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The current issue of Foreign Policy magazine has a cover story comparing Barack Obama to Jimmy Carter. The implication is that Mr Obama, if he performs unwisely, may go the dismal way of his predecessor. While many applaud the US president as someone who has persuaded the world to like America again, the real question this mid-term election year is whether Americans like Mr Obama's America as it is; and on that, the jury is still out.

@body arnhem:Americans are, understandably, addicted to optimism. Ronald Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter in 1980 in large part because he persuaded the electorate that he could bring them a new morning, after years of economic decline and foreign policy calamities. The perception was at times harsh, but Mr Carter could never shake off the feeling that...