After a terrible week punctuated by demoralizing defeats in Texas and Ohio, is it possible that Senator Barack Obama, until recently the darling of the fawning mainstream media and leftist elite, has “jumped the shark?“ Has Barack Obama Jumped the Shark?

After a terrible week punctuated by demoralizing defeats in Texas and Ohio, is it possible that Senator Barack Obama, until recently the darling of the fawning mainstream media and leftist elite, has “jumped the shark?”

For those unfamiliar with the term, “jump the shark” is a pop-culture phrase referring to the point at which a television show, popular figure or other cultural phenomenon passes its peak and begins its decline into mediocrity and staleness. The term specifically derives from an episode of the 1970s television series Happy Days, in which Arthur “The Fonz” Fonzarelli ridiculously dons a swimsuit and jumps a shark tank on water skis. It marked the point at which the previously-acclaimed 1950s nostalgia series descended into pathetic absurdity in pursuit of easy ratings. Since that time, the phrase has come to symbolize the pivotal moment at which a popular entity declines in quality or appeal, and loses its previous charm.

In other words, jumping the shark constitutes the beginning of the end. Think Howard Dean’s “I Have a Scream” moment, Michael Jordan coming out of retirement to play for the Washington Wizards, Elvis after his return from the Army or New Coke.

The first sign of trouble for Senator Obama came during his January 5, 2008 debate with Senator Clinton, when Obama sarcastically and dismissively replied, “you’re likeable enough, Hillary” after Senator Clinton labeled him “very likeable.” Some observers labeled it a “cringe moment,” and it may have cost Senator Obama the New Hampshire primary.

This week, however, a potential avalanche has germinated over Senator Obama in the form of “NAFTA-gate” and the Tony Rezko felony trial in Chicago.

Regarding NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, Senator Obama may have been exposed as precisely the type of double-talking, calculating politician that he claims to transcend. Canada’s CTV network reports that Austan Goolsbee, Senator Obama’s chief economic advisor, told Canadian officials that Obama’s anti-NAFTA invective was mere campaign rhetoric aimed toward Ohio union voters. According to Mr. Goolsbee’s own admission, he assured these officials that Senator Obama recognizes the benefits of free trade.

One would never know that from Senator Obama’s public pronouncements, of course. In contrast to the private assurances to Canadian officials, Senator Obama has incorrectly blamed NAFTA for exporting American jobs, and he ridiculously asserted that it “forced parents to compete with teenagers for minimum wage jobs at Wal-Mart.”

The reality, of course, is quite different. Since NAFTA took effect on January 1, 1994, America has experienced unprecedented levels of prosperity and employment growth. Furthermore, a whopping 55% of Ohio’s exports go to Canada and Mexico, our NAFTA partners, compared with 35% for the United States as a whole. Finally, the primary magnets for Ohio’s job losses have actually been lower-tax and non-union Sun Belt states, not Canada or Mexico.

Regardless, exposure of this diplomatic flub has embarrassed Senator Obama, and jeopardized his self-professed “post-partisan” image.

The Tony Rezko trial may be even worse news for Senator Obama and his superficial stardom.

Although Senator Obama is not accused of illegal activity related to this case, it is a huge embarrassment to him. Obama’s personal relationship with Mr. Rezko, a longtime Illinois political player, spans two decades, and Mr. Rezko has given tens of thousands of dollars to Obama’s various campaigns during that period.

In 2005, after Obama had been elected Senator and received campaign funds for that race from Mr. Rezko, the two bought adjacent Chicago properties while Mr. Rezko was known to be facing federal investigation. Even Senator Obama acknowledges that the real estate deal created an appearance of impropriety, and labeled it “boneheaded.”

This week, Mr. Rezko’s felony trial on charges of extortion and wire fraud commenced, and observers are monitoring the matter closely for what it reveals about Senator Obama’s own judgment. According to federal prosecutors, Mr. Rezko sought millions of dollars from investment firms seeking to conduct business with Illinois state agencies, as well as a $1 million kickback while sitting on a hospital facilities governing board. Additionally, prosecutors contend that Mr. Rezko obtained millions of dollars in non-existent business sales to straw purchasers.

“Boneheaded,” indeed. Voters are left to ask themselves whether they can afford for Senator Obama to acquire on-the-job training in the White House while he navigates other “boneheaded” errors.

During a press conference before a press corps that suddenly stopped fawning over him, Senator Obama irately fled the podium and protested that he “already answered, like, eight questions” about the relationship. Is this a foreshadowing of things to come?

These flubs follow incidents in which Senator Obama dismissively declined to wear an American flag lapel pin, and his wife asserted that she is only now proud to be an American.

Combined, might this period of pitfalls constitute the stretch in which Senator Obama jumped the shark? We’ll soon find out.

March 06, 2008
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