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The Day of Judgment ...
... Has arrived. It is, after all, Obama's 100th day in office. And passing judgment on America's president is all the rage in the blogosphere right now (not that it isn't every other day of the year). Americans seem more or less happy with the president, although it's hard not to be tired by the 100 days of Obama media overkill. Suffocating from the last 100 days of the hot air? This FactCheck.org piece on 100 days of spin might be exactly what you need. Now, let's get to the judgment passing. Bloggers are taking Obama's 100th day as an occasion to do one of two things:
Praise: Conservative Christopher Buckley gives a thumbs up. A group of liberal bloggers think Obama's made good progress. Michael Watkins hands Obama an "A." Andrew Sullivan and Ta-Nehisi Coates are fans so far. Taylor Marsh is speechless by all that Obama's accomplished—which isn't to say that she can't worry about his weaknesses. Liberal Daniel Gross sees the economy as the biggest issue, impressed as he is despite the failures he sees here and there: "The one unambiguously positive sign of the first 100 days is that the combination of market discipline, bailouts, and the return of intelligent management seems to have warded off further systemic crises." Gordon Adams would likely give Obama a passing grade on national security, even though he knows the most appropriate mark would be an incomplete. When it comes to energy policy, liberal Frances Beinecke concurs. Liberal Cristina Page is (still) falling in love with Obama's reproductive rights policies. And Carl Sferrazza Anthony has nothing but love for the first lady.
Criticize: It's fair to say that favorables outnumber unfavorables in today's blogosphere, but that doesn't mean there aren't a host of bloggers with laundry lists of grievances. Conservatives Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch think Obama's accelerating the country down the wrong road: "He's moving full speed ahead toward policy prescriptions that already had less fizz than a case of Billy Beer back when Jimmy Carter was urging us all to wear sweaters and turn down our thermostats. Instead of thinking outside the box, Obama is nailing it shut from the inside." More on this here. Liberal ZP Heller thinks Obama's more of the same when it comes to Afghanistan. For Bonnie Erbe, Obama's going to have to do a lot more than not be President Bush to win her over. Conservative Jonah Goldberg gets social with his criticism. Mary Kate Cary thinks Obama better slow down or he might run out of gas. And liberal Nathaniel Frank wants Obama to speak up on gays in the military before it's too late.
...Meanwhile ...
Swine flu now kills people in America (but they're not American)... U.S. gross domestic product takes a licking in the first quarter... Possibly the coolest toilet you'll ever see... Happy with Arlen Specter's switch to the Democratic Party? Thank Hillary Clinton.
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js of HI 6:40AM June 01, 2009