Stimulus fight gives Obama lessons early – USA Today (2/11/09):

When the first big priority of his presidency was at risk of unraveling last week, Barack Obama went back to the fundamentals that enabled him to win a historic victory in the presidential election.

Under fire in Washington, he scheduled campaign-style town-hall meetings to make the case for his huge economic stimulus bill to folks in Elkhart, Ind., and Fort Myers, Fla. He dismissed the Republican opposition as the business-as-usual crowd. He relied on his rhetorical skills and popularity.

He did nothing of the kind. Nelson and Collins had all but a done deal on Friday. Obama didn’t even announce that he was going to give speeches in Indiana and Florida until Nelson and Collins were well on their way to an agreement. He didn’t speak in Indiana until Monday, Florida until Tuesday.

Apparently in addition to three dimensional chess, Obama can time-shift as well.