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Steven Pearlstien paints a picture of where Americans are at on the big issues.

I can genuflect with the best of them before “the basic decency and wisdom of the American people,” but the truth is that on many issues these days, the American people are badly confused.

They want Wall Street to be reined in, but they’re dead set against more regulation.

They want everyone to have access to affordable health insurance, but they’re wary of expanding the role of government.

They want the government to do something to create jobs, but not if it involves spending more money.

They want the federal deficit brought under control, but not if it means cutting entitlement spending or raising taxes.

They want to do something about global warming, but not if it raises energy prices.

Believe it or not, outside Washington, Americans don’t spend much time debating whether there ought to be a public option in the health insurance market, or whether consumer protection should be separated from bank supervision, or whether terrorists ought to be tried in criminal courts or by military tribunals. They expect that such issues will be decided by elected officials who understand their sometimes conflicting values and desires and use good judgment in resolving them.

Viewed in that context, the current political disarray need not be an insurmountable problem for President Obama, but rather could represent a golden opportunity to demonstrate the leadership the country needs and craves. He will not demonstrate that leadership by running around to carefully staged events in which he tells ordinary voters what he thinks they want to hear. Nor will he demonstrate it by redoubling efforts of his PR war room to respond to every attack or piece of Republican disinformation with overwhelming rhetorical force. Rather, the real challenge is whether the president can strengthen the bond of trust between himself and the American people by having the courage to tell the hard truths and make the hard decisions, irrespective of short-term political consequences and the tut-tutting of the commentariat.

While I can agree with most of the above, the problem is that Americans are confused because of the degree of misinformation thrown their way.  The concept of ‘death panels’, for example, can be easily understood by anyone in a matter of seconds.  Understanding what is really in the health care bill takes time and effort, both of which most are reluctant to offer.  Spreading fear and mistrust at a time of economic hardship gives one instant results as compared to the more difficult task of asking people to apply patience and reason.

When one has a political party which lies, distorts and misinforms with abandon, the task of strengthening the “bond of trust” between government and the people becomes ever more difficult.  And it is for that reason that the following is sound advice for the President.

The irony is that only by doing that which may be unpopular and unpolitical can the president revive his longer-run political fortunes.

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