Disturbing Disconnect Hanging Up Prez

A year into his presidency, President Obama isn't reading from the same page as the American people and may not even be reading from the same book, writes Peggy Noonan. A president needs to have a "deep and shrewd sense of the people," but Obama seems blind to the concerns of American citizens and their deep reservations about his policies, Noonan notes in the Wall Street Journal.

The president hasn't shown any sign of noticing his falling approval ratings or being flexible enough to act on them, Noonan writes, which is deepening the disconnect between Americans and their government and making Obama's administration seem stale just a year in. "If the president wants to lead toward something better, he should try listening," Noonan writes. "If you can't connect through the words you speak, at least you can do it through your ability to hear." (More health care reform stories.)