Not a Lot of Awe

Richard Cohen of the WaPo continues to ask large existential questions about the Obama presidency:

Barack Obama's trip to Copenhagen to pitch Chicago for the Olympics would
have been a dumb move whatever the outcome. But as it turned out (an airy
dismissal would not be an unfair description), it poses some questions about his
presidency that are way more important than the proper venue for synchronized
swimming. The first, and to my mind most important, is whether Obama knows who
he is.

This business of self-knowledge is no minor issue. It bears greatly on the
single most crucial issue facing this young and untested president: Afghanistan.
Already, we have his choice for Afghanistan commander, Gen. Stanley A.
McChrystal, taking the measure of his commander in chief and publicly telling
him what to do. This MacArthuresque star turn called for a Trumanesque response,
but Obama offered nothing of the kind. Instead, he used McChrystal as a prop,
adding a bit of four-star gravitas to that silly trip to Copenhagen by having
the general meet with him there.

This is the president we now have: He inspires lots of affection but
not a lot of awe. It is the latter, though, that matters most in international
affairs, where the greatest and most gut-wrenching tests await Obama.