Obama leaves the country.  Stock market rallies. 
Coincidence?

By all main stream accounts the President's first trip abroad is a rousing success.  And if the measure of success is determined by the middle school mindset that so long as you are liked everything will be just fine and dandy I'd have to agree, it looks like ...
 
Mission Accomplished


President Obama goofing around with his new Europals

The problem with the lefty school of foreign policy is that they see popularity as the end, we conservatives see it as the means, and, sometimes the priority on popularity for its own sake takes a back seat - - like when were fighting a war on terror. 

I don't know, it's almost as though the less articulate guy who tells the hard truth is like, some sort of swaggering idiot cowboy, but the eloquent new worlder who speaks beautifully without managing to say much is some sort of genius. (I would have said second coming but that doesn't carry much weight in secular Europe these days) 

Jonah Goldberg starts off his screed about this administrations reliance on euphemisms in place of actual policy on a similar note:

President Obama had a grand time in Europe. He wowed the press, met the queen, gave some wonderful news conferences and got virtually none of the major policy concessions he wanted. But he did do a lot of talking, for what that's worth.

RTWT Obama's word play - Opinion - USATODAY.com 

But let's take a look beyond Obama's personal popularity crusade, focus on reality for a refreshing change, and see how he did in getting what America needs, the real end, you know that pesky business of promoting and protecting AMERICAN interests.

Any commitment to more troop support in Afghanistan?  Nope, not even from NATO.
Any of our newly reinforced friendships gonna translate into stimulus investments?  Nope.

But they sure like that he listens and the way he talks.  And why shouldn't they when his main message is an echo of their disenchantment with the U.S?  Speaking of which, at what point are we going to stop hearing about what an asshole George Bush was from his successor?  So far he can't seem to discuss any problem, foreign or domestic, without blaming Bush.  He's like a one-note piano.  Just goes to show there's a world of difference between class and style.  The Ohole is long on the latter and void of the former.
 
Krauthammer shares his thoughts on the matter
YouTube - Krauthammer On Obama's 'American Arrogance ...

Speaking of talk, God bless the English, who recognize language abuse when they hear it...  Iain Martin of the London Telegraph:

Empires rising and falling, destinies being defined and a Golden City standing as a monument to unconquerable spirit... goodness, what a ham. When he really gets going he's worse than Tony Blair. 

But Obama was only warming up. "When I was born," (Everything usually leads back to him, you'll notice)... "the world was divided, and our nations were faced with very different circumstances. Few people would have predicted that someone like me would one day become an American President." (Him again)...

and

The Obamas have handled their trip well and in their public appearances have been a credit to their country. But I'll wager that within a year or so he'll be marked down as a wind-bag.
 
That puts them about 2 years behind some of us....Do read the whole thing...
Barack Obama really does go on a bit :: Iain Martin  

We should not be surprised we have a cardboard cut out foreign policy coming from a cardboard cutout President.  After all, since imagery and style alone got him this job it only follows that imagery and style alone will substitute for actual governance.
 
Matt Welch from Reason Magazine explains Obamas rhetorical sleight of hand as well as any I have seen.

A taste:
On his first day of work, he signed an executive order prohibiting lobbyists from holding high ranking administration jobs ...fulfilling a campaign promise ...Two days later, the president granted a “waiver” from the new rules to install Raytheon lobbyist William Lynn as the No. 2 man in the Pentagon.

As offenses go, the move was trivial. But as a signal of a governing pathology, it established a pattern that Obama has repeated serially since being sworn into office: reiterate a high-sounding promise from the campaign, undermine said promise with a concrete act of governance to the contrary, then claim with a straight face that the campaign promise has been and will continue to be fulfilled.

And that's just for starters.  He's pulled the same stunt on promising transparency by exposing bills for five days before signing but then signed the stimulus bill in three, promised no taxes for anyone earning under $250K followed almost immediately by a 61 cents per pack cigarette tax increase when everyone knows the poor smoke more than the rich, and as I mentioned in my chutzpah post, decried the very idea of deficit spending on the eve of tripling the deficit with his new budget. 

To read the whole Welch article >  Too Much Double-Talk From Obama

I did mention the first lady in the headline so I suppose I should say something in that regard. Basically, I am perplexed by her affect.  Perhaps it's just a matter of taste but I'm just not getting it.  It's certainly not as though the world couldn't wait to be rid of Laura Bush.  I prefer to leave spouses out of it and will only repeat what I said about the distinction between style and class.  I will grant Ms Obama is long on style, but to compare her in terms of class with Jackie Kennedy?   not.  even.  close..

I would gladly take substance as a substitute however.  The First Lady, by her position and by example, is uniquely qualified to address the problem of teen pregnancy, especially in her minority community where nationally it is a disgraceful 70%, and Milwaukee where it is an even worse 9 out of 10.  I admonish her to put some of that stylish cache on the line and try to make a positive impact on these young girls.  All the empty blather in the world from her blowhard husband will not make a bit a difference on this problem, but she could, if she were so inclined.