Steve Sailer’s made this point a few times, but considering Obama’s long record as a liberal of the worst kind, it’s worth re-stating:
First, more than anybody else in recent politics, Obama has internalized the rule in all the self-help books on how to win arguments: Restate your opponent’s argument respectfully to show you understand it. Since most people assume their rival disagrees with them only because he is too stupid to understand their reasons, this instantly disarms much opposition. Indeed, Obama’s intelligence and verbal skills allow him often to summarize his opponents’ ideas better than they could themselves.
What his opponents don’t realize is that, although Obama is more than smart enough to grasp their logic, he just doesn’t care about what they care about.
Obama reminds me of a famous incident in Charles De Gaulle’s career. When in 1958 he journeyed to war-torn French Algeria, where the French Army’s mutiny had propelled him back into power, he stared out for a long moment at a waiting throng of European residents, then pronounced four words: “Je vous ai compris—I have understood you.”
The mob went wild with joy. “De Gaulle understands us! He will make everything right.”
Nonetheless, much to the surprise of the pied noir Europeans who cheered De Gaulle that day, the French president then proceeded to give Algeria to the rebels, dooming Algeria’s one million Europeans to exile for life and their Arab allies to death.
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[...] Will the Dems save themselves with Al Gore? Not bloody likely, and some funny reasons why are found here. Of course, he lost a seemingly sure thing election becase of a recession in 2000 that saw unemployment a full point higher than what we have today … maybe not the best thing to point out given the present master narrative. Also hard to square with Obama’s so far effective ”I am a uniter and hear you” shtick. [...]
a horrifyingly inaccurate summary of the Algerian war. “how did our nuclear testing site get on to their sand?,” to rephrase a current slogan.
It seems to me de Gaulle threw in the towel, in spite of his initial popularity with Harkis, Pieds Noirs, and the generals.