There it was, plain as day in the newspaper the other day, 80-something percent of Americans don't like the Congress. Well, your first reaction probably is - what's wrong with the other 20%? There are probably more dysfunctional, inefficient organizations in Washington, but right now I can't think of any.
Another newspaper, another headline: Americans are very divided over how they feel about President Obama.
That's a little harder to understand. I wouldn't say he's been exactly Abe Lincoln or Franklin Roosevelt but I do think he's been a pretty good president – ending one war out of two. In baseball batting 500 would be extraordinary. In peace making, I don't really know.
The fact is we seem to be in a national "let's blame somebody for this pretty quickly" mood. Nothing wrong with this. If I were a social scientist, I'd probably say this is cyclical.
It's a little odd, to be sure, to see the Republicans beating each other up on a regular basis while Obama relaxes with his team collecting quotes to use in the general election. Still, it's very American.
I take a certain amount of pleasure in primary fights. I remember applauding Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama four years ago. And I expect to enjoy Mitt Romney and his pals this time around. As a field though it is a little troubling. Every once in a while I think where are the grownups.
That is why we have all these primaries – to separate the men from the boys (sorry, no girls left now). I'll stay with them if you will.
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