In Debt Talks, Obama Calls for ‘Biggest Deal Possible’ – NYTimes.com

Although I appreciate the President’s sincerity, I agree with Paul Krugman that his his strategy and analysis leave much to be desired. The republicans have left the President with a huge opportunity—to slam the door shut, appeal to his base, and ride that base to victory in the 2012 elections.

But the President seems genuinely oblivious to that opportunity. He would prefer a “compromise” almost entirely on the radical republicans’ terms to a stake in the sand around which his base could rally.

So, where does that leave us, his base? It leaves us with unacceptable unemployment numbers (thanks in large part to a stimulus package that was about $500M too small), with being blamed for a health care policy that did not go anywhere near far enough, and now with the very core of democratic institutions on the chopping block.

If the President believes that this record is sufficient to turn undecided voters without the enthusiastic support from his base that he enjoyed in 2008, he is not only mistaken. He is delusional.