Perhaps he isn't really out of touch:
PRESIDENT OBAMA: If there's one thing that I regret this year, is that we were so busy just getting stuff done and dealing with the immediate crises that were in front of us, that I think we lost some of that sense of speaking directly to the American people about what their core values are and why we have to make sure those institutions are matching up with those values. And that I do think is a mistake of mine.
(all emphasis is mine)
I think the assumption was, if I just focus on policy, if I just focus on the, this provision, or that law, or are we making a good, rational decision here --
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: That people would get it.
OBAMA: That people will get it. And I think that, you know, what they've ended up seeing is this feeling of remoteness and detachment where, you know, there's these technocrats up here, these folks who are making decisions. Maybe some of them are good, maybe some of them aren't. But do they really get us and what we're going through? And I think that I can do a better job of that and partly because I do believe that we're in a stronger position now than we were in a year ago.
That's been one of my issues in the last year, a lack of transparency (for lack of a better word). All during the campaign President Obama told us that even if he wasn't always right, and even if we didn't always agree with him, we would always know where he stood and why he was doing what he was doing. That didn't happen last year, and as a consequence he wasn't in control of his own message far too often. This doesn't mean that his first year was a failure, it means his first year could have been better (and I think that's something most of us can agree on).
Remember during the campaign how even if Obama's numbers were bad, if he just TALKED to the American people and told us what he was going to do and why he was going to do it, his numbers always came up. That's why his opponents hated giving him the chance to talk straight to the American people, because when he does he's very persuasive. You believe that he's going to do what he says, and even if you don't agree with him, you believe that he's doing it for the good of the American people. This is what he said in May 2009:
We're living through extraordinary times. We didn't ask for the challenges that we face, but we are determined to answer the call to meet those challenges, to cast aside the old arguments and overcome the stubborn divisions and move forward as one people and one Nation. It won't be easy, Nevada. There will be setbacks, Las Vegas. It will take time but I promise you, I promise you, I'll always tell you the truth about the challenges we face. I'll always tell you the truth about the steps we're taking to meet them. I will continue to measure my progress by the progress that the American people see in their own lives.
This is what he said during the election in June 2008:
I won't be a perfect president. But I can promise you this. I'll tell you what I think. I'll always tell you where I stand.
I'll be honest with you about the challenges we face as a nation. And most importantly, I will spend every day working hard to make your lives better. I will think about you when I'm in the White House. I will spend every waking moment trying to make your lives better but let me tell you, I need something in return. I need you to participate. I need you not just to vote but get your friends to vote on Tuesday and even after you vote, I need you to be involved in the campaign. I need you to pay attention to the debates. I need you to follow the issues. We need an engaged citizenry to bring about the changes that are necessary in this country.
We can't trust the media to relay those messages, that only works for Republicans.
I don't think he needs to talk to us about EVERY little thing he does, if he did all he'd do is talk all day. But I do think on big things like bailouts and health care reform, it would be best if he came out and talked to us BEFORE the Republicans made the policy completely unrecognizable. I'm hoping that as bad as last night's election results were (and I still don't think they were a referendum on President Obama), it was a wake-up call to President Obama to add a little more of "Candidate" Obama. Talking TO the American people is the only way to get past the talking heads, and the bloggers (even the ones who support him), and everyone else. He hasn't done a press conference in a while (the WH Press Corps has been whining about that lately), maybe he should do one per-quarter - 4 per year - to just talk directly to the American people and let us know what's going on. A year later I'm still proud that I voted for President Obama, I still support his policies, I still think Michelle is awesome (had to sneak that in there), I just want him to live up to his full potential.