David Axelrod, his chief campaign strategist, addresses one of the biggest reasons why the President should be reelected:
"I find it as cool to be an Obama supporter. Having sat with him for two years is the White House and watched him -- watching him work through some very difficult things with a lot of intelligence and grace, equilibrium. I, I have great admiration for him," Obama's chief campaign strategist told CNN.
This in reaction to Obama's own words last week about his waning coolness:
"It's not as cool to be an Obama supporter as it was in 2008, with the posters and all of that stuff," he acknowledged to an intimate gathering of donors in Miami this week.
It's a line he delivered with a chuckle, a variation on a theme that he is using with his base of supporters. But it holds an important truth for the Obama campaign: Obama is now a known quantity and he will not inspire voters this election the same way he did in the previous one.
It's all about the cool. Ability and competence take a back seat. As long as he's hip and with it, he's in. Lose the cool, lose the election.
And so the basis for your typical Obama supporter stereotype gets affirmed once again.
Comments (28)
I was worried about the eco... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Bob | June 20, 2011 6:40 AM | Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
I was worried about the economy, national health care, the debt, the war in Libya, etc., but if its still COOL to be an Obama supporter…maybe I'll have to rethink my 2012 vote. NOT!
1. Posted by Bob | June 20, 2011 6:40 AM |
Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 06:40
2. Posted by Maggie Mama | June 20, 2011 8:17 AM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Obama's just lowering the bar for himself. He really believes he will be elected in a landslide. All the while thinking to himself, "Just how cool would that be!"
2. Posted by Maggie Mama | June 20, 2011 8:17 AM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 08:17
3. Posted by Ken D. | June 20, 2011 8:45 AM | Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
When people like Axelrod start using the word "cool" to describe why they support this administration, they're running out of ammunition.
3. Posted by Ken D. | June 20, 2011 8:45 AM |
Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 08:45
4. Posted by Gladius | June 20, 2011 9:15 AM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
He has to run on something cause he can't run on his record...unless it would be criminal.
4. Posted by Gladius | June 20, 2011 9:15 AM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 09:15
5. Posted by GarandFan | June 20, 2011 9:23 AM | Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
"...watching him work through some very difficult things with a lot of intelligence and grace, equilibrium."
Can we have some examples Mr Axelrod, or would asking "be a distraction"?
5. Posted by GarandFan | June 20, 2011 9:23 AM |
Score: 11 (11 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 09:23
6. Posted by Caesar Augustus | June 20, 2011 9:45 AM | Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
Did you expect anything different from the world's first affirmative action presidency?
6. Posted by Caesar Augustus | June 20, 2011 9:45 AM |
Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 09:45
7. Posted by JLawson | June 20, 2011 9:50 AM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
No, it wouldn't be a distraction, but probably racist.
Funny thing, though - I'm seeing complainst on the left about Obama's performance, and nobody ever tries playing the racism card. Maybe they're figuring it out? Understanding that just maybe competence has nothing to do with skin color, and a used-car salesman might not be the best choice for President - regardless of what you want to accomplish?
7. Posted by JLawson | June 20, 2011 9:50 AM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 09:50
8. Posted by Chico | June 20, 2011 10:22 AM | Score: -14 (16 votes cast)
I think it's going to be Romney/Rubio vs Obama/Clinton. Biden will have to go to jazz up the ticket with Hillary.
You heard it from Chico first.
8. Posted by Chico | June 20, 2011 10:22 AM |
Score: -14 (16 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 10:22
9. Posted by Art W | June 20, 2011 10:31 AM | Score: -11 (13 votes cast)
I'm with you except for the Clinton part, Chico. I don't think she'll run again -- even as VP.
9. Posted by Art W | June 20, 2011 10:31 AM |
Score: -11 (13 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 10:31
10. Posted by WildWillie | June 20, 2011 10:43 AM | Score: 12 (14 votes cast)
Hillary will not accept the second spot. No way.
And Art W, you still haven't explained to us all the bad emails your liberal buddies were going to find. You know, the ones that would make your day and ruin ours? Where are they? Typical bully. All mouth. ww
10. Posted by WildWillie | June 20, 2011 10:43 AM |
Score: 12 (14 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 10:43
11. Posted by Chico | June 20, 2011 10:54 AM | Score: -15 (15 votes cast)
Hillary will not accept the second spot. No way.
