President Obama's reversal of an administration position regarding the release of photos of abused detainees ought to provide concrete proof to Americans on both sides of the aisle that it's folly to project either their fondest hopes or their worst nightmares onto this man or any elected official for that matter.
Perhaps because of the historic nature of Obama's election and because of the abject failure of the previous administration, people on the left of the political spectrum have ascribed all manner of miraculous talents and abilities to the new president. Meanwhile, conservatives have demonized Obama to a fare-thee-well, seeing him as the Antichrist come to life.
Neither is true, obviously, and Obama's flip-flop on allowing these photos to be seen is proof that he is a politician, no more and no less. His inclination is to do that which will cast his administration in the most favorable light for the largest bloc of the electorate.
To be sure, as someone who is left of center, I tend to agree with the overwhelming majority of Obama's agenda, and I wish those on the right would give him at least a minute to succeed or fail on his own merit. But, unlike a lot of my fellow liberals, I don't operate under any illusions about who Barack Obama is or what he's about.
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