RICHARD EPSTEIN: “The stumbling pattern of the aging athlete is reminiscent of the vacillation and weakness of today’s American leadership.” Plus this: “Right now American leadership is running scared. We have a president who thinks that bold words can ease our national decline, which has become as evident to the world as the hitch in Derek Jeter’s swing. We will know that this administration is intent on reversing the decline when the word ‘deregulation’ passes approvingly from its lips. Until that time, we should expect to see housing, labor, and financial markets remain in the doldrums.”