From "yes we can" to "it takes time"

“It’s almost as if he’s moving in reverse,” said Stephen Hess, an analyst on the presidency at the Brookings Institution. “People usually get better at giving speeches, not worse.”

In 2008, Mr. Obama’s speeches “held tens of thousands spellbound,” Mr. Hess said. “But it’s very hard to find a very strong speech he’s given since he’s been in office.”

Part of Mr. Obama’s difficulty in finding the right inspirational tone now for a stump speech is making the transition from blameless candidate to culpable leader, said Republican strategist Ron Bonjean.

“He’s having his own teachable moment between campaigning and experienced governing,” Mr. Bonjean said. “First, he blamed the Bush administration, then he blamed Congress, and now he’s saying [to voters], ‘It’s your fault for expecting too much of me.’”