(A note to the readers: I apologize for my late posting. Problems involving the weather prevented me from getting my internet access back until now. Don’t worry— events these past few days have inspired the following piece. I hope it was worth the wait.)
The audacity of this president never ceases to amaze me. It’s reached the point where he’s asking— and I’m trying hard to write this with a straight face… he’s asking newlyweds… to forgo their wedding presents… and instead, tell their guests to instead make a donation… to the OBAMA CAMPAIGN!!!
Really, this is the kind of thing where, if it had been in a movie— even, say, a satirical comedy— it’d be laughed out of the theater… and not in a good way. And yet, once again, truth is proven to be stranger than fiction. This president is either such an egomaniac that he honestly thinks it’s a good idea for fundraising… or he’s so unimaginably desperate that he’s grasping at straws, so as to pull out all the stops.
I hope it’s the latter, but it’s probably the former. After all, this guy just rubbed salt in the wound of fans of the Boston Red Sox— and, predictably, got booed for it. Come on, Mr. President— did you really think you could get away with that?
Apparently, yes— just as he apparently thinks, now, that he can get away with stealing Senator Marco Rubio’s idea for compromise on immigration reform— twisting it into a step towards amnesty— and announcing his intention to enforce this new DREAM Act via executive order. Read: going over Congress’s head to pass policies on his own— something he has repeatedly whined (to Hispanic forums, by the way) that he’s constitutionally not allowed to do.
Needless to say, Senator Rubio is not amused. As far as he’s concerned, this is a big step back in the immigration debate. To be blunt, anyone with even just a basic understanding of the Constitution should see this the same way— which is why I’m so bitterly amused at Geraldo Rivera, usually a pretty stand-up guy (even if he does lean too liberal for my taste), following up his questioning of various legal and law-enforcement experts on the issue (who all agreed, by the way, that Obama’s actions here are “problematic”, at best— tyrannical, at worst) with a quick addition that the president is justified— morally, legally, etc. But then… Geraldo, bless his heart, has an unfortunate tendency to let his emotions control his takes on the issues— which is why he’s great on more sensationalist stories (and excellent pieces about our troops on the ground), but frankly not so good with politics.
But a couple days ago, the administration hit a new low. So, the Supreme Court rules on four issues in the Arizona immigration law. Three of them are overturned, much to the chagrin of Justice Antonin Scalia. The fourth— the provision allowing law enforcement to check a suspect’s ID and immigration status— is upheld. How does Obama handle this little… complication?
See if you can wrap your mind around this. He sets up a “hot line”: anyone in Arizona thinking they’re being “harassed” by cops via “racial profiling”… can call the White House directly, and express their beef. Meanwhile, Secretary Janet Napolitano of DHS has effectively cut off diplomatic ties with Arizona law enforcement.
Of course, none of this is surprising, to anyone who’s been paying attention, lately. “If Congress doesn’t do what we want, I’ll use my office to bring about Change— and bring Hope to our nation once again!” Thunderous applause— roll out the red carpet. So much for being a “Constitutional Law professor” who trashed Bush for, among other things, going beyond his constitutional limits to get his agenda through. (He also trashed Bush for an “unsustainable” and “unpatriotic” deficit— but, hey. Let’s say he “evolved” from that….)
Maybe he’s counting on the American people having short-term memory— that they’ll just forget the challenge he laid as his term began: that if our economy doesn’t show real progress by 2012, “this’ll be a one-term proposition.” Of course, Mitt Romney hasn’t forgotten— and he isn’t letting us forget.
Meanwhile, Obama’s grasping at straws, twisting the jobs data— and, of course, making desperate power-grabs, so he can say he’s “doing” something.
The Obamacare ruling’s coming up. See you next week.