Come on, the second spot all but guaranteeing her the nomination in 2016?
It's gonna happen. She ran for president because she wanted to be president. Do you think she's given that dream up?
Also, the bullpen on the Democratic side is as weak as that on the Republican side. I don't see a lot of up-and-comers in either party, just losers and lunatics.
11. Posted by Chico | June 20, 2011 10:54 AM |
Score: -15 (15 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 10:54
12. Posted by Olsoljer | June 20, 2011 11:05 AM | Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
Romney is, was, and always will be a typical politician. I don't think he will make it through the primaries and will have to drop out. He is one of the "good ol' boys" and it is painfully obvious it's his "turn".
I really believe the status quo for politics will be dumped on its ass this next election.
12. Posted by Olsoljer | June 20, 2011 11:05 AM |
Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 11:05
13. Posted by jim m | June 20, 2011 11:18 AM | Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
Hillary won't run with obama because she wants the top job and being VP will guarantee that she never gets it. obama is unlikely to win in 2012 (it's not impossible but it is unlikely). If he does win and continues with his current policies he will completely destroy this nation's economy and no one will be voting democrat in 2016. Hillary does better by letting obama twist in 2012 and picking up the pieces in 2016.
obama has always been style over substance. He ran in 2008 on a platform of "it's cool to vote for the first black president and prove that you aren't a racist". Now he's going to run on "I'm still cooler than the other guy and if you vote against me you're racist".
13. Posted by jim m | June 20, 2011 11:18 AM |
Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 11:18
14. Posted by jim m | June 20, 2011 11:19 AM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
obama campaign 2012: more Hope and Change
The dems will vote for him and HOPE he CHANGES into a real President.
14. Posted by jim m | June 20, 2011 11:19 AM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 11:19
15. Posted by Sep14 | June 20, 2011 11:54 AM | Score: 4 (4 votes cast)
The only thing Hillary can and will run is her mouth.
15. Posted by Sep14 | June 20, 2011 11:54 AM |
Score: 4 (4 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 11:54
16. Posted by JLawson | June 20, 2011 11:56 AM | Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
"Do you think she's given that dream up?"
Would you want to be Captain of the Titanic?
Prestige! Shiny ship! Glamorous passengers! Potential record runs!
And full speed into a pack of icebergs...
She's ambitious, not stupid - and she's also (at least to my thinking) a realist, aware that she's going to have to undo a hell of a lot of inadvertent damage that's been done to this country by the Dems. This'll cause one hell of a lot of heartburn among the entitlement mentality - plus she'll have to put the giovernment on a diet (as she tries to steer so we DON'T hit the iceberg...) which won't endear her to a whole lot of people.
But who knows? We'll see about this time next year. I think you're right about Biden being bumped, though.
16. Posted by JLawson | June 20, 2011 11:56 AM |
Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 11:56
17. Posted by ODA315 | June 20, 2011 12:00 PM | Score: 3 (7 votes cast)
So Chico comes on the board, makes a diversionary post, and everyone jumps to it.
Stick to the topic folks!!!! You're acting like Republican politicians.
17. Posted by ODA315 | June 20, 2011 12:00 PM |
Score: 3 (7 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:00
18. Posted by Gmac | June 20, 2011 12:02 PM | Score: 4 (4 votes cast)
"When people like Axelrod start using the word "cool" to describe why they support this administration, they've run out of ammunition." 3. Posted by Ken D
FIFY
"I find it as cool to be an Obama supporter." David Axelrod
Sure, just as much as I support a Mitt/Newt ticket which is to say, not at all. The (P)resident is going to be radioactive thanks to his mishandling the economy, job creation, national debt, income redistribution and foreign policy failures. Axelrod can read internals as well as anyone else and can see there is nothing his candidate can run on and this time he can't hide behind the MSM that projected their visions on him last time.
Seeing him onstage campaigning with any Democrat not from a solidly Democrat district will be rare.
Clinton is a non-starter, her association with failed foreign policies and wars in three countries will be an albatross around her neck she can't shake off.
