Obama's Dangerous Inexperience Shows In Iran And Dying Healthcare Reform

By Bonnie Erbe, Thomas Jefferson Street blog

As President Obama escalates the tone of his rhetoric against the Iranian leadership, from pablum to "outrageous," I keep thinking back to my criticisms of him during his presidential campaign.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama said Friday the United States and Germany share "one voice" in condemning the Iranian effort to crush dissent. He said Iran's leaders cannot hide the "outrageous" behavior of clamping down violently on their people.

Inexperience is the word that comes most frequently to mind. If his supporters are disappointed with how he thumb-twirled while Ahmadinejad and the Mullahs killed protestors against their now-obvious theft of the Iranian elections, they have only themselves to blame.

Mr. Obama was not ready for prime time when he was elected to office and he's sadly little more ready to lead the nation at this time.

He continues to try to be all things to all people and he continues to lose the support of his base as he does so. He is taking on way too many issues at once, and stands to lose control of what he cares about most (health care) in the process. One Republican insider told me this morning she thinks health care reform is dead in Congress. I'm not ready to go that far, but clearly his reform proposal has left too many i's undotted and t's uncrossed. He can't rebuild the economy, Detroit, climate change legislation, immigration control and health care all at once. It's a beginner's mistake to try.

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By Bonnie Erbe