The President's Peace Scare

Can Barack Obama do anything to satisfy anybody? Right and left, Washington pols denounce his “abject surrender” to Iran on a nuclear agreement while a “disappointed” Chuck Schumer distances himself from what could be a time bomb for Democrats.

Even when he takes a sensible step with safeguards toward testing Iran’s willingness for a nuclear stand-down, this President is pummeled on all sides, including Israel, for a reversible move toward defusing Middle East tensions.

In his opinion-poll bunker, Obama is politically radioactive, no matter what he says or does. Any other occupant of the White House from either party might have been given some benefit of the doubt for testing a duplicitous Iran’s intentions to make a deal. If they follow through, fine. If not, a return to crushing sanctions and even military intervention is always available.

This uproar over an Obama “peace scare” follows the notorious debut of the Affordable Care Act, both unarguably the product of good intentions now being converted from possible naivete into treasonous plots.

John Kerry, out of his depth running for President nine years ago, may be beyond his range as an elder statesman now. Selling doubtful Americans in this climate would require the rhetorical skills of a Clinton of either gender.

In s new book, New Yorker editor David Remnick quotes close Obama friend and adviser Valerie Jarrett: “He knows exactly how smart he is.. . I think that he has never really been challenged intellectually.. .He’s been bored to death his whole life. He’s just too talented to do what ordinary people do. He would never be satisfied with what ordinary people do.”

If that’s true, Barack Obama should be well beyond his boredom threshold now and ready to show that being President of the United States requires more than being the smartest person in the room.

Past time to step up.