The Two Obamas, Revisited

Surprise, surprise! Obama has shifted his stance on yet another issue. This time it’s oil drilling off our coasts. My initial thought was: here we go again, another cave! And it does appear that Obama is responding to the political heat he is feeling from McCain and, more importantly, from the American people on this issue. Polls show that having a rigid stance against drilling is a vote-losing position. So yeah, there is definitely some spineless backing away from his original position going on.

But that’s not the whole story this time. Obama hasn’t really changed his attitude towards drilling; he still thinks it’s a pretty poor idea. So his shift isn’t technically a flip-flop. All he’s saying is that he is willing to use his original position as a bargaining chip (read: throw the environmentalists under the bus) in order to “get something done.”

This is Barack “I will reach across the aisle” Obama in action. And if his idea of what a comprehensive energy bill should look like were stripped of the silly talk about energy independence and biofuels, then I would agree with him. Energy is a pretty good issue on which to compromise in order to get something done.

But I still have trouble reconciling the compromising/backpedaling Obama with the Obama who said this:

I am standing here because somebody somewhere at some point in time stood up when it was risky, stood up when it was hard, stood up when it wasn't popular. We have to stand up on behalf of future generations. And if you join me I promise you we can change America.

Is it possible to be (and market yourself as) both a compromiser and someone who stands up when it isn't popular? Well, you certainly can’t do both on the same issue. But what if he could be that perfect mix of a politician who compromises on the relatively minor stuff (like oil drilling) in order to get stuff done, and then stands up and refuses to compromise on more important issues (like getting out of Iraq, or not bombing Iran)? That sure would be swell.

Alas, I’m not convinced he can do it. When push comes to shove, I think he will act the part of the compromising facilitator rather than the principled leader. Obama wants to be all things to all people; a president the whole country can rally around. And I fear that, in order to be that guy, he will compromise on issues of all stripes—both the trivial and the consequential. He might end up getting a lot done, but I’m not sure we’ll be happy with the results.