Sounding Retreat?

That dire message emanating out the back door of the Permanent Campaign while the Boss is away on vacation just might be signaling a retreat. The terrain has proven a bit more treacherous, and the natives certainly less compliant, than this conquering army had come to believe that it would be. So the masters of strategy have decided to back up and re-group. In order to have a reasonable shot at priority #1 (hold onto the seat of power for as long as possible) they need to extricate themselves from the doomed, budget busting, enterprise-enervating programs that were to be the centerpiece of their Transformation of America. But how to do so without looking like Napoleon on the steppes of Russia? Change the circumstances. Float the "revelation" that the budget outlook, the economy, etc. are trending much worse than we thought when we started down this road. In order to have a scintilla of a prayer of a chance at any kind of meaningful legislative advantage after November of next year, not to mention the perks of power, they are going to have to back off and govern non-controversially, more in line with the center-right that is the reality of America. So in light of "evolving circumstances", this once seemingly unstoppable juggernaut is going back to the shop for repairs. This announcement, this recasting of the data they have had all along, is cover to fail gracefully, with the hope of living to fight another day. The Market has been figuring this out all Summer long. Enjoy, at least a little while longer!