I know. I never thought I'd write that headline, but when Mark Halperin is right, he's right.
But by Election Day 2010, Obama will have soundly achieved many of his chief campaign promises while running a highly competent, scandal-free government. Not bad for a guy whose opponents (in both parties) for the White House suggested that he was too green in national life to know how to do the job — and whose presidency began in the midst of a worldwide economic crisis that demanded urgent attention and commanded much of his focus.
Agenda aside, the numbers don't lie. Stock market is up. GDP is up. Job creation is up. House values are up. Consumer confidence is up. Tax refunds are up. Oliver Willis calls it the Obama Boom, and I totally agree.
As for Halperin's piece, I could do without all the "both sides" pandering, and I still can't quite get beyond the whole "Manchurian Candidate" Muslim sleeper-cell thing.