A year later, where did the hopes for Obama go?

A year ago, Barack Obama's true believers were euphoric. The huge and jubilant gathering in Chicago's Grant Park on Election Night 2008 gave way to almost 2 million people on the Mall for the president's inauguration. He took office as the most popular incoming president in a generation. A movement had become a mandate of nearly 70 million votes. People hoped the new president would bring change to Washington, the hallmark claim of his historic candidacy. Now, the mood through much of the nation seems restive, even sour. It is almost jarring to look at the photographs from Grant Park,...