OBAMA'S FIGHT: 'GO BIG OR GO HOME' BY JONATHAN CAPEHART
WASHINGTON POST
The jobs plan that Obama will unveil before a joint session of Congress will be a great first sign of his willingness to fight. Pieces of it have already leaked out. My hope is that the president will reveal other ideas that heed the call from Gene Robinson and others to “go big.” And if the Republicans don’t go along, he must go to the mat.
WHAT TO DO WITH KHADDAFY BY DAVID KAYE
NEW YORK TIMES
After decades of oppression and six months of war, Libyans deserve the opportunity to bring their oppressors to justice. The international community should support that kind of effort, and reinforce it by assuring the basic norms of international law. For Libyans, trial by the I.C.C. in Tripoli should be a bridge toward taking ownership of their future.
'THANK YOU, AMERICA!' BY NICHOLAS KRISTOF
NEW YORK TIMES
Yet to me Libya is a reminder that sometimes it is possible to use military tools to advance humanitarian causes. This was an exceptional case where we had international and local backing. ... The question of humanitarian intervention is one of the knottiest in foreign policy, and it will arise again. The next time it does, let’s remember a lesson of Libya: It is better to inconsistently save some lives than to consistently save none.
OBAMA'S PARADOX PROBLEM BY E.J. DIONNE
WASHINGTON POST
Obama hates to bring up the nasty fact that we have political parties, but very soon, he will have to point out that it is Republicans in Congress who are blocking his agenda. They will either have to start worrying about their low ratings or begin to pay a real price for obstruction.
IF PERRY IS 'DUMB,' WHY IS HE SUCH A SMART CAMPAIGNER? BY MARC THIESSEN
WASHINGTON POST
The sign of a smart political candidate is how well he can absorb a gaffe or an attack, and turn it around on his opponents. (The classic example was Ronald Reagan deflecting questions about his age by promising not to use Walter Mondale’s “youth and inexperience” against him). By this score, Rick Perry is proving himself a brilliant campaigner.
OUR OBSESSION WITH 'LOOKING PRESIDENTIAL' BY ANDREW ROBERTS
WALL STREET JOURNAL
So looking presidential may in fact be a poisoned chalice or, at best, a kind of consolation prize that one gets before having the chance to lose. Mr. Romney might look presidential, but there is still something about him that suggests a 2015 bumper sticker that will state: "Don't blame me, I voted for Mitt." ... In Britain, it would have meant the tall, slim and distinguished-looking Neville Chamberlain winning out over the tubby, bald Winston Churchill. Any country that selects its leaders on such a basis deserves everything it gets.