Comments on: How Not to Organize a Government

By: Marc Malone

Marc Malone — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 09:13:56 +0000

Bill Gates said something once when Microsoft was at its peak. If you take away maybe 30 key people, Microsoft would cease to be dominant. (paraphrased)

The president’s advisors are the key to his administration, and he’s just plain getting it wrong. Jimmy Carter’s 2nd term.

By: Walt

Walt — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 12:27:58 +0000

This problem is what we tried to warn you about BEFORE the election!!!!!!

Members of the House and the Senate bring very little to the table in the way of experience in anything. They have the easiest jobs in the world, with all the labor being done by their staffs (who tell them how to vote on a given bill). The office holder spends all of their time planning and collecting money for their next election. Knowledge, ability, honesty are not prerequsites!

By: DavidN

DavidN — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 02:43:20 +0000

The thing is, you can’t figure out what’s going to happen next with this guy. He appoints a bunch of serial tax evaders to his cabinet and high level positions in his administration, then, when the Daschle thing blows up in his face, goes in front of Katie Couric and says he “screwed up” and needs to own up to it. He also mentioned that he needed to send the message that there aren’t two sets of rules in this country, one for the rest of us and one for the elite. Well, jeez, I guess he gets the message (not to the extent of bumping Geithner of the stage, of course, but otherwise). You get the impression Obama is reasonably intelligent and wants to do the right thing, but he’s terribly inexperienced, and surrounded by people who aren’t that bright, who are where they are mainly because they helped choose this guy and groom him for the presidency. Problem is we don’t really have the time to do on the job training here.

By: frank

frank — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 02:12:21 +0000

He’s done, he’s on empty with nothing left to offer after getting elected. He used it all up getting here. With no theme or inspiration to carry him, every word, every sentence is a strain, you can see it. Appointments are haphazard, policy isn’t even an organized set of values. Game over.Tilt.

By: Ben

Ben — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 22:12:38 +0000

Keep up the positive attitude and willingness to offer legitimate advice. I will be disgusted if conservatives and people critical of President Obama give him the same treatment and demonization that folks have given George W. Bush. I appreciate your commentary.

By: thomas

thomas — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:31:15 +0000

So, if this was all very obvious all the while, even to the likes of me, what do we make of Mr. Obama? Callow? Not bright enough? Bad to the bone? No good choice there.

By: wrecktafire

wrecktafire — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:20:34 +0000

Ditto to self-hating Boomer.

A U.S.Senator is 1/100th of a CEO, governor, etc.

By: WR Jonas

WR Jonas — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:15:32 +0000

Some very valid and interesting viewpoints Mr. Ledeen.I think Obamas greatest deficiency is lack of leadership ability. He speaks well but there is no substance to his rhetoric and he has few central beliefs. His core values are pure Marxist pap and they do not create inspiration in his followers. When the paint wears a bit thinner on his veneer the nation will become disgusted with his incredible shallowness.

By: Anton

Anton — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:57:40 +0000

He would do better to check with the IRS to be sure that they have completed the last few tax forms properly before he started creating new positions (patronages?) within the White House. The claim that he ran a great campaign as qualifier for running a great country still makes my head spin. He hired lots of people and spent loads of money to get elected, now he is hiring even more people and spending unimaginable amounts of money hoping to “get things done”. He has never run anything bigger than his household (even money on who is really in charge there) or balanced a budget for a business. I think he is still trying to wrap his head around the idea that all of the decisions will be his baby from now on. You can hire a thousand experts but when it come time to make the call there is only one person sitting at the desk in the Oval Office.

By: Terry O

Terry O — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 19:25:08 +0000

Brian brought up a point not specifically made in the article about the current vice-President. I work in the stock market and we’d cringe whenever Hank Paulson stepped to the podium. The market was sure to drop at least a hundred points. Joe Biden has a similar effect on me. Every time he opens his mouth I wonder, “What in the world convinced fifty million people, much less a preponderance of Delaware voters that this guy has a single molecule of brain power. He is an absolute moron, perhaps especially his ‘forte,’ foreign policy.”