I'd be remiss if I didn't at least comment about Obama's press conference today and his handling thus far of the far from over saga of the tax cuts for the richest americans, umemployment benefits for the long term unemployed, and other of the issues in which there seems to be a chasm between the major political parties. Obama made an agreement with republicans. Many pundits question whether he got a good deal.

But maybe a very defining pundit is Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize winning economist and columnist for the NY Times. He was on the Jim Lehrer News Hour with a conservative think tank economist. The conservative think tank economist kept pushing for the spending cuts. Krugman, on the other hand, thinks that the government hasn't spent enough to benefit most people.

But even Krugman had a hard time giving unqualified support to Obama's position. There is definitely a grassroots movement, including MoveOn, to have the democrats in congress defeat this agreement. But Obama doesn't want to do that. If he is going to push things toward a government shutdown, he wants it to be a much more cut and dried issue.

But I have to say that Obama has changed. He is, like all of the others before him, aging in the office. But at the same time, he is growing into it. He is a very intelligent man - one not to be underestimated. The republicans best not be cocky in dealing with him.

On the other hand, Obama better not forget from whence he came. He is a democrat, and if he keeps his natural allies on the sideline, he may regret it when he really needs them. I can't wait until tomorrow when the pundits are going to be talking about his calling the republicans hostage takers. That's going to be a good one. Do we see a presidential apology coming?