Yeah, I know. Obama is cool. Fonzi was cool, too. But remember, Fonzi INVENTED jumping the shark. (That phrase has jumped itself, I know.)
But Obama also gives the American people too much credit. We're idiots. We consume. We eat whatever flavor of ice cream they put in front of us, as long as we say it's ice cream. ($10 USD to the first person who can tell me what flavor of ice cream I'm referring to, based on a seven year old blog post.)
And so the Administration can quietly deport illegal aliens. The Administration can quietly wait for health care reform to affect average Americans. The administration can foil terrorist attacks, or kill terrorist leaders in Pakistan. The Administration can (and does) quietly do all of these things and many others, many of which mark a profound change in the lives of all of us... though those effects may not be felt until down the road somewhere. You may or may not agree with these changes, but they are happening.
We have a proactive White House. They're proactive in everything except self-promotion. When it comes to talking about the great things they have done (and they have done some great things) they only get the word out in reaction to an ass-kicking by the Right.
The fact of that matter is, politics is dirty work. By trying to stay "above the fray", the WH is doing a disservice to the country. By trying to stay "above the fray", the WH is allowing the GOP to completely control the message. Sadly, this behavior will not change the nature of politics.
The Administration does not have to get dirty, but they DO need to regain control of the message.