Obama's verbal quirks

The rhetoric of President Obama is decidedly different than that of Candidate Obama. Gone are the optimistic days of "change we can believe in." Instead, Obama's speeches are often downright gloomy, with an excessive focus on the negative. In his remarks on withdrawing from Iraq less time was spent praising the nascent democracies triumphs than in warning about the dangers ahead. The president droned on about how "violence will continue to be a part of life in Iraq. Too many fundamental political questions about Iraq’s future remain unresolved. Too many Iraqis are still displaced or destitute. Declining oil revenues will put an added strain on a government that has had difficulty delivering basic services," gloom, doom, gloom, doom.

Yet, one idiom has survived Obama's transition from Candidate to President. A phrase that I always thought jumped out in his speeches, but the press made no mention of: "make no mistake." He likes it so much he used it twice in his speech on Afghanistan and Pakistan. In that speech Obama noted that

"the terrorists within Pakistan’s borders are not simply enemies of America or Afghanistan – they are a grave and urgent danger to the people of Pakistan. Al Qaeda and other violent extremists have killed several thousand Pakistanis since 9/11. They have killed many Pakistani soldiers and police. They assassinated Benazir Bhutto. They have blown up buildings, derailed foreign investment, and threatened the stability of the state." And then, just in case the audience missed the point, Obama warned them to "make no mistake: al Qaeda and its extremist allies are a cancer that risks killing Pakistan from within."

Here is an incomplete list of the mistakes an ardent Obama affascinato should not make

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Make no mistake about what we're up against. We're up against the belief that it's all right for lobbyists to dominate our government, that they are just part of the system in Washington. (Jan 27, 2008)

Ending the war in Iraq I believe will be an important first step in achieving that goal because it will increase our flexibility and credibility when we deal with Iran. Make no mistake I believe that Iran has been the biggest strategic beneficiary of this war and I intend to change that. (Feb 25, 2008)

Make no mistake: our destiny as Americans is tied up with one another. If we are less respected in the world, then you will be less safe. (July 2, 2008)

This is a corporation that just recorded the largest profit in the history of the United States. This is the company that, last quarter, made $1,500 every second. That’s more than $300,000 in the time it takes you to fill up a tank with gas that’s costing you more than $4-a-gallon. And Senator McCain not only wants them to keep every dime of that money, he wants to give them more. So make no mistake - the oil companies have placed their bet on Senator McCain (August 4, 2008)

It’s time to end the fight in Iraq and take up the fight for good jobs and universal health care. It’s time to end the fight in Iraq and take up the fight for a world-class education and Social Security. It’s time to end the fight in Iraq and take up the fight for opportunity and prosperity here at home. So make no mistake - the American people have a choice in this election. We can keep playing the same Washington game with the same Washington players, and somehow expect a different result. Or we can choose a different future. Just imagine it. (April 2, 2008)

Millions of our fellow citizens lay awake each night wondering how they are going to pay their bills, stay in their homes, and save for retirement. Make no mistake, this is the greatest economic crisis of our times. (Nov 15, 2008)

In supporting the America Recovery and Reinvestment Plan Obama notes that "the slowdown has cost us tens of thousands of jobs in January alone. And the picture is likely to get worse before it gets better. Make no mistake, these are not just numbers. Behind every statistic there's a story." (Jan 31, 2009)

In his speech on Executive Compensation Obama notes that the "crisis was years in the making, and it will take more than weeks or months to turn things around. But make no mistake: A failure to act, and act now, will turn crisis into a catastrophe and guarantee a longer recession, a less robust recovery, and a more uncertain future." (Feb 4, 2009)

Now, make no mistake: This nation will maintain our military dominance. (March 12, 2009)

At a time of economic crisis, it's tempting to believe that we can shortchange this civilian effort. But make no mistake: Our efforts will fail in Afghanistan and Pakistan if we don't invest in their future. (March 27, 2009)

Obama on nuclear disarmament (April 5, 2009): And there are those who hear talk of a world without nuclear weapons and doubt whether it is worth setting a goal that seems impossible to achieve. But make no mistake: we know where that road leads. When nations and peoples allow themselves to be defined by their differences, the gulf between them widens.

Obama on torture (May 21, 2009): I can stand here today, as President of the United States, and say without exception or equivocation that we do not torture, and that we will vigorously protect our people while forging a strong and durable framework that allows us to fight terrorism while abiding by the rule of law. Make no mistake: If we fail to turn the page on the approach that was taken over the past several years, then I will not be able to say that as President.

In his Cairo Speech, Obama urged the Arab world to "make no mistake: we do not want to keep our troops in Afghanistan

On his speech on the Energy Bill (June 25, 2009) he tells us not to be confused into thinking the bill is about energy, but to "make no mistake, this is a jobs bill."

Ghana (July 11, 2009): This progress may lack the drama of the 20th century's liberation struggles, but make no mistake: it will ultimately be more significant. For just as it is important to emerge from the control of another nation, it is even more important to build one's own.

On health care (July 15, 2009): And every single day we wait to act, thousands of Americans lose their insurance, some turning to nurses in emergency rooms as their only recourse. So make no mistake, the status quo on health care is not an option for the United States of America.

In his speech to NAACP (July 16, 2009), the President declared "there's probably never been less discrimination in America than there is today." Still, he said, "make no mistake: the pain of discrimination is still felt in America."

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Make no mistake, I have nothing against the phrase "make no mistake." I actually like it. It's a strong phrase that grabs the audience's attention. It also serves as a roadmark in oratory, dividing a speech between the evidence and the action item. All in all, a good phrase. A whole lot more presidential than "don't get me wrong" or "it is obvious that." I'm just surprised nobody else noticed Obama's reliance on it.

But people did remark when a different president used the phrase. The seemingly innocuous phrase is actually not merely bad, but monstrous, the "worse Bushism of them all." Or at least it is according to the Slate's Timothy Noah: "It is a bully-boy phrase, meant to warn that the speaker really means what he is saying."

At first I thought that Noah was just being unimaginative. I mean come on, of all the great Bushisms how can "make no mistake" be the worse of them all? "misunderestimate" wins hands down. But it turns out that no less a personage than Colbert shares Noah's misgivings. "Make no Mistake, that's my favorite bush-ism. He thinks people are making fun of him all the time," Colbert declared on Comedy Central.

So Obama's reliance on "make no mistake" is not some strange verbal quirk, but a great betrayal of the American people, the continuation of Bush's tradition of bully-boy oratory. What has happened to change we can believe in? Obama closed Gitmo, but plans to transfer detainees to the even worse Bagram airbase. He committed us to withdraw from Iraq, but will leave armed "advisers" behind. He forbid torture by the army, but will give the CIA more "leeway" in interrogations.

But all that would have been okay, if the new administration had only delivered on its major campaign promise: a breathtaking change in rhetoric. No more talk of "terrorism," only "man made disasters." No more talk of human rights and freedom, only "positive, cooperative relationships" between "great civilizations." Best of all there would be no more stuttering.

But now it is clear that Obama's beautiful rhetoric was really a lie, built upon the worse Bushism of them all. Nothing has really changed. The American people did not have a choice in this election.