E-mail from a friend:

I notice that Obama ostentatiously declined to go to the areas likely to be hit by Gustav, citing again his desire not to interfere with operations because of the needs of his security team. It seems that he always has a reason not to go where the crisis is and understand the situation for himself, doesn’t it? Is that the kind of dial-it-in, let-me-know-how-it’s-going-boys president we want? Gustav is a try-out for both candidates. The left can talk about JSM posing all they want—the country should draw its conclusions from repeated indications of the candidates’ desires to see for themselves what the situation is and how best to judge the recommendations they’re given.