-
A Fling With Federalism
January 23, 2012 | 84 comments
-
Mitt’s Masquerade
January 10, 2012 | 86 comments
The Obama Watch
All the President’s Props
The State of the Union address, one week later.
Last week’s State of the Union address was a sad and pathetic affair, full of transparent rhetoric and demagoguery, brimming with incandescent hypocrisies, variegated with an expansive assortment of half-truths and lies, palled by a mediocrity that almost seemed intentional, detached from reality like an unmoored hot-air balloon that slowly ascends to the heavens, stuffed with dense and infuriating arrogance, and draped over our nation like a several-sizes-too-small coat with promises and ideas rendered diminutive in the shadow of the historical moment.
All this was clear last Tuesday night. And yet somehow over the past week, the address actually grew worse.
The president’s speech was less a factual information session about the current American condition than it was a mawkish parade of political images and symbols, meant to make us identify with the president’s vision and feel at safe harbor with his leadership. It was less a speech than a play, lavish with props and masquerading actors tasked with immersing the audience in an alternate version of reality. But over the past week, key scenes of the drama have fallen apart. The president now looks less like a seasoned political actor than like Quince at the end of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, farcically fumbling his lines.
One of the supporting thespians was the Indiana-based electric car battery-maker Ener1, whose subsidiary EnerDel received a $118.5 million grant under the stimulus bill. EnerDel was also showered with more than $4 million in federal gifts under the Bush Administration. The scrappy little green boutique was meant to symbolize the flowering benefits of the sort of business-government handshaking that the rest of the civilized world calls “crony capitalism.” “In three years, our partnership with the private sector has already positioned America to be the world’s leading manufacturer of high-tech batteries,” Obama declared last Tuesday.
Precisely two days later, Ener1 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company had been an encore actor in the president’s campaign theatrics. Almost one year ago, Vice President Joe Biden visited the Ener1 facilities, effervescent about the administration’s promise to airlift 1 million electric cars onto the road by 2015. That pledge has since crashed on the shoals of reality and the cardboard prop that is Ener1 has blown over.
Watching Ener1 fold, it’s hard not to recall that last great monument to the progress of the green revolution: Solyndra. President Obama lauded that company in his 2010 State of the Union and it promptly imploded last year. One imagines executives at Pepsi placing urgent phone calls to the White House, encouraging the president to mention Coca-Cola in next year’s address. If you’re employed by a business receiving checks from the Department of Energy, you may want to dash off a few copies of your résumé this afternoon.
But the star of the State of the Union show, the leading lady, was Warren Buffett’s Secretary. “Right now, Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary,” Obama declared. “Do we want to keep these tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans? Or do we want to keep our investments in everything else — like education and medical research; a strong military and care for our veterans?” So central was Warren Buffett’s Secretary to the performance, she attended as the special guest of the president and belle of the ball, standing in the audience as a quiet testament to the grinding, Dickensian class divide that darkens the backstreets and alleys of modern America.
Warren Buffett’s Secretary was played by Debbie Bosanek, who is Warren Buffett’s actual secretary, and who makes between $200,000 and $500,000 per year, according to the calculations of Paul Roderick Gregory over at Forbes. It was a brilliant dramatic portrayal. While Bosanek herself is a creature of the upper classes, she effortlessly slipped into the part of Warren Buffett’s Secretary, a downtrodden proletarian exploited by the tax code, reminiscent of Peggy Olson in Mad Men.
This, by the way, presents a knotty conundrum for progressives. If Gregory’s deductions are correct, then Bosanek is likely a member of that charter club known as the “wealthiest 2%,” a coven of blackhearted plunderers and blue-blooded aristocrats that looted the country for all it was worth in 2008. Progressives have demanded higher taxes on the wealthiest 2%, yet hailed Bosanek as an overtaxed hero. They’ve blamed the wealthiest 2% for all the nation’s ills, but hoisted up this secretary as an emblem of justice in the class wars. Well, which is it? Should we add her image to the Two Minutes Hate tape, or no? And should we raise her taxes? Lower them? Maybe we should just raise everyone’s taxes.
The overarching themes pervading the president’s State of the Union drama were America’s greatness and stifling inequality. America was great when it allowed for the president’s accomplishments, like killing Osama bin Laden. But when it came to the president’s failures, most notably three years of a doldrums job market, it was all the fault of that yawning canyon of economic class. Wealthy Americans — for whom Debbie Bosanek’s membership application is still pending — were cast as the villains, cackling all the way to their banks with insufficiently punitive Treasury receipts.
