Americans have a new sport. Or to be more precise a new variation of an old one. What is suprising is not so much its creation but those who are so willingly participating in it.
Politician Bashing is an old and honored tradition in the U.S. and has been honed over centuries to a fine art. While in recent years it has accomplished very little, it is the right of all Americans to complain about those who have been chosen to head our country. What is so amazing about this inning is that the bashee has not even taken office yet.
After two years of campaigns including speculation, fretting and name calling and culminating in a mind blowing night that no one who was even remotely a part of will ever forget it is business as usual in America.
Normally there is a honeymoon for incoming Presidents. A period where both media and public stay on the sidelines and observe, giving the newcomer an opportunity to catch his (and one day her) breath, scope out the lay of the land and settle into his (one day her) new job.
President-Elect Obama has not been allowed that honeymoon. Instead media and more astonishingly liberals, progressives and Democrats have jumped in with both feet questioning everything from political appointments to discussions on the school he chooses for his daughters and the new White House dog. What he has for lunch is fodder for the press corps. Even Mother Jones the quintessential progressive rag has gotten into the act.
In the meantime the current still-occupant of the White House is hovering in the background, delighting in the sudden lack of attention and criticism from the 'liberal left'. Gleefully plotting how to decimate the ancient forests of the Northwest and then move on to the rest of the world he is surely giggling at how easily the American public is distracted. Maybe now is the time to start holding him accountable for the disaster he has visited upon the world?
I don't suggest that we give Obama a free ride for all time. We elected him and we have a responsibility to hold him and the entire government accountable for their actions and decisions. Lets give him some breathing room though folks. We know Obama the campaigner. We trusted him. At worst, we decided he was the better of the choices. Lets get acquainted with Obama the President and give him the opportunity to prove himself before we bash him out of the ball park