Another thing that makes politics so hard

By Richard K. Barry

In today's New York Times there is a story about New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In it, he bemoans the fact that after years at the helm it's hard to maintain one's popularity. Political pros know there are two sides to incumbency. The first is that being around a long time keeps your profile high making it harder for challengers to get noticed. The other side is that being around a long time gives you ample opportunity to piss people off. Hence Bloomberg's comment:

Every time you make a decision you lose half the people. After five decisions there is only you and your mother, and I'm not sure about her.

The corollary to this is that in politics people may appreciate the things you did that help them, but they remember the things you did that hurt them.

A thought for the day.

(Cross-posted to Lippmann's Ghost.)