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December 30, 2010

Team Obama: On “the Go”

By Michael Shaw

Next plane to Siberia boarding at Gate 11?

It’s one of those cases where the photo is doing a lot more suggesting than the article.  If you read the write-up about a possible White House shake up, these three are simply recognized as the nucleus of the team.

Of course, we already know Axelrod is leaving soon to join the re-election effort. The article also mentions a more senior strategy job for Gibbs. Jarret is only mentioned once, and only as part of the bedrock.

Well, let’s just say that Axelrod, often looking depressive and clearing suffering under the pressure these past two years, has been no Karl Rove. The cranky Gibbs never made sense in the Press Secretary role. And, the unassailable Jarrett, here seen leading the pack, has enjoyed a Condi-like teflon when its comes to her effectiveness or a greater understanding of what role she’s had in what.

Not that the corporate media would dare connect the dots and name names, however. (Just like Rahm really left because he always wanted to be Mayor of Chicago, right?) The photo, though, does roam freer, what with these small, distant figures marching in a row. Of course, approach the plank is a mighty stretch. Because the body of the plane isn’t visibly, though, the picture fairly suggests either off to nowhere, or approaching the ether.

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  • Vvoter

    “The cranky Gibbs never made sense in the Press Secretary role.”

    Curious take, since I’ve thought Gibbs’ performance as Press Secretary has been remarkable. GWB tried out 2? 3? before he settled on Dana Perino. The Press Sec job strikes me as one of the most taxing, and Gibbs shows little signs of stress after two years in the grind.

    Granted, however, that one of the big surprises coming out of BO’s first two years is the broad failure of communication on behalf of the (increasingly ubiquitous) list of 2008-2010 legislative accomplishments. In the spirit of BNN’s attention to the visual, look for the upcoming staff adjustments to feature not only an emphasis on effective communication, but also a recognition that aesthetic appeal helps move the desired narrative in the desired direction, ref. Dana Perino.

    At the Press Sec post, we might see Team Obama enlist someone who can play the Palin card: a minority whose minority status doubles as both an aesthetic boon and a defense – legitimate or not – against harsh criticism.

  • http://www.agrippinaminor.com/scarabus/ Wayne Dickson

    Yeah, I definitely get the “exiting the stage on the way out” thing … though I think it’s interesting that one should exit by moving up. But that wasn’t my first thought.

    Visually, assuming I hadn’t recognized the carbon-based entities (apart from Gibbs I hadn’t, in fact), I was struck formally by the composition: Sort of an “X.” The woman’s head is just slightly above the absolute center, providing a radial anchor; but the diagonals defining the X are askew, creating tension. Dynamic.

    Viscerally, though, I’ve been struck repeatedly by how the hugeness of this airplane dwarfs the persons who are climbing the stairs to enter it. In this case one might see it as climbing up the lower jaw of a voracious beast. What happens after the jaw snaps shut? :-)

    BTW, is there a non-complicated way to attach photos to comments here?

    • http://bagnews.com/staff/#mshaw Michael Shaw

      We’ve got a list of fixes and tweaks to the redesign which we’re looking to implement in the first part of 2011. We’re not happy about the functionality of the comment system which is inferior to what we had under Typepad. Right now, we have our eye on Disqus though I’m not sure it allows for post pictures in the comment section. For now, the best way to accomplish this is via a link.

    • black dog barking

      Components of a link to an image somewhere on the web:

      <a + href= + ‘ + (cut’n paste the link url here) + ‘ + > + (descriptive text label here) + </a>

      <a href=”>Text Label</a> — cut’n paste url between the quotes, change Text Label to something more descriptive, Bob’s your uncle.

      In the redesign can we please get review for comments? Pretty please with sugar on top? (Without preview I’m only guessing that the link template above will be legible and typo-free.)

    • black dog barking

      By ‘review for comments’ I meant ‘preview for comments’. Of course.

  • Books Alive

    Living near Chicago myself, I’m certain that the sudden option to run for mayor of the city was definitely Emanuel’s reason for leaving the administration. Who knows how much he prevented better relations with the progressive base, maybe even constraining the cabinet members from speaking out about their achievements, rather than to be superlative communicators a la Transportation Secretary La Hood.

    Jarrett was always a behind-the-scenes supporter of Obama in Chicago, but I feel she hasn’t risen to the challenge of finding solutions to national problems, so maybe her role is also limited to providing encouragement to the President. She strikes me as detail-oriented rather than the grand view, which is Obama’s strength.

    Axelrod is not as effective a speaker as Gibbs when he appears on TV or in a fundraiser. His casualness extends to wearing jeans at the latter, I have found!

    I wished that CNN’s Dr Sanjay Gupta had become the Sec. of Health instead of Sibelius, whose speaking voice is unpleasant, IMO. Her writing is clear and succinct, but her voice is not strong enough to make the health legislation benefits clear to John and Jane Q. Public.

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