Faced with Russia’s Putin, ‘no drama Obama’ doesn’t look good

We are so used to politicians spinning, weaving and ducking that when they present us with the naked truth it comes as a nasty shock. It undermines our world of expectations. It’s a bit like watching your parents cry for the first time.

And so it was with President Obama last night, who faced the piranhas of the White House press corps and said that, when it came to IS in Syria or Northern Iraq, “we are still working on a strategy”.

This statement of the obvious hummed with honesty. Should it be air strikes, boots on the ground, special forces, safe havens, all of the above, none of the above, some of the above?

There is no obvious policy because there are no obvious outcomes and everyone has become a little too weary of the unintended consequences of hyperactivity in that neighbourhood.

Next, he was brutally honest about what America and its allies could do about Russia’s incursion into Ukraine. Not much, militarily at least. Even though, militarily, Russia is doing plenty. Just about everything, in fact, short of a full scale land invasion.

What compounded his honesty was that the president was wearing a beige summer suit. It was too much Great Gatsby in a time of Great Unease. To his critics on the right, the suit’s light beige began to look like surrender white.

Had America relinquished its leadership role, they asked. We are a results-driven civilisation, they thundered. We don’t do “no strategy”.

People used to like “no drama” Obama. Now more and more Americans suspect that his insouciance is a sign of detachment, boredom or weakness. It didn’t look good last week when the president was back on the golf course minutes after he reacted to the beheading of journalist James Foley in Syria.

In fact, Obama has clocked up more than twice as many golf hours as his predecessor George W Bush, who was infamous for being handicapped by his attention to the handicap.

America used to love the fact that Barack Obama went out on date nights to Broadway with Michele, even if it meant shutting down midtown Manhattan with his security detail. But he is off to New York for another night out with the first lady this weekend and America isn’t smiling.

I suspect several things have happened. After six years on the job, Obama is simply less interested in pleasing people. He knows that the portion of the population that hates him is well beyond persuasion – so why bother? He never needs to fight another election.

Secondly, as a logical man who prefers consensus and caution over conflict, he has probably worked out that military action can only yield so many results beyond the immediate sugar rush of retribution.

And thirdly, he is the offspring of recent history. The quixotic adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan have soured America’s appetite for intervention – and his. Quietly, most Americans would probably agree with him.

But America also expects its president to live up to the theatrical requirements of the office. The fanfare, the shiny plane and the supersized chopper, the Hail the Chief… these are the props of an elected monarchy.

America may have become more cynical about the impact of a president. But it still cherishes the aura of the office. And that “no drama, cringingly honest Obama” simply won’t do.

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