Frank Rich: "Our Town", 1938. What goes around, comes around.
Maureen Dowd: Let's talk about Michelle's arms. Why? Because I'm Maureen Dowd. And my excuse is I'm only defending her right to show them off.
Fred Barnes: Obama's in trouble, and we have him right where we want him. Want proof? Jim Cramer and David Brooks are unhappy, and John (Mr. 15%) Boehner says he has a better plan. What more proof can you need that Obama's just like Bill Clinton and this is really 1992? And don't confuse me about Bill Clinton's failed Presidency lasting eight years. It was a failure because I said it was a failure.
Charlie Cook:
One striking feature of recent polls is the breadth and strength of Obama's support among Americans ages 50 to 64, arguably the people most hurt by the stock market's nosedive. In the most recent Gallup Poll, the president's approval rating among those in this age group was higher than ever -- 65 percent -- and was second only to his support among the youngest voters. In the latest Cook/RT survey, Obama's backing among the 50-to-64 set was 68 percent, the highest of any age group. And 47 percent strongly approved of his performance -- again, the highest of any age group.
William Schneider: You know, Republicans and Democrats don't always get along in Congress.
If the economy does not improve, voters will hold the Democrats accountable. If things get better, Republicans could face a serious political backlash. In either case, we will hear those dreaded words, "I told you so."
I'm shocked to find there's gambling in this casino.
Bob Benenson:
Republican critics — who also inflate the “wasteful spending” price tag of the stimulus bill to $1.1 trillion by tacking on projected interest payments and including the measure’s roughly $250 billion in tax cuts in the spending total — describe it as a monstrosity that will hurt and not help the nation’s economy.
Why, then, did they drop the fight when the Democrats used their Senate and House majorities to muscle the stimulus bill into law? Why not take the campaign on the road to their constituents and the public at large — by declining stimulus funds for their states and congressional districts?
The typical response to that suggestion, after they ask what planet you’re from, is that the government has now committed all that money, despite the GOP’s brave counteroffensive from the barricades. So it is now incumbent on them to make sure that their taxpayers get their fair share.
Kabuki, Republican style.
Michael Shear: God, I hope Obama doesn't turn into Jimmy Carter and scold us all the time.
National Journal: Bloggers weigh in on whether Obama has moved left, right, or not at all.