The only solution was to sock it to them, specifically with a 30% net tax on millionaires. This (along with solar batteries) was the Big Idea, the great glowing light bulb of the president’s address. And according to an analysis by the Fiscal Times, it would raise $30 billion in revenue — and that’s assuming that the sledgehammer of adding yet another tax didn’t further stall the economy. Of course, $30 billion isn’t immaterial, but the Tea Party Caucus could cut that much from the federal budget during a bad hangover. Meanwhile, the national debt is $15.2 trillion.
And Democrats have already booby-trapped the tax code for the wealthiest Americans. With current tax rates set to expire at the beginning of 2013, taxes on capital gains will shoot up from 15% to 20%. And thanks to a pernicious little slice of the Obamacare legislation, taxes on capital gains will further increase to almost 24% in 2013. All this will happen unless the federal government takes action to prevent it. It’s piquantly fitting, isn’t it? If the president wants to see tax rates tighten for millionaires, his easiest course is simply to get reelected.
But I regret that I’ve disposed of two paragraphs trying to refute the president’s numbers when the numbers are nugatory here. Obama is fully aware that his tax increase would do little to arrest the deficit and less to catalyze the economy. His purpose is to blacken the wealthy into villains and portray himself as the eminently reasonable hero; to siphon all the laws and details of politics and economics into a simple, dramatic dichotomy and cast himself on the side of good. He is, with total self-awareness, jousting with phantoms and trying to bring the rest of us along for the ride. It may make for a spectacular show, but at the end of the day, that’s all it is: cheap lines and theatrics cluttering the stage floor.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (58) | Leave a comment
More Articles by Matt Thomas
More Articles From The Obama Watch
http://spectator.org/archives/2012/01/31/all-the-presidents-props
Follow us:
ADVERTISEMENT
SPONSORED LINKS
FLASHBACK TO: 1995
-
Pope Culture
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
-
Why the GOP Does Not, Like, Totally Suck
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
-
Dames at Sea
-
In the Absence of Guns
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
-
The Metaphysical Martini
-
Counting the Costs of Clintonism
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
-
Chuck McHagel
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
-
The Legacy of Old John and Mother Fresh-Roasted
-
It’s the Best Time of the Year
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
-
The Bush Crack-Up
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?
Clip of the Day
H/T to National Review Online
ADVERTISEMENT
David| 1.31.12 @ 6:21AM
Good.
David| 1.31.12 @ 6:22AM
I mean, the article is good. Not what it's reporting on. It's late.
c. j. acworth| 1.31.12 @ 6:44AM
Mr. Thomas is not keeping up with current events. In his very first sentance he describes Obama's hypocrisies as "incandescent", apparantly unaware that the incandescent light bulb is now outlawed. I'm sure the author will wish to correct that to "flourescent" hypocrisies.
But seriously, folks, can we please start seeing the contenders for the Republican nomination hammering on things like Ener1? This type of scandal is the only thing that gives me hope that Obama will be tossed out in Nov.
Brian Mc| 1.31.12 @ 7:18AM
The alien gets away with it because there is a huge portion of the voting block who still believe Sarah CAN see Russia from her house. We are battling a status quo out of control. Personally, I will never buy another Coca Cola product and when I come upon a business with a green windmill symbol on their window, I turn around and take my business elsewhere. Only two examples to be sure, but we must start voting with our pocketbooks because, no matter how many R's we put in, it's the status quo that is undermining this Republic. The alien is just the most recent, albeit affective champion of its intentions.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:40PM
I'm sure that's how stable owners felt about the horseless carriage - enjoy your fadeaway.
Skippy| 1.31.12 @ 4:39PM
It's the entire unique notion of America that is quickly fading away, but thanks for playing!
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:43PM
Obama is good friends with a woman who killed a cop by explosive trauma with steel nails. This is a true statement; the woman is Bernadine Dorhn, and he started his career in her house.
The ad showing a cop being ripped apart by nails should be shown 24 hours a day when campaign season starts. "Obama loves cop-killers" should be the slogan for the ad.
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:31PM
Brian---it was pepsi, not coke, who gave Obama his symbol.
