I voted for the guy. I was quite unthrilled to vote for him. It was probably the first time since my first time to vote in 1988 that I thought both parties had nominated the worst candidate.
I am a moderate independent. I have voted for every winning president since 1988.
I viewed Mitt Romney as a decent candidate - no real ideological principles except for competence. That is obviously a bad sell in the Republican party.
I thought perhaps Hillary was the best candidate - a pretty well known corrupt politician but who was at least competent and who was pretty frank about both her competence and corrupt past.
But we got McCain and Obama. As between the two, i actually thought that Obama, while totally inexperienced had the temperament and judgment to be president.
I was wrong. The inexperience and lack of judgment attendant with that deficit shows. The servile stance on anything ponied up by Pelosi and crew is pathetic - but, you know, democrats got a clean supermajority and were entitled to a 20 year wad holding explosion. but it is like he is the young little nephew who listens to the old folks.
Then, health care came and it is clear that he had little interest in any sort of new politics at all, he just wanted his plan implemented. It would be the first time in a long time that a new major entitlement would be passed on strict party line - as a libertarian, i do not like entitlements, and even worse are those on party lines - especially when some logrolling would get some across the line votes.
But it was the gates thing that really turned me.
I am a half mexican half jew whose parents never benefited from affirmative action. At every step i have chosen to not state my ethnicity. I desire to be judged for my hard work. When i have been stopped for speeding, i am beyond courteous.
So, when obama is asked about some trivial local story in a press conference that was absolutely a tour de force of his and almost had me change my mind on health care, and he says he does not know all the facts and judges, well, my bells go off.
Any lawyer trained at any ABA law school knows that until you have the facts, you reserve judgment. it is how you avoid mistakes in counseling clients, it is why you are a professional.
and here this guy says the cops "acted stupidly" - either obama is a boob or auto reflexed a condemnation of a white cop arresting a black man.
either way, my vote for someone with judgment and temperament in spite of lack of experience was wrong. I apologize for my vote for him. I also see that his strong disapproval number is now way above his strong approval. I remain convincable that if he exercises some judgment and hires some people in that white house with executive experience, i might change. I notice that his foreign policy, other than his execrable treatment of israel, has been good - mostly because it is managed by experienced envoys and Hillary.