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It's Been 3 Weeks, Not 4 Years

A rocky stretch this early won't define Obama's presidency

By Gabriel Winant, Newser User

Posted Feb 11, 2009 9:38 AM CST

(Newser) – Stop worrying. “Sure, President Obama had a lousy week. A week is not a presidency.” In fact, writes Ruth Marcus in the Washington Post, despite Tom Daschle's withdrawal and the bumpy rollout of the stimulus, Obama is outperforming any reasonable standard. He’s signed major laws on pay equity and children’s health care, and his stimulus—finally passed—only barely differs from his original proposal.

“The shape of a presidency cannot be discerned from its first few weeks,” Marcus writes. At this point, President Clinton was 2 months from losing his fight for a $16 billion stimulus, and President Bush "was being lauded for his bipartisan outreach." Sit tight, Marcus advises: "Only if you expected to wake up the day after the inauguration and see unicorns prancing across the Mall should you be particularly surprised at the current state of play."

[Images (4)]

[Quotes (2)]

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., talks to reporters after the final passage of the stimulus bill, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2009, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Barack Obama steps off Air Force One, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2009, after returning to Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

President Barack Obama gestures during a town hall meeting to discuss the economy, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2009, at the Harborside Events Center in Fort Myers, Fla. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

In this Feb. 2, 2009 file photo, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle arrives for a closed session meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington. Daschle's withdrawal was a blow to the new president. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

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Expecting the Obama team to operate perfectly under these conditions is like expecting a first-year med student to perform surgery -- before the stethoscopes have been handed out. - Ruth Marcus

So if you're feeling jittery about Obama's start, ask yourself this: Is there another president in recent memory who would have done better? - Ruth Marcus

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 12 comments

jaguarj

Feb 13, 2009 5:05 AM CST

Isn't underway and inherit the same thing??? Hello!!!!

riffran

Feb 12, 2009 10:43 PM CST

I think it's funny how when Bush took office, he was the blame for a recession already underway from Clinton's, reign, but when Obama takes over....he INHERITS the recession ..........hmmmmmmm

Guest

Feb 12, 2009 5:22 AM CST

The answer is somewhere in the middle not all the way to the left. Small corrections my friend not 180 degrees and then 180 degrees again. All that does is land you right back where you started and unless you like where you are now that's not all that appealing.

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It's Been 3 Weeks, Not 4 Years