Ron Fournier Quotes
At the start of his second term, one wonders less about Obama's fitness than his willingness: Why doesn't he do more to build and maintain the relationships required to govern in era of polarization?
It's a deft trick to turn American exceptionalism into an exceptional political tactic.
According to a Public Policy Polling survey, most Americans find lice and colonoscopies more appealing than Capitol Hill.
With gridlock the norm, Congress's approval rating is below 10 percent and the public has lost faith in its national leadership.
If acknowledging that racial misgivings and misunderstandings are still a part of politics and life in America, I plead guilty.
Blending hard-bitten realism with long-view optimism, Obama said that every 20 or 30 years brings a new cycle of pessimism in America.
For a man who has compared himself to Theodore Roosevelt and the nation's challenges to those of the Gilded Age, Obama put forward a tepid agenda.
I'm hearing echoes of Bill Clinton, circa 1996, in President Obama's reelection rhetoric.
Although we were never pals and occasionally butted heads, my relationship with Clinton and his wife, Hillary, made me a better journalist.
Obama might do well to remember that his fast rise from the Illinois state Senate was due in large part to an uncanny ability to make friends and find mentors.
President George W. Bush won reelection in 2004 largely because he was seen as comfortable in his own skin, while rival John Kerry was viewed as a flip-flopping opportunist.
Every now and then, a presidential candidate surprises us with a truly human and honest moment.
The failure of the White House and Congress to seriously address the nation's fiscal situation is certain to broaden the belief among many voters that the U.S. political system is broken.
Perhaps we should wait until his second term begins before carving Barack Obama's face in Mount Rushmore. Is that asking too much?
Historians will likely give Obama credit for steering the country away from the brink of economic collapse in 2009.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is the most influential woman in Washington - for what she has accomplished and for what she may yet do: win the presidency.
A concrete agenda and landslide victory might not even guarantee a president his mandate in a capital as polarized as Washington.
By nominating Chuck Hagel to be his Defense secretary, President Obama is putting forward an aloof contrarian who doesn't suffer fools - a striving politician who considers himself above politics.
Don't underestimate questions from the crowd; technology has made voters more informed than ever.
Somebody must be up and somebody must be down. Trouble is, campaigns are messy, subtle creatures that don't follow convenient narratives.
Like a cowboy saddling a bucking stallion, Republican leaders tried to tame the Tea Party while riding it to victories.
The 2016 presidential election is ripe for the emergence of a game-changing political leader who either dramatically reforms one of the existing parties or mounts an independent bid.
Most Tea Party activists consider Obama a big-spending liberal. Some even question his eligibility to be president.
Obama ran a hard-edged and negative campaign against Romney, hoping to convince recession-weary voters that his rival was unworthy of the job.
Obama considers himself above deal-making and back-slapping, political necessities he often delegates to Vice President Joe Biden and other lesser sorts.
'Argo,' 'Lincoln,' and 'Zero Dark Thirty,' three films honored with Best Picture Oscar nominations, lionize their Washington-anchored protagonists as crafty, competent, and virtually incorruptible.
White House operatives went to great lengths to show Obama shifting focus from wars abroad to domestic issues at home.
We're living in an era of unprecedented change, and I want to be a part of documenting it.
Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt faced adversities that, in their times, seemed impregnable. Great presidents overcome great odds.
The fact that Obama is getting criticism from the left and the right might reflect his understanding of the underlying political dynamics.
Since declaring that she would not serve in a second Obama administration, Clinton has dismissed suggestions that she will run in 2016.
Political reporters and political professionals rushed to judgment against Romney because we crave clear, unambiguous story lines.
Palin seems to have forgotten that her poll ratings have plummeted since the summer of 2011.
A presidential debate is a job interview. And voters look for certain traits in people applying to be president.
Obama still has work to do with the vision thing. Convincing voters that he has a credible, practical plan to turn the nation around is a process, not a speech.
Mandates are rarely won on election night. They are earned after Inauguration Day by leaders who spend their political capital wisely, taking advantage of events without overreaching.
Obama is capable - as evidenced by his first-term success with health care reform. But mandate-building requires humility, a trait not easily associated with him.
Movies such as 'Mr. Smith Goes to Washington' in 1939 to 'Dave' in 1993 portray Washington leaders as the ultimate Everymen - decent people just like you and me, only thrust onto greatness.
In times of tumult, voters are likely to forgive a president, if not reward him, for compromises made in service of solutions.
It's a bit unfair to accuse Obama of dividing the nation when the facts show that it already is.
