the republican scheme to torpedo obama's presidency up front by humiliating him as a legislative leader fell flat on its face. the president refused to roll over, play dead, and fulfill the republican stereotype of him as just another weak and effete pantywaist liberal whiner. rather than work with him and at least get some credit for bipartisanship and compromise, they came across as obstructionists and poor sports, petty and mean. the democrats can now say with justification that they gave the republicans a chance to work with them, and only got sand kicked in their face for their trouble. but they got what they came for and the gloves can come off now.

obama now has under his belt a major piece of legislation no other president since teddy roosevelt has ever been able to accomplish, and he doesn't owe anyone except the more liberal members of his own party any favors or paybacks. he has his creds as a street brawler firmly established, but has earned the reputation of someone willing to deal with the other side and meet them half way if they give him the chance.

the republicans will scream bloody murder, which is what they would do no matter what had happened, but i think its a whole new ball game now. obama has demonstrated he has the courage to deliver on the promises he made to get elected, even if it means risking his political neck in order to do so. and he also has demonstrated that he has the legislative skills to pull it off.

in the meantime, the depression, although not over, is starting to let up, and the stock market is back to where it was when the bush free-fall began.

maybe he spent all his "considerable political capital" pulling this off, but at least he has something to show for it.