Optibamatism: The 100 Days Legacy

Optibamatism: def. – The phenomenon of the persistence of a relatively high level of optimism under President Obama during his first 100-days in office.

I was sitting in our news meeting today, my eyes wandering over to the bank of TV monitors in my news director’s office, and I saw an interesting juxtaposition of items being displayed on the typically busy cable news screen. The headline at the bottom of the page read something like “Swine Flu Spreading Across the U.S.”… not a “happy” headline, to say the least. And then over on the lower right hand corner of the screen was the stock ticker, showing the Dow industrial average at that minute. It read “+150.” That, I thought, is a good example of optibamatism (see above).

I’m not going to go into President Obama’s individual policy initiatives as I join the long line of mediacs commenting on the mythical First 100-Days (a benchmark so arbitrary, John Dickerson of Slate likened it to one of those invented Hallmark holidays… you know, Grandparents Day, Secretaries Day, First 100 Days Day). I’m just addressing the national mood toward the president, and the reasons behind it, as we make our way through this bruising chapter in our history.

Take my example above; I realize the daily Dow isn’t really a good barometer of long-range trends, but what I saw on that TV screen was still pretty striking. As we continue to worry our way through this economic mess, what could be worse than a worldwide HEALTH threat coming along out of nowhere? It’s adding injury to insult, in a big way, and coming during the financial crisis, you’d think any president would be taking a major popularity hit at this point. And yet.....

“A look at the polls shows why it's such a good thing for the Obama administration that the media is engaged in an orgy of stock-taking. The president is as popular as he's ever been. Four-fifths of Americans like him personally, and his job-approval ratings are in the high 60s. Forty-two percent say the country is headed in the right direction, the highest that number has been in five years. Meanwhile, the opposition is as unpopular as it's ever been. Only 21 percent of Americans identify themselves as Republicans.”

And the Dow can still climb over 100-points in the midst of a near-panic over a flu virus. How did the President come out of this initial 100-days with this kind of support, despite the difficult times? I think a great deal of it has to do with Obama’s temperament. He’s just very calm and cool, something I noted in a blog post the week he won the election. Staying calm during a crisis—or during multiple crises—is a key trait of a good leader. Much to the frustration of his critics, Obama’s tough to rattle. Put simply, he’s confident. When people see that, they feel more confident, too.

Part of it is luck, and I don’t mean just the “luck” of having an opposition party that, like the economy at one point, is still trying to find its bottom. I mean luck like what happened with the rescue mission for the Maersk captain: three Navy SEAL sharpshooters, three perfect shots, three dead pirates. Just two out of three, and you’ve got a dead captain and an angry public. Just ask Jimmy Carter how rescue missions gone wrong can damage a presidency. But because the SEALs shot straight, Obama looks decisive and in control.

But mostly I think it’s just because of the way President Obama has focused on problem solving. When a record percentage of Americans believes the country is on the wrong track, they want somebody who’s a fixer. Whether his policies turn out to be right or wrong, people give him credit for being solution-oriented, even—or should I say especially—at the exclusion of being politically ideological.

Calm. Luck. Focus. A good formula for success in any leadership venture. Add on his speaking/communication skills, ability as a delegator, and what (so far) appears to be a crack staff at his disposal, and it’s easy to understand the optibamatism. So far. Now if he just can keep Air Force One from scaring the bejesus out of folks downtown, we’ll REALLY be getting somewhere.

Let me know what you think. And in the meantime, Happy 100-Days Day! Don’t feel like you have to get me anything.