Obama the Facilitator
How anyone can seriously consider this exasperatingly unqualified Candidate Obama for President of the United States has confounded me. Until now. Now I get it. And now I know why he scares the wits out of me. The reason is a little nuanced - small but powerful, in the way a tiny rudder can control a supertanker.
Candidate Barack Obama is not an executive, by profession, but a facilitator. And therefore, he is not fit to be Commander-in-Chief.
This is exactly what a facilitator must do. As soon as the facilitator inserts himself or herself into the give-and-take of the group, the facilitator's objectivity and neutrality is compromised, and his influence collapses. By joining the group, he would create a conflict of interest with the role of objective facilitator.
This is why Candidate Obama will be seen with problem solvers, but never within the struggle itself, as happened in the famous melt-down meeting over the credit crisis bail-out in the Oval Office. There are, essentially, no executives in the Senate, and that may be why so few make good Presidents, and why Governor Palin, an excellent journeyman executive, outshines the three senators on the major party tickets.
Despite long experience as a governor, President Clinton personified the facilitator. His ability to triangulate an issue by offering his understanding of both sides, while placing himself as a facilitator, above both. He would usually seize command of a problem's story line as a compassionate commentator or pundit. Yet, as a commander-in-chief executive, he was an absolute, unqualified disaster - leaving us a broken military, a footloose Bin Laden, a sexually preyed upon subordinate employee, and a profoundly compromised Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae (whose chickens have come home to roost!).
This is why Candidate Obama is so dangerous as an executive in charge of foreign policy; it is just like a facilitator to be willing to talk to this madman Akmadinijad without preconditions (noting here words matter). A facilitator cannot take sides; an executive is a side -- the embodiment of the side that pursues their objectives without distraction. T
This ingratiating, facilitative behavior is exactly what Candidate Obama did in his first debate with Candidate McCain, when he quickly agreed with the his winner-take-all opponent, Candidate McCain, some eight times. The executive, Candidate McCain looked and focused on us -- behind the camera, and gave his opponent no quarter. Because the McCain campaign made a TV ad mocking Obama's repeated statements that he agreed with McCain, the second debate saw no such statements.
If you want executive leadership, look for someone who has experience running things, like mayors, governors, and entrepreneurs. They direct. They demand completed staff work. They surround themselves with people who have a proven record of getting things done. This is precisely why Governor Palin has sparked our excitement -- a true executive voice, adored by her state.
Sadly, Candidate Obama is categorically unqualified by this measure, and Candidate McCain can't make up his mind about it.