Appleby| 1.31.12 @ 7:26AM
These are the End Times, folks. Lamps lighted and wicks trimmed.
JP| 1.31.12 @ 7:45AM
The President's proposal reminds me of the AMT (Alternative Minimum Tax), which was passed into law some 40 years ago. The AMT came about as a reaction to a news story that reported the wealthiest 100 Americans paid no income tax. The AMT, like Obama's proposal, levied a minimum tax on all individuals who made more than $10 million. So, what happened to the AMT?
Congress, when it passed the AMT, didn't index it to inflation. As a consequence, more and more people found out they were now the wealthiest Americans. Today, a couple earning as little as $90,000 find themselves liable for extra taxes due to the AMT. Yet, the wealthiest Americans have found ways to avoid it.
Don't think for a minute the President's proposals will not target the middle class.
Mike Hawk| 1.31.12 @ 9:44AM
I think the Oborg is considering a revision to the AMT to be called the Alternative Maximum Tax. Principle is "You make it, We take it". Send it in.
Appleby| 1.31.12 @ 2:49PM
The one thing people like Obama NEVER understand is that rich people have options -- they will ALWAYS find ways to avoid the tax man. So would you and so would I, if we can.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:41PM
either you want to balance the budget or you don't - which is it?
Skippy| 1.31.12 @ 4:52PM
I don't.
I want it slashed by half, with half the Cabinet positions and 3/4 of the Fed. bureaus shut down permanently.
The budget will then balance itself.
Duh.
VonMisesJr| 1.31.12 @ 9:01AM
Warren Buffet's tax rate is immaterial compared to the crony deals he gets in special investments through the government at the likes of Goldman at a 8% discount (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122220798359168765.html).
Then he got a sweet little deal at Bank of America that Berkshire had just sold shares at $12.24. Then he proceeded to buy 700M warrants at $7.14 that should double over a few years. I believe that is expected to be a $5B gain. It also pays a 6% dividend (http://pragcap.com/buffetts-bank-of-america-deal).
So the tax rate is not really the issue. It is the crony capitalism that is appalling and atrocious. And Obama is his partner in crime. It's the Chicago way.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:45PM
Chicago has nothing to do with it. Just like Chicago is riddled with gangsters, that's such an old canard.
Unfortunately for the R's this income inequality and fairness resonates with the general public, so I can see why it's upsetting to you all.
But tell me - why aren't you making more than you do? Why aren't you in the 1%? Who's holding you back? Sounds to me like your envious of Warren Buffet who makes money the ol' Richie Romney way ... so you support capitalism or you don't - which is it?
VonMisesJr| 1.31.12 @ 4:40PM
Perp, I already explained this to you several times. Are you that dense?
Crony capitalism is the flip side of fascism, and has nothing to do with capitalism. GE earning $14.2B in profits and paying ZERO in federal business tax is not capitalism. GS getting $1B bailout, if I remember correctly, in 2008 is not capitalism. Buffet getting sweetheart deals from the Obama regime is not capitalism.
I was a sales executive most of my life and self-employed the rest. I got paid for performance, and I love capitalism. I just want it to be around for my kid, nieces and nephews. No matter how obnoxious greedy little punks like you want other people's stuff; it is not yours.
BTW, what do you make at MoveOn as a troll?
TrueBlue | 2.1.12 @ 2:46PM
Don't forget that Buffett owns the rail lines that will be transporting the oil from Canada that they can't sell to the Chinese thanks to Obama vetoing the Keystone pipeline.
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:33PM
Purp: I'm from Chi. Chicago is RIDDLED with the mob. They are more discreet, but they definitely are still there.
By the way, I just found out I'm in the 1%. Lowest possible rung of that, but there.
Russel| 1.31.12 @ 9:05AM
The imposter invokes P.T. Barnum to mind the longer he stays in show business .
Pecos Pete| 1.31.12 @ 9:08AM
King O don't wear any clothes, so says me. Amazing that so many people think his clothes are grand.
Nemo| 1.31.12 @ 9:46AM
A few minutes googling will tell you something interesting about the State of the Union: the US has the highest unemployment rate in the English-speaking world.
Skippy| 1.31.12 @ 4:54PM
That's only if one counts the legions in England on the dole as employed.
TrueBlue | 2.1.12 @ 2:48PM
If we still measured employment by the standards used during the Great Depression we'd be seeing numbers closer to 15%. Pretty sure that even if you added the "government employed" in England we'd still be higher.
