I was going to write about that line from the Washington Post, but Jonah beat me to it. It bears repeating, that line, however: “Just days after taking office vowing to end the political era of ‘petty grievances,’ President Obama ran into mounting GOP opposition yesterday to an economic stimulus plan that he had hoped would receive broad bipartisan support.” That is one of the most astonishing lines of political reporting I have ever read.

A reader of ours commented, “Not immediately falling in line with a new New Deal is equated to a ‘petty grievance.’ Nice.” Is this the way it will be, during the Obama period? Is the bulldog press to become a little pussycat? Is critical thought about the One and his plans to be regarded as silly or treasonous?

Chris Matthews said, “I want to do everything I can to make this thing work, this new presidency work.” Well, that’s just the way it was during the George W. Bush years, right?

The press is often regarded as cynical, jaundiced, wisecracking, unsparing. Not really: They can be amazingly gooey. I have been amazed at the recent covers of The New Yorker (not that that magazine is “the press,” really). They have been borderline worshipful toward Obama. Same with the illustrations (and words) inside.

No, our media elites are not cynical, detached, and congenitally critical. They have their crushes, feelings, and passions, much like everyone else.