Friday, December 4, 2009

When Will Obama Offer David Brooks a Job?

With The New York Times bleeding money I cannot help but wonder if David Brooks is auditioning for a job in the Obama Administration.

Brooks, The Gray Lady's "conservative" columnist, positively gushes over Obama's governing style in his latest offering:

The election revolved around passionate rallies. The Obama White House revolves around a culture of debate. He leads long, analytic discussions, which bring competing arguments to the fore. He sometimes seems to preside over the arguments like a judge settling a lawsuit.

His policies are often a balance as he tries to accommodate different points of view. He doesn’t generally issue edicts. In matters foreign and domestic, he seems to spend a lot of time coaxing people along. His governing style, in short, is biased toward complexity.

This style has never been more evident than in his decision to expand the war in Afghanistan. America traditionally fights its wars in a spirit of moral fervor. Most war presidents cast themselves as heroes on a white charger, believing that no one heeds an uncertain trumpet.

Obama, on the other hand, cloaked himself in what you might call Niebuhrian modesty.

President Obama constantly issues edicts. We are not to meddle in Iran's internal affairs. The Cambridge Police Department acted stupidly. We will implement health care reform without adding a dime to the deficit. Niebuhrian modesty my foot.

But when you consider Brooks' drooling prose as well as his disdain for Sarah Palin (he has at various times referred to her as "a cancer" and as "a joke") you could be looking at the next White House Press Secretary. Or perhaps he will be given the simple task of holding President Obama's teleprompter in place.

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