18. Posted by Gmac | June 20, 2011 12:02 PM |
Score: 4 (4 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:02
19. Posted by LeBron Steinman | June 20, 2011 12:07 PM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Yep.
I don’t know about you, but when I think of the ultimate arbiter of ‘cool’, I think David Axelrod.
Ask for him by name .
Accept no substitutes.
19. Posted by LeBron Steinman | June 20, 2011 12:07 PM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:07
20. Posted by Brett | June 20, 2011 12:12 PM | Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
Are you kidding? This isn't scraping the bottom of the barrel, it's bringing out the big guns. There's nothing more important to the liberal base than how it makes them "feel", and there's nothing more important to the intellectual posers that make up most of the self-styled liberal "elite" than seeming cool to your buddies.
20. Posted by Brett | June 20, 2011 12:12 PM |
Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:12
21. Posted by Constitution First | June 20, 2011 12:32 PM | Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
I get it now. Øbambi is soooo frickin' cool, Axelrod split the scene...
21. Posted by Constitution First | June 20, 2011 12:32 PM |
Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:32
22. Posted by Sep14 | June 20, 2011 12:41 PM | Score: 3 (5 votes cast)
"You heard it from Chico first."
Straight from an ass's mouth! Your so cool Brewster! Try some cherry berry today fool.
22. Posted by Sep14 | June 20, 2011 12:41 PM |
Score: 3 (5 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:41
23. Posted by TexBob | June 20, 2011 12:44 PM | Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
Yep, it's "cool" to support the Erkel in mom jeans and a bicycle helmet as he reads a teleprompter with BS he did not write while he and his Marxist minions continue the destruction of the USA..Oh I mean fundamentally changing America.
Yep, pretty cool to support such a JEF tool.
/sarc
23. Posted by TexBob | June 20, 2011 12:44 PM |
Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 12:44
24. Posted by Eric | June 20, 2011 1:11 PM | Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
I don't care how COOL the President is
I don't care how handsome the President is
I don't care what color the President is
I don't care what schools the President went to
I don't care if the President has flocks of adoring fans who swoon at the sight of him
I don't care how well the President reads a teleprompter
I want a President who loves his country before his own image
I want an intelligent and capable President
I want a President who understands that businesses fuel the economy not the government
I want a President that understands that more government is not the solution to every problem
I want a President who puts together a team of people with experience in the real world, not a lifetime of academia and government service
24. Posted by Eric | June 20, 2011 1:11 PM |
Score: 7 (7 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 13:11
25. Posted by Jeff Blogworthy | June 20, 2011 2:13 PM | Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
I loved my country, when lovin' my country wasn't cool.
25. Posted by Jeff Blogworthy | June 20, 2011 2:13 PM |
Score: 5 (5 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 14:13
26. Posted by Evil Otto | June 20, 2011 3:11 PM | Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Biden will have to go to jazz up the ticket with Hillary.
Only in the Democrat mindset could Hillary Clinton jazz up a ticket.
26. Posted by Evil Otto | June 20, 2011 3:11 PM |
Score: 3 (3 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2011 15:11
27. Posted by Jim Addison | June 21, 2011 12:55 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Most of the idealistic young people who bought into the "Gee, wouldn't it be COOL to have a black President?" garbage in 2008 are finding it hard to find a job now. "Hope and Change" hasn't worked out so well.
This is just an attempt to keep some of them for next year - and it works on some, it's amazing they can't see the evidence of his Epic Fail. Maybe it hasn't made the Daily Show, though.
But some of them will have discovered the dirty little secret: when you do what you have to do to "hang with the cool kids," you end up doing things you shouldn't and wouldn't, only to find those "cool kids" aren't so cool after all.
Obama will keep all the True Believers, the radicals and neo-Marxists of the Left, but he will have a hard time convincing the independents and those Republicans who voted for him that there is any reason to repeat the error.
27. Posted by Jim Addison | June 21, 2011 12:55 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on June 21, 2011 00:55
28. Posted by Oz | June 21, 2011 6:02 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
If Assholerod said the sky is blue, I'd have to check. As for this particular bout of oral diarrhea.....
28. Posted by Oz | June 21, 2011 6:02 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on June 21, 2011 06:02