The New Obama

Oct 24, 2012 Jonathan Schell

After the second debate between US President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, his supporters celebrated the return of the "old" Obama of 2009. But that Obama is gone forever, replaced by a colder, harder, and sadder man who tries, often unconvincingly, to play the part of his former self.

NEW YORK – After the second debate between US President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, Obama’s supporters chorused in near-unison, “He’s back!” The languid, disengaged, and lackluster performer of the first debate had disappeared, and the impressive, beloved figure of the victorious 2008 campaign had reappeared. As the commentator Andrew Sullivan put it, “I saw the person I first saw...I saw the president I thought I knew.”

To my eye, however, the old Obama was not back. A new Obama had appeared. The old Obama was youthful, charming, graceful, and full of hope. His demeanor was crisp yet easy-going. His rhetoric soared. His smile could light up a stadium.

The Obama on display in the second debate – and the third – was harder, chillier, sadder, and more somber. There was tension in the lines of his mouth. His speech was clipped, as if under continuous rigorous control. His rhetoric did not soar, could not soar. The smile was rare and constrained.

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0 Comments on this paragraph, 6 Comments on this article

Elizabeth Pula Oct 28, 2012

Obama is not just a performer who adjusts his message to the audience. Obama is dealing with exhaustion and reality of the position that he has held for 4 years. Obama not only has the guts to be direct, his sincerity and directness shows through even if he was exhausted duringthat first debate. Romney does not show any semblance to credibility or honesty. Obama does. Both politicians are both tops in political US gamesmanship, but reasonable honesty and credibility to reveal what needs to be publicly revealed appropriately shows in Obama's face, and his public messages.
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Ira Upin Oct 26, 2012

I read your article not necessarily as a criticism of the President but as a clear observation of what the reality of the job has done to him. He is operating under unique circumstances that must cause copious amounts of his energy to be spent on maintaining his public composure in the face of blatant disrespect and absolute obstruction from his foes. The human tragedy is that a truly decent man in the toughest job there is must do this job with the added burden of opposition based on racism, stupidity, and meanness and the entire country suffers the result. No wonder he is grey, "harder, chillier, sadder, and more somber". If my assessment is correct then your article is the most clear eyed description of the truth about Obama that has been written.
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Zsolt Hermann Oct 25, 2012

The problem is how the role of the President is portrayed.
Even in this article the writer analyzes Mr. Obama's gestures, the lines around his mouth, during the campaign we hear about what music they like, what beer they brew, we talk about their wives and so on.
The whole picture is that here we have some extraordinary individuals, with a magic wand in their hands and as soon as they are elected they can change the world.
So candidates before office reflect this attitude, most probably they themselves believe they can change if not the world but at least make significant changes to their country.
Even before a President or Prime Minister of any country had bow their heads before lobbies, powerful interest groups, sponsors and international commitments, but today when the whole world has become a totally intertwined, interdependent network, sinking into a never before experienced crisis, the realization that you are simply a cogwheel without any personal freedom to think or act can make the "youthful enthusiasm" disappear.
The sooner the media, and all elements of society understand that whether you are a street sweeper or a President you are just a cogwheel in the global network, the sooner we stop placing impossible expectations on certain individuals, and start understanding that only a globally mutual cooperation can achieve any positive results.
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Denis Lee Onyango Oct 25, 2012

Mr. Schell your observations are spot on although one must note that President Obama's remarks at the convention charmed and soar because it was different platform and different times. The lackluster performance of the first debate was a tactic recommended by senior advisors intended to debate a more conservative Romney and drawing a sharp contrast. This was a political miscalculation because a more moderate and rigorous Romney showed up and it was difficult to shift the tactics to counter a more moderate pesky fellow challenging him.
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Guy Tuthill Oct 25, 2012

I think this is too generous. Once in office he behaved in ways that were completely at odds with his campaign promise, and he is excused as one who was compelled to change by the office and Republicans.

But the change was too quick and too easy. There was no period of idealistic struggling that gave way to hard pragmatism. There is no evidence that he tried and failed. He simply was not the president that he promised to be.
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Tristan de Inés Oct 24, 2012

Unfortunately, I have to agree with your observation.
As Yakov Smirnoff would (perhaps) say;
Before the White House, you want to change Washington.
Inside the White House, Washington changes you!
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