In New York, the "miracle" is the legalization of same-sex marriage. And Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo deserves the flowered garlands now being thrown at his tony loafers. "It’s hard not to be impressed by the accomplishment," gushed Nate Silver, the normally leveled-headed Timesman. "The type of leadership that Mr. Cuomo exercised — setting a lofty goal, refusing to take no for an answer and using every tool at his disposal to achieve it — is reminiscent of the stories sometimes told about with President Lyndon B. Johnson, who had perhaps the most impressive record of legislative accomplishment of any recent president." That, of course, is a set-up to take a swing at you know who. "It’s also a brand of leadership that many Democrats I speak with feel is lacking in President Obama," Silver writes. Sigh. Dragging out the "leading from behind" meme, Silver says "articulating clear and unapologetic goals is not incompatible with persuading votes on the margins."
Except when it is.
Damning the torpedoes may make the socks of activists roll up and down, but it's not a sound governing strategy (esp. when reelection is at stake). And as important as it is, the fate of the nation does not hang on same-sex marriage. But I won't belabor the point. I'm glad the landmark law passed. Just bear in mind that New York is a Democrat-friendly, "blue" state. Obama runs the entire country. A state and a nation are not equivalent. Nor can the former be governed or led like the latter. To Silver's other point, yes, LBJ was indeed a master of legislation (absent a 24-hour news cycle). He also mired us in Vietnam and left the White House a broken man. I'd be careful about putting him on a pedestal. Cuomo has a bright future ahead of him. He deserves credit for his leadership on this aspect of gay rights. But measuring Cuomo for Mount Rushmore is premature. Deriding Obama as an also-ran on gay rights is disingenuous.
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