I remember arguing with people in 2008 who insisted he was the most liberal candidate, which he wasn’t. Ronald Reagan was one of his idols, FFS.

People saw a charming black man and then put all their hopes and aspirations onto him without actually realizing what he was about. In a sense he was very Trump like in that regard. He was a walking horoscope for his supporters. He didn’t have to say anything concrete, the followers would dutifully fill in the blanks.

Hell, I still like Obama. He’s a pretty decent guy, but he was not going to disabuse people of their inaccurate notions of him.