We have a presidential leadership crisis — and it's only going to get worse
By: Myra Adams, Opinion Contributor (MSN)
No doubt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Recently, I asked a Trump-supporting friend from Georgia if he thought our nation was doomed with President Biden at the helm. Using a Titanic analogy, he answered, "We've already hit the iceberg, and now we're running for the lifeboats." Then he added, "I would take Trump back in office five times over Biden," but admitted, "I personally don't like Trump and prefer he step aside for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis."
© Getty Images Joe Biden and Donald Trump
Based on my friend's demographic profile, I consider him a one-person focus group reacting to layers of crises. And his pessimism is in line with new polling. The president's 44 percent job approval rating average indicates more than just that Trump supporters are losing hope in Biden's ability to right the ship of state.
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Nonetheless, for anti-Trump and independent voters souring on Biden, remember the pendulum-swinging reason you voted for him: He was not Donald Trump. And that was before January's violent attack and second impeachment on Capitol Hill, which made "boring Biden" even more appreciated after all the authoritative strong-man drama.
However, Biden following Trump into the White House is emblematic of a pervasive, overarching national problem that rarely makes headlines yet impacts them all - the United States has a presidential leadership crisis.
When voters see two names at the top of the presidential ticket every four years, they shake their heads and ask: "Why can't we do better than these two?" Raise your hand if you can relate.
Unfortunately, due to what I call a "compounded pendulum effect," our presidential leadership crisis is on a downward swinging spiral. Although the pendulum has always swung from one president to the next, the 24/7 media and internet-era has increased polarization and intensified severity.
For example, in January 2009, George W. Bush left office with a 29 percent job approval rating average. That helps explain why the inexperienced Barack Obama was elected amid fervor for hope and change.
Then Obama in 2016, plagued by a perception of weak leadership, backed the unlikable but experienced Hillary Clinton with her truthful but unstated campaign message - "it's my turn to be president." But her dreams were unexpectedly thwarted by a burger n' fries eating "everyman" celebrity billionaire named Donald J. Trump. He was the political and intellectual polar opposite of both Clinton and Obama with his rally message of "Make America Great Again" and "build the wall!" on repeat play.
That brings us to the 2020 election in the uber-polarized Divided States of America. An era in which everyone only watches and reads news and information they agree with and share through their phones on social media. That climate propelled the COVID-pandemic-election pendulum to swing from Trump to an "adult" place-holder president whose go-to leadership line is "C'mon man."
The Biden vs. Trump choice - among the worst "hold your nose" moments in American history - motivated a record turnout of 155 million voters.
Thus, nine months into his term, is anyone surprised that President Biden - who will celebrate his 79th birthday in November - is turning out to be among our weakest presidents? During his 36 years as a U.S. senator, followed by eight years as Barack Obama's vice president, Biden was never a stand-out leader. And, today, if not for Rep. James Clyburn's (D-S.C.) endorsement in the 2020 South Carolina presidential primary, Joe Biden would be painting with Hunter Biden at his Delaware beach house.
Looking ahead to 2024, we have the makings of potentially the greatest modern presidential leadership crisis at the most perilous time. Pay close attention to China's aggressive military moves toward Taiwan. Chinese communist leaders have set their sights on taking back the island and controlling the world's leading manufacturer of semiconductor chips. That means the U.S. economy could be brought to its knees since the American share of global chip manufacturing capacity has "fallen to 12 percent," according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. It is only a matter of time until this Taiwan/China conflict comes to a head, and practically every item you touch and depend on is impacted.
Is there a U.S. leader now or on the horizon who could navigate our nation through such a global economic catastrophe? Names, please.
The very definition of a leadership crisis would be if the American people had to choose between Biden and Trump in 2024. Could the pendulum swing from Trump to Biden back to Trump? Hill pundits argue how Biden's "train-wreck" could elect Trump 2.0 - resulting in authoritarian rule with no guardrails.
Even Biden's ever-shrinking, nearly-forgotten vice president, Kamala Harris, has an underwater job approval rating of 42 percent, with 51 percent unfavorable.
Could she win Biden's second term if he were to step down? Can you imagine a Harris vs. Trump race? The winner would take our nation from leadership crisis to leadership apocalypse.
Now ask yourself two big-picture questions: Is America ungovernable and incapable of being led? How can anyone lead when half the population refuses to follow?
