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To the surprise of some, former President Barack Obama still holds the record for nastiest treatment of the Supreme Court in a State of the Union address. On Monday this column expressed concern that President Donald Trump might reach the same depths this week after some appalling online comments last week. Fortunately, as the Journal’s Kim Strassel notes, Mr. Trump dialed down his recent “fury, even skipping the opportunity to berate the Supreme Court justices who killed his tariffs, confining himself to lamenting their ‘unfortunate’ and ‘disappointing’ ruling.” Now come more inevitable comparisons between our 44th president and the man who is both our 45th and 47th. As for the latter, Donald Trump became famous for massive construction projects and his relentless promotion of them. Now as Barack Obama prepares to open his own signature development project, the strategy seems focused on lowering expectations. The Obama Presidential Center will be opening soon in Chicago, and nobody is promising an economic windfall for the
surrounding community. A.D. Quig reports for the Chicago Tribune on the new center: There’s uncertainty as it approaches its June opening. Michael Strautmanis, the foundation’s chief corporate affairs officer, said he hoped construction and initial hiring were just the beginning of catalytic public and private development in Woodlawn and South Shore, but said “there’s real hubris in thinking that the Obama Foundation is going
to reverse hundreds of years of disinvestment. It’s just not.” Perhaps this point should have been emphasized while the foundation was busy bulldozing local opponents in court. In truth, if the center’s neighbors don’t thrive after the grand opening, the blame should largely go to Mr. Obama’s allies in city and state government who continue to run one of the most business-unfriendly jurisdictions in the country.
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