Like tar balls on a Pensacola beach, doubts about Pres. Obama's leadership are beginning to accumulate even among his most avid supporters appearing in the MSM. Today's Morning Joe provided two prime examples of the phenomenon in the persons of Jeffrey Sachs and Donny Deutsch.
Both men are self-described Obama supporters. Yet each expressed disappointment at the lack of leadership the president has demonstrated on the oil spill and other issues.
Columbia U. professor Sachs went first, sounding like a serious candidate for a Zoloft transfusion. Sachs was reacting to Joe Scarborough's suggestion that PBO seize the moment by addressing a joint session of Congress and issuing a post-Sputnik like summons for America to rise to the current challenge by leading the world in clean-energy solutions.
JEFFREY SACHS: This White House just hasn't done that in any area. And that's the huge surprise.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Isn't that the problem right now, moving ahead though? I mean, look at banking reform --
SACHS: We precisely thought we were electing someone who was going to show the direction and take us forward. And what we ended up so far with is a lot of back-room negotiations with Congress on everything without the president being out in front.
Let's have some sympathy for Sachs: tough to discover your idol has feet of oily clay. Later, Donny Deutsch, another big Obama fan, broke out the l-word.
BRZEZINSKI: Everybody that you talk to, we talk to folks who are very close to the president, very high up in the White House, they say that [providing leadership] is exactly what he's doing, but they're very frustrated with the narrative and the negativity surrounding his, quote, leadership pertaining to the oil spill.
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Jeffrey Sachs, big Obama supporter, but did you see Jeffrey? Jeffrey just is down right now.
BRZEZINSKI: Yes. I think he's still really pulling for this White House--he's an Obama supporter --
SCARBOROUGH: He still supports the White House. What about you, Donny? You've been a huge fan of the president. What's going on? Are we being too tough?
DONNY DEUTSCH: No.
SCARBOROUGH: Actually, we're just asking questions. Are the guests being too tough?
DEUTSCH: No. They're citizens of this country as I am also. And I've come on, and there's been nobody who's a bigger Obama supporter. We're in a Rubik's cube now. There's just some serious stuff going on now. And you, you don't feel [pause] the leadership.
Ouch.
