Obama Naive? Look More Closely

From David Ignatius of the Washington Post comes Obama: Strength Out of Weakness. Another recognition that Obama is far less naive than he appears.

"What's impressive about Obama are his political instincts and his toughness. Yes, the man gives a great speech, but that's not why he defeated Hillary Clinton and is leading John McCain in the polls. He has a superbly disciplined campaign organization that has remained intact and confident, while McCain keeps switching strategists. Obama has mastered Internet politics by building an intense core of support and then letting the spontaneous process of social networking do the rest. David Plouffe, his campaign manager, understands that a modern campaign is an emergent, self-organizing phenomenon.

But Obama's strategists and handlers wouldn't make a dime's worth of difference if the candidate himself didn't have the gift we saw last week. Take your greatest weakness -- the thing people whisper about you by the water cooler -- and address it directly, without apologies or sweet talk. That's Obama's approach, and in a country where people increasingly seem to regard politicians as professional liars, no wonder people find it refreshing."