Fox Butterfield, is that you?

Best of the Web has an almost daily feature - a liberal contradiction that's not really a contradiction.
CNN's David Gergen approaches the territory.
But it has now become equally puzzling why he has not become more sure-footed in foreign affairs. He is one of the brightest men ever to occupy the office, and yet his learning curve has been among the flattest.
Maybe he's not as bright as you think he is.
You say he's bright, but do his actions match?