We need leaders, in Congress and the White House

Good op ed in the LA Times:

The president's coolness in the face of the right wing's relentlessly anti-intellectual assault on his policies has been impressive as a display of character. But it also has enabled his opponents to subvert his program and erode his popularity.

He hasn't been helped by the feckless performance of the Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. They've behaved like they think the public buys into such Republican talking points on healthcare as the "death panel" and "socialized medicine" claims -- all discredited fantasies.

By failing to take a strong line, the Democrats allowed the GOP to dominate the healthcare debate all summer. Senate Majority Leader Reid wasted weeks trying to enlist the GOP in a compromise, despite clear signs that Republican leaders were only interested in sabotaging reform. Obama didn't really take the reins of the debate until his address to Congress on Sept. 9.

Consequently, reform that Congress might have passed by Labor Day may not happen for months. Reid still isn't guaranteeing that healthcare reform will pass this year, saying only that there's "a very good chance" it will happen. Is this how a leader with a commanding majority should talk?
....

Global warming and financial regulation -- big issues lying dead ahead -- are in many respects even more complicated than healthcare and more susceptible to demagoguery. If they want to achieve their goals on these issues, the White House and the Democrats may have to assert their electoral mandate more aggressively than they have so far, or they'll risk losing it.

We've already seen that Obama knows how to talk sense. Can he play hardball too?