Rush State

Politics as Basketball

"Think about why a full court press works. It's partly that it challenges the opponent in an unexpected way, and they aren't prepared. That's a logistical challenge that can be addressed in itself. But it's more than that. Take Pitino's favorite game of his career:

'The Kentucky players were lightning quick and long-armed, and swarmed around the L.S.U. players, arms flailing. It was mayhem. Five minutes in, it was clear that L.S.U. was panicking.
Pitino trains his players to look for what he calls the "rush state" in their opponents--that moment when the player with the ball is shaken out of his tempo--and L.S.U. could not find a way to get out of the rush state. "See if you find one play that L.S.U. managed to run," Pitino said. You couldn't. The L.S.U. players struggled to get the ball inbounds, and, if they did that, they struggled to get the ball over mid-court, and on those occasions when they managed both those things they were too overwhelmed and exhausted to execute their offense the way they had been trained to.'

It's almost too perfect that Pitino calls this the "rush state." Think about this situation in the context of Obama's legislative strategy. He's pushing forward in every policy area at once. He's keeping up the rhetorical pressure in the media. He's working electoral angles three months after being sworn in. And Republicans thus far simply can't get into their offense and execute a play. They're stuck in, well, a Rush state. Flailing around after mirage outrage issues because they can't catch a breath and get set."