Furmanmania

Well, no sooner did I speculate on whether the appointment of that knife-juggler, Jason Furman, as Obama's senior economic adviser means that Obama's economic policy is tacking in the direction of the Rubin rather than the Reich wing of the Democratic Party, when we have this clarification from the candidate's mouth:

"I've got Bob Rubin on one hand [as an adviser] and [former Labor Secretary] Bob Reich on the other....I tend to be eclectic."

Now, just a minute. We have for some time known that the Junior Senator from Illinois intends to imitate the Apostle by becoming all things to all men, but isn't that a bit of a dodge? Now, as I read it, Obama's platform is now: increasing spending, slash the deficit, and lower taxes for average Americans all at the same time. If only economic policy were that simple. Real leaders, however, have to make tough choices, and Obama is increasingly looking like your average, old-school politician - willing to say anything to get elected, unwilling to do the hard thinking necessary to governing.