Obama's 4th Press Conference: A Lesson in Versatility

Republicans were complaining about the timidity of Obama’s words on the developing situation in Iran…

While it is not clear exactly what President Obama is suggesting the U.S. should do in response to the violence and repression surrounding the Iranian elections, one thing gathered from his press conference today is that he is far from timid: he has made his condemnation clear.

I look at Obama and I see a man that manages to maintain pragmatism even in the face of such emotionally arousing developments around the world.  He also maintains his relaxed and at times playful demeanor without coming off as aloof from the suffering of Iranians, Americans in the healthcare system, auto companies, or whatever the situation may be.

Versatility.  As I watched the press conference today, that is what I saw in Obama.  Every attempt to test the President’s ability to lead the country has shown that he is far from breaking under pressure.  He went in to discuss Iran, Energy, and Healthcare, but here are the highlights I found particularly interesting from the conference:

On Iran – he allowed himself to express his support for the Iranian protestors that accuse their government of election fraud.  However, that did not push him to make overcommitting statements about what the U.S. could do and would do.  Instead, he expressed an interest in seeing how the Iranians try to solve their own problem first.  He left the press with a perfect way to look at the situation – it is not about how the U.S. views Iran’s sitting government in light of the elections, but how the people of Iran views the government and its legitimacy.  

On Healthcare Reform – peppered with questions about the cost of government sponsored healthcare and the competing interests of the company provided health plans he dispelled misconceptions about the effect government sponsored healthcare would have on the choices people make in opting for their companies plans or the governments plan.

On Tobacco Legislation - a reporter came at him about his smoking habits of yesteryear in an attempt to tie the legislation on the regulation of tobacco Obama supported to his personal interest in curbing his own smoking habit.  After embarrassing the woman and pointing out what her true intention was, he proceeded to show that yes he is human, and although he quit smoking, he has not had a perfect track record in fighting the urge to smoke.  We as the American public can relate to this honesty, candor, and fallibility.  He summed this up with a great point: the legislation is not for him – he is struggling as much as any smoker that quits would – but it is for his children and America’s children – so that they won’t have this daily battle.

I like the way that Obama addressed the situation in Iran – the situation is already complex enough with the government violently holding on to power without the U.S. coming immediately behind this pressure and telling them how they should run their country or face the consequences.  As outrageous and disheartening as this violence in Iran is, the pragmatic thing to do is to intervene at the time when you can do the most, not when you are overwhelmed by the emotions of an anxious world.

This is why Obama continues to impress me as a clear thinker and a great leader for America in the 21st century – using the present to ameliorate the damages of the past and setting us up to step into the greatness of America’s future.

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