Once-Genial Obama Comes Out Swinging

Barack Obama began his presidency with major overtures to Republicans, inviting three into his Cabinet and knocking back beer with House and Senate minority leaders at the White House. But yesterday he was in fighting mode, blasting opponents of the stimulus package as discredited and out of touch. Three weeks in, writes the New York Times, Obama is conceding that his efforts at bipartisanship have not borne fruit.

After failing to garner a single House GOP vote for the stimulus, Obama laid into Republicans with a point-by-point attack. The president didn't hesitate to question his opponents' motives, saying "I’m not sure they have a lot of credibility when it comes to fiscal responsibility." His team spent yesterday shoring up his position—releasing a poll result that showed Obama has twice the support of the Congressional GOP.
(More Barack Obama stories.)