The Conservative Temperament

TPM's Jacob Heilbrunn praises Obama for "shrewdly hew[ing] to a middle course that allows him some flexibility in dealing with Iran." Drum responds:

This, of course, is Obama's basic modus operandi for everything. ... This is sometimes intensely frustrating.  The gay community, for example, is up in arms over his lack of action on issues like DOMA and DADT.  But there shouldn't be any surprise about that.  It was obvious throughout the entire campaign season that this is how he works.  He'll let the military stew over DADT for a while until they basically ask him to change it, rather than the other way around.  It might take longer, but he figures probably correctly that the end result will be better for everyone.  Ditto for DOMA, which doesn't yet have the votes in Congress for repeal.

And ditto for lots of other stuff.  He's shown a disturbing willingness to compromise on financial regulation and healthcare.  He hasn't engaged much with the Waxman-Markey climate bill as it slowly gets watered down into nothing.  He's a cautious guy who doesn't take a lot of chances unless he feels some real pressure to do so.  Paradoxically, this is exactly what I expected from him but I find myself disappointed anyway.  A little bit more fire in the belly would be welcome.

But he is who he is, and the same instincts that disappoint us on some issues serve him well on others. So far, anyway. The next few months possibly the next few days in Iran will tell us just how much real hope and change Obama's temperament produces when the rubber finally hits the road.