Indiana Alex| 1.31.12 @ 9:46AM
Tax rates are the new "Shiny Objects" held up by Liberals to distract the thoughtless from any contemplation of real issues.
The tax rate in and of its self is meaningless, though the extent to which businesses and individuals will engage in the unproductive simply to avoid taxation is worthy of discussion.
What's worse is that the proposal is not to increase taxes to pay for previous spending commitments, but mostly out of some twisted sense of "fairness" and to fund new wasteful spending.
This whole exercise is actually an excellent case for simplifying the tax code, but the "stupid party" carries on while the "stupid people" keep starring at shiny objects.
Ned| 1.31.12 @ 10:08AM
... and, of course, Mr. Buffet effectively chooses the manner and type of taxation applied to his secretary when he selects the form of her remuneration... if he paid her in stock, she wouldn't pay the ordinary income rate, now would she?
JIM WHITTAKER, Hemet, CA| 1.31.12 @ 10:11AM
No more Affirmative Action presidents.
Ever...
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:48PM
Gee, wonder what that means? RACIST ... we knew it, now you have admitted it.
Skippy| 1.31.12 @ 4:55PM
Of course we're racists.
We support the human race, not the Eloi race.
Glad you figured that out.
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:36PM
No, but we want our next Black President to be someone like Walter Williams or Allen West---not some Chauncey Gardener type with Black Skin. I cried when I found out that West wasn't running. My adopted children are Mayan Indians. Take your racist accusations, cram them small, and shove them up your fat ass.
jlrlee| 1.31.12 @ 10:41AM
Obama has no substance in his bones. Can you imagine Obama negotiating with Gorbachev as
Reagan did? Gorbachev would have handed Obama's head on a platter to the rest of the world and the cold war would have ended with the USA defaulting to the Soviets. Come to think of it, I guess we are now defaulting to the rest of the world under Obama.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:49PM
Funny - Reagan bowed to Gorbachev and the Soviet Union was no more. It wasn't with bombs and bullets the Soviets were brought down - and it wasn't Reagan that did it.
Skippy| 1.31.12 @ 4:57PM
I forgot.
The USSR killed itself as an act of mercy.
Silly me!
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:37PM
The Soviets were brought down because an arms race destroyed their potemkin village economy. As usual, purp, you are an ignorant asshole.
David W| 1.31.12 @ 10:43AM
Buffet is lying. He says his secretary only makes $60,000. Yet if her income tax rate is 35% she would have to be making $200k. Or, Buffet is including social security and medicaid/medicare in her tax rate, which is comparing apples to oranges. The conservatives need to hammer Buffet - why is his company fighting the IRS to avoid paying taxes? Why did he will his estate to the Bill Gates foundation. Why is his railroad going to benefit from the Keystone decision? The man is a political prostitute, just trying to line his own pockets at the expense of others.
1ConservativeUSA| 1.31.12 @ 11:00AM
More to the point, why is it so hard for people to understand that Buffet, as an owner of a company, first pays 35% corporate tax on the dividends he is paid?
Why, too, is it so hard for the media to state that the capital he earned to produce long term capital gains (taxed at 15%) has already been taxed at the 35% individual rate?
Finally, why do we allow ourselves to be distracted by the left and the left's media? Does anyone understand that Buffet, Bill Gates, Oprah and all the "rich" could be taxed at 100% and it would not solve the real problems, profligate government spending and overreaching government regulation and intrusion into the private sector?
C'mon people - wake the hell up.
Indiana Alex| 1.31.12 @ 12:04PM
Berkshire Hathaway has never paid dividends. Buffett says that is because he thinks the company can do better by re-investing them. If one watches how Buffet operates with investment they will notice many decisions that are influenced by tax consequences.
Diogenes| 1.31.12 @ 2:20PM
#1 Dumbass! Buffett owns STOCK like the huge majority of stockholders in his corporations. he is retired from active managment @ Berkshire-Hathaway and is just trading with wisdom and experience. HIS personal dicidends have NEVER been taxed and the Corporation that has a 35% pre tax rate, really only marks up their prices 12$ to cover their expenses.
You really should fact check that Fox dogmachow you masticate like manna.
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:38PM
Who pays the marked up price due to corporate tax? Hmm, Diogenes, it's a tough one......
