Some of the criticism that's raised against presidents is about personal attributes, not policy. However, this kind of criticism is not a new phenomenon, and Obama isn't the greatest victim of this. For a recent example, many people were more fond of pointing at GWB's buffoonery than the problems with his policies and the actions of his administration.

Political debate in a de-facto two party system easily turns into a fight between partisan hacks.

Actually, even left and right aren't clear in real life politics. Is "crony capitalism" right or left?