Although you acknowledge that Barack Obama inherited “the inbox from hell,” including a financial collapse, a prostrated economy, and two wars, and although you also acknowledge “the opposition from hell,” involving a reckless, populist Republican Party, you still find him puzzlingly weak (“An Underperforming President,” August 6, 2011). Only imagine anyone else in his position—say, his erstwhile opponent in the presidential elections of 2008, John McCain. What could he have done in the divided America? More to the point, imagine someone like Sarah Palin at the helm in 2012. What could she do with the inbox from hell and the opposition from hell she would surely inherit in turn? Worse, both the inbox and the opposition are likely to get ever more hellish given the second dip that currently threatens. The best America can expect in the foreseeable future is a series of underperforming presidents, among whom Obama may well shine by comparison in the fullness of time.