strategy of racially divisive politics on his behalf.

Or, this guy?

  • On the world stage, President Obama often looks a little lonely, like a man without a friend. But then, he doesn't seem to believe he needs one.  [..]
  • "My own sense is that he doesn't really have good buds" among world leaders, said Peter Hakim, president emeritus of the Inter-American Dialogue, a think tank. "He can pick up the phone and talk to any leader and get a good response, but it's business.
  • Note: The sad thing about this article, was that it seemed to be a desperate attempt to put a positive spin on a shocking revelation, by the LATimes.

Or, this one:

MSNBC's Chris Matthews, this past Saturday - Noel Sheppard covered, here, He's got the worst kind of a  notion of the Presidency:

  • WITT: Tell me one.
  • MATTHEWS: They don't call. He never calls. That's the, that’s the message. Members of Congress, I keep asking, “When did you hear from him last?”
  • WITT: Silence.
  • MATTHEWS: He doesn't like their company.

Maybe, he's this guy:

  • The Alien in the White House - The distance between the president and the people is beginning to be revealed. JUNE 9, 2010 By DOROTHY RABINOWITZ

Seems everyone in the MSM knows - yet, it won't be seen on the front page of your national media, and the press will not ask questions about such deeply concerning flaws with this President - in national public view.

(;~/ gary

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