In June Mr Abe unveiled proposals to sharpen incentives in the labour market, open up restricted sectors and revamp corporate governance. Yet the blizzard of proposals—over 240 of them—showed little sense of priorities, which suggests they were intended in part for effect. Some progress has been made, including on getting more women into work (see article), but much has languished. Mr Abe’s earlier promises to bring down steep tariffs on beef and other farm goods look thin; negotiations with America over joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free-trade grouping, are stalled. Some Americans, once fans of Mr Abe, wonder whether he is all hat and no cattle.