Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Being a Championship Chess Player

In an Op-Ed piece in the New York Times Bob Herbert likens President Obama to a "championship chess player." Beginning by his emegence stronger after a week of seemingly defeats and apologetic mishaps. I was particularly struck by these passages:

"He has certainly handled himself much better than some of the clowns carrying leadership banners for the G.O.P. Michael Steele, the new Republican Party chairman, could barely contain his glee over the fact that no Republicans voted for the stimulus package in the House. 'The goose egg that you laid on the president’s desk was just beautiful,' he said."

(I have written of Mr. Steele "Being Black Face" more than a few times here.)

"Mr. Obama is like a championship chess player, always several moves ahead of friend and foe alike. He's smart, deft, elegant and subtle. While Lindsey Graham was behaving like a 6-year-old on the Senate floor and Pete Sessions was studying passages in his Taliban handbook, Mr. Obama and his aides were assessing what’s achievable in terms of stimulus legislation and how best to get there."

President Obama seems to be dealing with men of lesser talent. We need now to surround him with men and women of the same calibre in order to move the country forward. Mr. Steele, Graham, and Sessions are obviously in the wrong "game." Checkmate.

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