"Still, the operation cannot but underscore the mind-bending inconsistencies in Obama’s counterterrorism.."

That nails it. It is hard to gain too much cred for the kill when there is such great reluctance to be in the battle on nearly every other front.

" we should praise the president and, especially, our peerless military forces for a job well done. And we should forget about the politics of this."

Amen. Let's just leave it at that.

And now, let's get back to our regularly scheduled programming -- the US's economy is in no better shape than it was last Friday, our mideast policy is still a hopeless muddle, and the over-reaching government expansionist policies of this administration still need to be thwarted.

"Still, the operation cannot but underscore the mind-bending inconsistencies in Obama’s counterterrorism — gold-plated due process for some 9/11 terrorists but assassination for others . . ."

Wouldn't you say the same thing about the inconsistencies of going to war with Iraq but not with Iran or North Korean on the war on terror? If the idea of "different problems need to be handled different ways" applies to which countries we go to war with, why not with how we handle high target terrorists?

Obama deserves his due today. There will be plenty of time to go after him on his wreckless economic policies and so forth, especially once the euphoria of killing bin Laden goes down in a few weeks, but criticising him for petty reasons (like how he delivered the news of Osama's death . . . come on) makes his critics look weak and small.

Andrew,

You are right that president Obama’s message and actions are mixed when it comes to prosecuting the War on Terror (if its still called that).

But the media’s portrayal of President Obama’s words and deeds is consistently laudatory. It will be hard for the ‘average’ American (the vast majority who are not political junkies) to discern the ambiguities you mention. For comparison remember the media’s portrayal of President Bush’s ‘Mission Accomplished’ speech.

Unless there is a significant worsening of the economy, this event is likely to create sustained momentum for an Obama re-election.

And Mr. McCarthy's measured praise here does nothing to erase the incredibly stupid things he's said about the President. He said that Obama and the left 'is allied with our Islamist enemy in a grand jihad against America.' This may have sold a few books, butthis pretty much puts the lie to that statement, which if said by someone on the left would have been considered nearly treasonous.

So McCarthy is still a laughingstock to all reasonable minds left and right, regardless of this post, and he continues to tarnish the reputation of the National Review as a thinking person's publication.

This more than just a bump in the polls, as I think you allow. Last night, greedily taking credit for the execution of America's public enemy number one, President Obama looked convincingly presidential. He was collected, forceful, and calm. Admit it, he was dang good.

I see in the defensiveness and sniping of some of the conservative commentariat a tacit admission of such.

This win will do nothing for the left, but it will reclaim a sizable number of centrist and center-right whites.

The inconsistencies you cite will be recalled by astute politicos, but not by the general public.

If economic numbers can be construed to show improvement, the last 4-5 days of President Obama's term--which include the discomfiture of the Donald--have been very good indeed for him and may signal a turning point in his long decline.

The way for the right to counter this is to unhesitatingly give President Obama his dues, wait a few weeks, and then get back to pounding on the issues of our moribund economy and the impending entitlement insolvency.

It's the equivalent of giving George HW Bush credit for bringing down the Berlin Wall.

Short-term, he's probably looking at a 5-10 point bump in his approval ratings to low-to-mid-50s, with the gains coming mostly from independents.

That will start to ebb pretty quickly between a stagnant economy, high unemployment, $5-a-gallon gas, and food inflation.

By July, he'll be back down to low-to-mid-40s.

Big picture, this won't mean a whole lot in terms of electoral politics.

As with all things involving the mainstream media and today's left they will overplay this victory. It was courageous for Obama to order this attack and I respect him for it. But I still need to fill up my car on the way home from work, groceries cost more everyday, and young people are still deploying and dying in Afghanistan and Iraq. Additionally, let us wait for the retribution that is surely coming from Osama's followers.