Our enemies know the answers.
Myra Adams writes about politics and religion for numerous publications. She is a RealClearPolitics contributor and served on the creative team of two GOP presidential campaigns in 2004 and 2008. Follow her on Twitter @MyraKAdams.
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Weak indeed. Obama term three LOL
Maybe find a better 'pool' of contestants? Where might that reside? After all, we've learned to 'eat' politicians and would be politicians after filleting them in the 24/7 news cycle. Sado-masochism can be interesting, but not everyone chooses to ask leaders to equip the public viewing areas of the White House with whipping and poking paraphernalia.
You say that, but that would definitely have been a better option in 2016 than either Trump or Clinton.
I didn't vote for him in 2008 or 2012, but I certainly would have in 2016.
Weakest president? Could very well be a vast understatement!
Hey you! Get your head in the game of politics for the good of us all!
You are entitled to your opinion just as I am entitled to mine. Have a good evening Sir.
We're so entitled to opinions and more besides. For instance, what is your opinion of Trump and his acolytes rigging and 'detailing' who can serve as Secretary of State in red-states: Is that the "right stuff" or "wrong on its face"?
Joe Biden would never pull out or force out secretarys' of state for doing their jobs properly! Or in your opinion, do you think Joe would?
As far as Trump rigging any appointments of SOS's in red states, I am not familiar enough with that subject to offer any valid opinions on that.
As far as Biden doing the same thing, I think he is fully capable of doing such if he thought it was in his own best interest to do so.
Opinion on the democrat, no opinion on the republican. Obvious, enough?
You asked questions and I gave you honest answers. Sorry if you did not like the answers.
It is not that I like or don't like your honest answers. That is not it. It is that you are CLEAR and emphasizing on how you perceive Joe Biden; but understate how you feel about Donald Trump. And you need to know and process that.
You asked about one specific instance that I clearly stated I did not know enough about Trump's involvement to give a clear answer. There was no understatement intended. As for Biden, my statement above stands as is. And by the way, I know and process just fine for me. It is solely your opinion if you think I don't. Later.
After this, I am done with this (if you wish). You wrote the above. You question Biden is the weakest president and go on to suggest it could get much, much, worse.
I replied with comments to the affect of, 'get off the sidelines and support a good man in his efforts to do better.' Well, comparatively-speaking, Biden's presidency is yet to be 'totaled' and in the matter of recent a 'bad' poll now can be influx, rectified, or even worse tomorrow. Therefore, why be 'hard-on' Biden right now.
Trump is completely turned out of office and yet he persists in ministration of a 'shadow' presidency:
And you wish me to believe none of this 'scores' with you? I won't believe it, though you are so entitled to offer it up.
Please cease attempting to put your words in my mouth. I used the word "could" be a vast understatement, not that it was.
As far as your 6 points above, those are all on you. I never said any of those. I do not wish you to believe or not believe anything, and again I never said either way as this is a free country. Believe what you will as it makes little or no difference to me. I don't feel I owe anything further to "offer up" as you said. I am done here. A good day to you Sir.
A stellarly good day to you too, Sir.
This does paint a scary picture. We are not getting the best and brightest to lead. With the two party lock on politics, anybody who makes the ballots are so beholden to the rich / powerful that the potential for actually working for the country is very slim.
Actually we have a Congressional crisis. Congress has become nothing more than a cage match between two political parties. And those political parties don't have any sort of vision for the country other than winning the next election cycle.
Congress has become so dysfunctional that the legislative branch no longer serves the country. The priority for members of Congress is to serve their political party; the country be damned. Congress will crash the economy and default on the national debt just to score political points. Congress will allow Americans to freeze in the dark and starve on the streets just to score political points. Congress will turn American against American just to score political points.
Presidential leadership has become a measure of how well a President forces a Congress to do something, anything. In today's political climate a strong President cannot compromise with either the opposition party or their own party. The two party system has screwed up everything so badly that Presidential leadership requires adopting an adversarial stance against Congress as a whole. No quarter, no prisoners, no surrender.
Joe Biden cannot become a fighter; that's not his nature. The priority for Joe Biden is serving his party before serving the country. And the priority for both parties is to score political points for their party instead of serving the country. Joe Biden isn't trying to be President; Joe Biden is only trying to score political points and win the next election for his political party. The problem for Biden is he can't blame the opposition party and he refuses to crack skulls in his own party so it's nearly impossible to score political points. Joe Biden is failing because his Presidency is as dysfunctional as Congress.
