MOE LANE: How The White House Is Mishandling Rick Perry. “Because President Obama so quickly elevated Gov. Perry to a level where he was worth the personal attention of what is still the single most powerful man in the world, it naturally follows that what Perry says in response would also be news. And it turns out that what Perry says in response has nothing to do with personal spats and everything to do with job creation, which is a topic that Barack Obama would come off second to… every Republican candidate in the race, actually. Not to mention, Bozo the Clown.”

I also think that Obama’s attacks hurt his likability, which at this point is all he’s got left. Given that he can dish it out but not take it, the GOP should probably pursue a picador strategy aimed at irritating him (perhaps with non-candidates) into lashing out repeatedly until he looks mean even to members of the public who don’t pay a lot of attention.