Obama’s Feet of Clay
One would hope that the President of these United States would have the experience, the intelligence and the sense of history to make all the right moves to bring about a revival of the country. Our previous president, G.W. Bush certainly dropped the ball in a number of areas. But he was also blamed for many things that weren’t his responsibility or his “fault.” I don’t need to go into those areas right now, liberal commenters on this blog will no doubt be delighted to list his short-comings. Nor would a list on my part convince those that hated him and those that liked President Bush don’t need the list.
Mr. Obama on the other hand still has a number of folk that are still convinced that the election of President Obama would set all aright. But the reality is is that almost nothing has gone the way that Mr. Obama thought it would. His signature issue of “health care reform” is not about reforming health care, in which the United States stands head and shoulders above the vast majority of other countries including the industrialized nations. It is about health insurance reform and the longer the so called “debate” goes on, more and more Americans have decided that we really should leave well enough alone. Too, I would ask how many deadlines for reform have passed in the partisan and bi-partisan bickering to get something on record.
The recession that came with the end of Mr. Bush’s term was largely brought about by the collapse of the housing market, in turn brought about by the proliferation of sub-prime mortages in turn brought about by the insistence of Democrats that housing be made available to all and sundry, whether they could afford it or not. As housing prices increased, more and more people on the margin bought in and more and more people couldn’t manage their debt load and the whole thing collapsed. Mr. Obama’s response, borrow more money, spend, spend and spend some more and then keep the sub-primes going.
The UAW practically broke the U.S. Auto industry (and truth be told, G.M., Chrysler and Ford management didn’t help – they consistently gave in to the UAW). Chrysler and G.M. were on the verge of bankruptcy so Mr. Obama stepped in and figuratively (and many say literally) put the U.S. in the auto manufacturing business in an unprecedented take over of business by the government and the parceling out of those businesses to the UAW (Can you say payback for services rendered boys and girls?) over the rightful claims of bondholders in what may ultimately be seen as an illegal move.
Speaking of illegal moves, after all the carping about Bush’s Attorney’s General Mr. Holder drops a very obvious voter intimidation issue in Pennsylvania, one however that the U.S. Civil Rights Commission doesn’t seem to be willing to let go (and good for them). To add to that, Mr. Obama has appointed a number of cabinet members with shady tax histories, histories that would land you and me in a slew-o-trouble. This also says nothing about the 30 plus “czars” that he has added, complete with their own missteps and shady backgrounds. Czars that I might mention do not need congressional approval and who in many cases seem to be doing the work that congress should rightfully oversee.
Then we have foreign policy and all the fiasco’s there. Making a very obvious bow to King Saud but denying that it was a bow, then bowing to the Emperor of Japan. Making the 2009 Apology tour. Missteps over Iraq, closing the detention camps Guantanamo and now, after weeks and weeks of dithering, a second (but final this time) decision about what to do in Afghanistan.
Obama has played footsie with the Palestinian Authority in hopes of getting the various factions hell bent on the destruction of Israel to back off and play nice with their Jewish neighbor only to see the PA, Hamas and Hezbollah (and their Syrian and Iranian backers) continue their genocidal aims of the destruction of Israel and the “final solution” for the Jews. Israel in the meantime, via the cabinet and Netanyahu agrees to holding back settlement expansion with no corresponding move by the Palestinians. So much for Obama’s meddling.
Add to this, Obama’s belief, without any historical precedence to back it up, that playing kissy face with the Mad Mullah’s of Iran would deter them from their pursuit of a nuclear device. Since the Iranian “students” took over the United States Embassy in Tehran Iran has been the ardent foe of the west in general and of America in particular. They have fostered terrorism throughout the Middle East and against American Interests and there has been nothing since 1979 to indicate that they were willing to negotiate anything. How could Obama not have seen that?
Obama canceled missile shields in Eastern Europe unilaterally in hopes of appeasing Vladimir Putin and figuratively got his face slapped for his efforts. In fact, his only foreign policy win was in the halls of a certain northern country famous for giving out a meaningless prize for peace, and he did that based on his “promise” of greatness. I wonder if the folk in Oslo want their prize back. [Note: In his will, Alfred Nobel decreed that the Peace Prize should go to the person who "[...] during the preceding year [...] shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses…” (emphasis in the original)].
All in all, it has not been a very good year for Mr. Obama, let us hope that he eventually (and damn soon) finds his balance, because those feet of clay are hurting all of us!
Cross Posted at WideAwakes
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