Yes We Did

Any thought that Barack Obama might be the kind of weak-kneed librul so often caricatured by Republicans (and so often played into by Democrats past) was belied by several events on the Friday of his first week as President.

First, the use of military force:

Suspected U.S. missiles killed 18 people on the Pakistan side of the Afghan border Friday, security officials said, the first attacks on the al-Qaida stronghold since President Barack Obama took office. At least five foreign militants were among those killed in the strikes by unmanned aircraft in two parts of the frontier region, an intelligence official said without naming them. There was no information on the identities of the others.

Then, the "abortion gag rule" overturned by Executive Order:

President Barack Obama on Friday struck down the Bush administration's ban on giving federal money to international groups that perform abortions or provide abortion information -- an inflammatory policy that has bounced in and out of law for the past quarter-century.

Obama's move, the latest in an aggressive first week reversing contentious Bush policies, was warmly welcomed by liberal groups and denounced by abortion rights foes.

But perhaps best of all, during a bipartisan informational session on the economic stimulus bill that the new President wishes to have in place by mid-February:

President Obama listened to Republican gripes about his stimulus package during a meeting with congressional leaders Friday morning - but he also left no doubt about who's in charge of these negotiations. "I won," Obama noted matter-of-factly, according to sources familiar with the conversation.

So while the Republican leadership is falsifying talking points based on non-existent Congressional Budget Office reports, Obama is once again reminding them of reality, something they haven't really had to deal with for eight years.

He won, big time. The first completely indisputable (not a plurality, no Supreme Court decision) first-time Presidential candidate victory since George H.W. Bush in 1988.

Yes. He. Did.