Kevin W Compton| 1.31.12 @ 10:44AM
You hit the nail on the head in the last sentence of paragraph nine. In the end they will simply raise the tax rates on all of us.
1ConservativeUSA| 1.31.12 @ 10:54AM
Yup, and if Americans can't see Obama's falseness by now, our representative republic is over.
Diogenes| 1.31.12 @ 2:23PM
And maybe it is time for it to die a natural death. The fairytale representation you THINK you had all these years never existed. Not when Ike was in charge, nor when The first Roosevelt was in charge. It has been the Lobbyists in charge since Andrew Jackson and just tough sh*t, bite harder!
1ConservativeUSA| 1.31.12 @ 11:01AM
More to the point, why is it so hard for people to understand that Buffet, as an owner of a company, first pays 35% corporate tax on the dividends he is paid?
Why, too, is it so hard for the media to state that the capital he earned to produce long term capital gains (taxed at 15%) has already been taxed at the 35% individual rate?
Finally, why do we allow ourselves to be distracted by the left and the left's media? Does anyone understand that Buffet, Bill Gates, Oprah and all the "rich" could be taxed at 100% and it would not solve the real problems, profligate government spending and overreaching government regulation and intrusion into the private sector?
C'mon people - wake the hell up.
cicero| 1.31.12 @ 11:10AM
You either cut spending or you tax the middle class. As Willie Sutton said, "That's where the money is." You could confiscate all of the money of the 500 richest people in the country and it wouldn"t make a difference. Wall Street is in the tank for Obama (see where they put their money in 2008), because they know that he would never hurt them. After all, he helped them enourmously after he got in. The only thing that will change the formula is a President that disabuses himself and the country that any private institution is too big to fail. Capitalism is a risk/reward game. Take the risk out, and you no longer have capitalism. In the Address, Obama merely reminded his corporate friends that the treasury is still open to them, whether they win or lose. The Elite have figured out a way to keep themselves in the manor to which they weere born. If we win the war, we reap the rewards. If we lose the war, we still reap the rewards. But, in that case, the laboring class will have to eat grass until they can recover on their own.
I hate to sound like a 19th century anarchist, but it is not enough to snicker at the Kings because we know that they have no clothes. It is time to throw them out into the snow. This is a country where WE get to choose our leaders. Time to pay attention, and get it right. If the Conservative movement can't find a leader among the parties this time, I suggest a new party organization convention next year. Set the time and place now just in case.
Diogenes| 1.31.12 @ 2:24PM
We fix Social Security the same way we ease the tax burden on the middle class. We Revoke parts of policy immediately. Eliminate both the AMT and the FICA cap. Redefine all income as income and tax it all at the going rate.
Diogenes| 1.31.12 @ 2:28PM
Oh, and a National Real Estate tax, you know... ~wink~ on all property held by an entity...
Like the 10 million homes that banks have on their books?
TAX THAT WINDFALL and THE LEASED LAND oil companies are NOT drilling on, the tracts they are sitting on. That will drop the deficit by 8 or more % annually for the next half decade. By My second term as president, America wil be able to afford a lunar colony, but I will channel al that RE tax into revolving mortgage subsidies for households with pets.
Michael Bergsma| 1.31.12 @ 4:49PM
As someone who leases land to drill wells, I have to respond to the Oil Companies sit on the lease statement. Leases are expensive and no one sits on them any longer than neccessary. It takes time to get a well drilled because it takes time to get the financing and the permits and the drilling equipment. Sometimes you have a exploration concept so you lease more land than you can drill on immediately in the hopes that the idea will work and you can drill added wells.
mister Z| 1.31.12 @ 5:09PM
Taxing oil companies' undrilled leases makes about as much sense as taxing hotels for empty rooms because they're not full, or a shopping mall for vacant retail space because it's not occupied. There are multiple reasons why oil companies lease and then either defer drilling or don't drill...get educated, but please stop vocalizing on issues you don't comprehend.
Tim Birkeland| 1.31.12 @ 12:09PM
The man speaks out of both sides of his mouth; often simultaneously. It is difficult to take him seriously on any issue, including his eligibility for office. I have stopped listening - I am a much calmer person as result.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:53PM
And yet, his approval rating is up 3% according to Rasmussen - so I guess you'll have a very quiet next 4 years ....
