In the vernacular of college basketball, Obama ran a successful fast break or two after the opening tip, but since has turned the ball over several times and surrendered much early momentum.  It's time to call a timeout, take a step back, and regroup.  He needn't abandon his strengths, but he should assess what the defense is giving him and adapt his game plan accordingly.

To quote Will Ferrell's parody of George W. Bush, "Presidentens harrrrd."  And it's made all the more difficult when the incoming administration paints virtually all that was done in the previous eight years with a brush of incompetence.  It is always dangerous to be defined in such self-righteous, superior terms, particularly in a job as utterly complex  and unpredictable as President of the United States.  Karma has a way of biting you in the behind.

Obama's approval rating has already dropped from 72% to 58%.  That should signal his team that policy trumps personality.  Results matter more than rhetoric.  If Obama thought he could skate by on charisma and likability, he's learning otherwise.  Anybody who saw his interview prior to the Super Bowl had to be impressed with his congeniality and charm.  Clearly though, the public is demonstrating an ability to separate personality from performance.  So far, there has been little congruence between discourse and deeds.

Obama is fortunate that he will have an opportunity to recover from his administration's early stumbles.  The media applies a different standard of scrutiny to president 44 than it did 43.  Even though it's rather remarkable that at least five major Obama appointees (Daschle, Richardson, Killefer, Geithner, and Holder) have withdrawn their nominations or had serious issues/conflicts revealed, you're not seeing the near universal condemnation and cries of incompetence that would accompany such a situation if the new president were not a media darling.

The media, though, should not be underestimated; it will be more challenging than most people believe. 

The President has made such a big deal about transparency.  No doubt that stance has won him initial favor with the public and with a press that abhorred Bush's perceived secretiveness.  Obama is finding out, however, that it's a double-edged sword.  Most citizens, I believe, don't care a heck of a lot about how the sausage is made.  They want and expect ethical behavior, but are mostly concerned that the trains run on time.  They certainly don't want government continually preaching about how it's acting in their best interests.  Actions speak louder than words.  The populace is not so much interested in the nitty gritty details of each and every policy debate, as it is with quiet managerial and organizational competence and sound outcomes.  Obama might want to put down the books on Lincoln and pick up one on Eisenhower; he could learn something.   Ike entered the presidency with enormous goodwill, but didn't use it to lecture—simply to govern.  Transparency is a noble goal, but symbols only go so far.

Most interesting is whether Obama's stated desire to make government work by tearing down the old partisan divides is feasible in today's 24/7 cable news and Internet-centric world.  It is not yet clear that the media, albeit friendly, is fully prepared to deal with a President who doesn't fit into a neat ideological box.  The inevitable residue of cross-party cooperation is message confusion.  If Obama pursues his bi-partisan ideal, will he be able to define himself in a way that doesn't weaken him in the eyes of the media and the public?  I think that will prove to be a most difficult challenge.  His communication skills at least give him a fighting chance.

Time out is over; now get back in the game and fight, fight, fight.