The Obamafication of Great Power Arms Control

Conservatives knew Barack Obama lacked gravitas over two years ago. And now we're starting to see the rest of the country catch on. Folks are getting hip to the Democrats' epic electoral fail of 2008.

Recall, during the first Democratic debate, in April 2007, "Obama failed to cast himself as a forceful commander in chief." As one headline reported at the time, "Lightweight Senator Overwhelmed By Grown-ups at Adults-Only Function." And who can forget Obama's Berlin speech last summer? Der Spiegel asked, "Is Obama Speech Site Contaminated by Nazi Past?" And we saw this from Michelle Malkin, "Next Stop, Germany: Ich bin ein beginner!":

So, let's just consider President Obama's U.S.-Russia summit this week. It's one more indication of the woeful unseriousness of this man and his administration. The highlights are at Memeorandum. CNN has a story on Sasha and Malia Obama, "Obama Girls Take Russia by Storm." Plus, the New York Times follows up with, "Family Night for Obamas Miffs Some in Moscow."

It turns out that the Russian people haven't lost their faculties over this American president. As Fausta indicates, "The Russians ...having lived with centuries’ worth of narcissistic egotists passing as heads of state, were underwhelmed by Obama..."

The president himself remains inside a narcissisitic bubble and the rest of the world can only watch dumfounded as this administration sleepwalks through history.

Compare that meme to this article on earlier eras of superpower arms control, "U.S.-Russia Talks Yield No Breakthroughs":

There was a time when an American president would travel to Moscow for a summit and the world watched intently to see if history would be made.

These days, most people seem prepared to settle for more modest outcomes.

That was the ambiguous result of Barack Obama's first trip as president to meet with his Russian counterparts. Obama came away from two days of talks with important, if not momentous, agreements to renew nuclear arms talks and allow U.S. warplanes to fly through Russian airspace on their way to Afghanistan.

But long-standing differences -- on U.S. missile defense plans, human rights and the response to Iran's nuclear ambitions -- remained unbridged.

Nor was it certain that Obama succeeded in his attempt to overcome years of deteriorating relations and alleviate wider Russian mistrust of U.S. aims by speaking over the heads of the country's elite to those outside the realm of power.

In a bit of characteristic stagecraft, the president took his message to a large assembly of the young and educated, speaking at the commencement ceremonies of the New Economic School. He reminded Russians of their nation's shared sacrifice with the United States in defeating fascism in the mid-20th century, and said that 21st century America was not trying to hold the country back.

"Let me be clear: America wants a strong, peaceful and prosperous Russia," Obama said. "This belief is rooted in our respect for the Russian people, and a shared history between our nations that goes beyond competition."

But none of Russia's domestic television channels carried the speech live. And the event was more heavily attended by Western-leaning intelligentsia and business community representatives than by members of Russia's ruling elite. News programs later played clips of the speech -- with newscasters adding pointedly that Obama's arrival onstage interrupted the distribution of diplomas to the school's students.

Behold the Obamafication of great power arms control.

The Russians don't care about this man, despite the president's displeasure at not being feted like a Victorian-era European head of state.

Meanwhile, the enduring logic of international politics continues its unavoidabe grind: "Russia Itches for Another Georgian War."

Election 2012 can't come fast enough, especially for those who called this a massive presidential fail before the Democrats sealed the deal.