Democrats in Congress told POLITICO they’ve been surprised that there seem to be no obvious consequences for sharp criticism of the White House. Cheerleaders on the left are beginning to urge him, in the words of Maureen Dowd, to be “more Rocky, less Spocky.”…

“His problem has been almost from the beginning that while Democrats on the Hill appreciate him, they’re occasionally inspired by him, they’re not all that impressed with him,” said Bush political advisor Karl Rove. “They appreciate his diffident attitude, but I’m not sure it’s one that inspires either fear or respect.”…

And he has yet to take a tough stand, or pick a difficult fight, on many of the major policy issues of the day. He continues to search for a Goldilocks solution in Afghanistan – not too hot, not too cold, and projected nothing more than caution when Iranians took to the streets. He has allowed disfavored proposals from allies – like the Employee Free Choice Act – to die of their own accord, professing support all the while.

The question is where this personal and strategic blurriness turns into a more dangerous political sense of weakness, a dangerous perception for American presidents George H.W. Bush learned when Newsweek labeled him a “wimp” on its front page.