Is President Obama a poker player?

(Cue Kenny Rogers' "The Gambler")
You gotta know when to hold 'em,
Know when to fold 'em.
Know when to walk away,
And know when to run.

Even non poker players know the old adage about throwing good money after bad.
You get a fair looking hand on the deal, like a low pair.
Hoping it will improve to three of a kind or possibly two pair on the draw, and maybe to bluff one or two players out of the game, you make a sizable bet.
You discard three cards, but the draw doesn't improve your hand.
Another player makes a pot limit bet.
Gee, you've already invested a lot of money in this hand. Should you stay in 'just to see'?

Nope. Putting more money in the pot just because of what you already have 'invested' is a sure way to end the evening a loser.
This is also known as cutting your losses.

Pouring more troops into Afghanistan to support a corrupt government makes no sense. More casualties in that ill advised venture will do nothing to 'honor' those lives already lost.

And remember, another player was dealt this hand and decided to bet it in the first place. He's now out of the game and President Obama is forced to play the hand left to him.
Yes, he will take a serious political hit if he pulls our troops out.
Sometimes you have to just do the right thing and take the hit.
Personally, I think he'll survive.

Apparently during his time in the IL legislature, he participated in a weekly poker session and was said to be quite good at the game.

Yes.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about President Obama is simply his willingness to take on the hard work of recovery in an era when it's clear the public are looking for scapegoats. McCain and Palin never seemed to muster any enthusiasm for anything but power, and apparently never planned to do squat.

As much as I love your OP, we should acknowledge that any competent president is a player of about 50 simultaneous games of poker and chess. Obama's approach is so refreshing mainly because Bush and Cheney only ever played one, losing all the rest.

President Obama takes the office seriously, and is working at it.

Just another self-made man who is now part of the "Corporations Rule" club.

Mark my words, when push comes to shove, President Obaema will side with the Large Corporations comprising Wall Street and the MIC.

No doubt, it's not "poker" nor "chess" but the old game of keeping the little people STUPID and PRE-OCCUPIED while the ultra-wealthy continue to transfer our tax dollars upward to the 1%.

The "American Crusade" that begin in 2001 is still right on track.

You know that both Democrats and Republicans have been praying at the corporate alter for a lot longer than the last 9 years.

FWIW, I think Obama might be the only one who has really challenged the interests of the corporate elite. I think a large degree of opposition against him is actually stirred up by the elites who are going to loose some of their pie.

:shrug:

You call the 2 cards "deuces" in Penuckle