Occam's Tool| 1.31.12 @ 8:40PM
Purp: the Cubbies are going to the World Series this summer and Obama is getting reelected.
I don't think so.
Pat| 1.31.12 @ 2:10PM
These constant revelations of taxpayer money thrown at private firms who then proceed to make our money disappear are very strange to say the least. Is this “we give you money and then you declare bankruptcy” due to widespread corruption among Obama’s civil service employees – we will never know because no one within our media is at all curious about these mundane details. Our Liberal mainstream media grudgingly reports the bad news but then editorializes on why it’s in our nation’s best interest to take large sums of money from us taxpayers and give it to folks like Ener1 who can’t seem to make a “green” business prosper, even with the full resources of the U. S. Treasury behind them. Our Conservative media makes a brief mention of the latest “oh darn”, but only as an excuse for yet another sermon on why Obama is the well-spoken doofuss we’ve all come to know and deeply mistrust.
But these reports raise a host of other questions. Why $118.5 million for instance, why not round it up to $120 million? Do you get to use the Government Giveaway Short Form when it’s under $120 million? And which Obama appointee, who must have flunked out of the Wharton School of Business after only one semester, is responsible for all these innocent mistakes? Can no one read a balance sheet or critically evaluate a business plan within the DOE? And what happens to the firm’s assets after bankruptcy is declared?
$550 million to Soylandra and $118.5 million to Ener1 must have purchased some assets, even after deducting those several millions of dollars which ended up in Cayman Island numbered bank accounts. Are members of Congress and Friends of the Democrats allowed to buy these assets for 10 cents on the dollar as some form of “perk”? And if firms like Ener1 are important to the Green Movement, why allow them go bankrupt at all – why not keep pumping money into them until they succeed? Or was that ever the intended plan? Maybe Warren Buffet’s secretary understands such complex business issues, but the rest of us are always left in the dark over these puzzling events.
Perhaps we require real investigative reporters within the hallowed halls of the Washington Post or the Wall St. Journal. To illustrate this point, take those hard working reporters at The Examiner for instance. Thanks to their sweat and endless toil, we’ve learned Chelsea Clinton’s marriage is on the rock and why, Madonna’s brother is actually a homeless person and that Paul Newman once dated Marilyn Monroe, complete with salacious details. If only The Examiner would turn its laser like focus on Washington D. C. - particularly the juicy details of where all our money actually went. Imagine future Examiner headlines reading: “DOE Chief Purchases Hawaii Vacation Home Worth $10 Million” or “Joe Biden Reveals His Secret Love Affair with Ener1 CEO” – you might term it a scandal rag but The Examiner seems to take investigative journalism seriously, unlike some major media outlets we could mention.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:57PM
All this bruhaha over less than 1 week of the Iraq war. That's the best the right can dig up?
JeffT| 1.31.12 @ 2:58PM
Obama's greatest "accomplishment," as reported by his ally The Washington Post, is to divide us Americans as never before. I remember Bush being pilloried for claiming to be "a uniter, not a divider." Bush was a piker compared to the Obamination.
Purp| 1.31.12 @ 3:58PM
Whatsamata pookie? You no like Karl Rovian tactics turned on your Republicant whining babies?
Don L| 1.31.12 @ 3:16PM
Great and on the money. I loved the stage metaphor and was reminded of two great write3rs: Shakespeare, who said: the whole wolrld is a stage, and Chesterton, who predicted in the early twentieth century that society would soon vacate rational truth in favor of emotionas the criterion for making decisions -which describes our politically correct suicidal voting patterns.
Curtis Rasmussen| 1.31.12 @ 3:32PM
Obama is Don Quixote with one exception. He knows that his imaginary foes do not exist.
POST American| 1.31.12 @ 10:32PM
---Thanks to the feebleness and '90's Show'
staleness of the Globalist CFR front 'Republicans'
we fully expect 'BAR---Rockefeller' Obama
will get in ---AGAIN.
And now someone , PLEASE EXPAIN,
what's the difference---anyway?
------------THE REPUBLIC HAS FALLEN------------
Clintons/ Bushes/ Gores/ McCains/ Gingrichs
and Rockefellers --
---one and ALLLL at the helm during
the decades on handover of the American
economy to RED China ---our sovereignty to
NAFTA ---
--------MUST STAND TRIAL FOR TREASON------
There is absolutely NO OTHER WAY.
-------------------------NONE-----------------------------