Gee, and here I thought the intent set forth in the constitution was for the 'strength' of our country to be a strong legislature (as the voice of the people). But in the fullness of time, some states realized that they could 'best' the system and frustrate each other's interests just by shutting down the people's voice/s. Could it be that democracy has met its 'match' in citizens canceling each other's voices?
But is Congress listening to the people's voice? You know, the Constitution was intended to establish a government of, by, and for the people. The Constitution did not intend to establish a government that served political parties.
How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
Practice, practice, practice. Our two political parties, are well-rehearsed 'beasts.' The tracks of politics are well-rudded by their transiting back and forth across centuries. And with limited other interlopers being able to enter the political gene pool (for long), it was inevitable that a two-party system uninterrupted over time would wear itself out of ideas or, become so proficient in their duties and responsibilities that temptations, avarice, and sliding degrees of monotony and corruption would be constant threats.
That is, our current two political parties potentially have forgotten more about politics-at-large than some other countries have ever practiced!
Today, the first amendment freedom of public expression and press, media, social media savvy, means our 'support' agencies operating near and around our government to inform the citizenry are well-rehearsed, even overly so, that they operate schools of journalism, routinely make household names of 'anchors' and routinely offer multi-million dollar careers, and used what are now hackneyed tactics and strategies of message communication that are mediocre from overuse and repetitiveness.
All of these entities want to survive; all know how to survive. It is the nature of things to not kill themselves off!
And so, the states, being well-established in time, overtime, have learned to manipulate each other too, politically.
How do we fix what is 'fragmented' in our systems and body of politics. A refresh. A reset.
We remember the period/s when our systems worked optimally and our politicians were strong and full of integrity and let's start 'dating' the opposite side once again.
This could be great fun and enjoyable beyond belief!
Like fire on the landscape, a little insurrection, now and then, renews by removing the undergrowth, detritus, and deadwood. If the undergrowth, detritus, and deadwood is not removed occasionally then the result is an uncontrollable conflagration that destroys everything.
There must be a place in our political system for grassroots movements, minor parties, and independents. Our political system requires a means for the people to challenge entrenched political establishments to renew the political system. If the political establishment is allowed to quash or hijack grassroots movements to protect itself, the inevitable result will be an uncontrollable conflagration that destroys everything.
At present, we need a third party that will challenge the entrenched establishment of the two major parties. Attempting to infiltrate and take over the two major parties won't remove the buildup of entrenched self-serving political ideology. The only way an insurgency succeeds is to utilize the power of the established party to tamp down challenges. Insurgency within the two major parties only adds fuel and won't prevent the inevitable conflagration.
A little insurrection. . . . No, the constitution does not allow it. And by the way, the constitution did not scale for citizens of this country turning their guns inward the first time of civil war. There is no concept of a "little civil war" or "a smidgen of insurrection" in there. There is a scale for open-ended protestations meant to bring about reasonable and seeable good to the country.
No, I can't "give" you a sneaky assent on January 6, 2021. What a public embarrassment for proper conservatives!
I will grant you, a third political party engagement would be a 'release' valve to keep every politician engaged, interesting, and "juiced" - no matter how amber brown some of the 'fossils' (Chuckles!)
There has already been sustained mass violence on the streets. We are already in the midst of a civil war attempting to destroy everything. A phony 'holier than thou' attitude won't hide the flames of the growing conflagration.
I can't process your "holier than thou" so I will leave that alone. As for being in the midst of a civil war: Please, war this is not and you best hope for our sake it does not become!
We're already in the midst of a civil war attempting to destroy everything. That's not a fiction and is not hyperbole. This is the 21st century and not the 19th century; we don't rely on muskets and canon any longer. Cyber warfare is still warfare. Propaganda warfare is still warfare.
Today's civil war may be a cold war by historical standards but, nevertheless, is still a civil war.
Well all I can say to that is, "Physician heal thyself!" This national 'body' is one whole and it is hard to see how we can be our best without each other. So we might as well do what is required to enjoy our 'forever' together! Donald Trump is a germ, a burrowing parasite, on the body of this great nation.
They knew on November 4, 2020.