Swagger deficit?

Josh Marshall runs the influential TPM blog. He has a well-deserved reputation for clear, bullshit-free analysis. So I was surprised when he wrote, “Look at President Obama today and the guy just doesn't have his swagger. The confidence is gone. And so is the smile.” People want a leader with charisma, luck and “something up his sleeve,” said Marshall. “The president needs his swagger back. Right now it may be his most critical deficit.” Really, Josh? Let’s set aside the laughable notion that Obama is prone to losing his charisma or confidence like I misplace my car keys. Surely Marshall knows Obama is still the most popular politician in the land by far. Surely he is not discounting Obama’s earnestness in the face of staggering problems (the reason we elected him). Surely he is not asking Obama to don a cape just to assuage the Pavlovian insecurities of the professional left. Surely he doesn’t believe Obama can magically sweep away our troubles simply by swaggering more. Surely he knows luck is not a calculus equation. Surely Josh just had a bad day and actually agrees with me. If he does, I’ll stop calling him Shirley.