The Convenient Fantasies of President Obama

Solid as usual by Michael Barone.

Obama's Big Political Gamble (Karl Rove)

Love him or not, as usual Rove's analysis of his opponents' weaknesses is worth a read.

Obama's Health Care Pitch

Fred Barnes' analysis of BHO's speech is a good one. I can summarize the 47 minute speech in a sentence folks: "it may not add up folks but ignore that and lets win one for the swimmer!!!"

Obama, the Mortal (Charles Krauthammer)

Um Charlie, I was using the Icarus wings of wax analogy months ago{1} , you owe me some royalties ;-)

Note:

{1} To my knowledge it was not on this publishing medium but in other places.

Flashback 1991: Gephardt Called Bush's Speech to Students 'Paid Political Advertising'

I am sure that while many Republicans and Independents (not to mention some Democrats) were uncomfortable with the "study plans" released for students prior to President Obama's speech today, I doubt any of them would call for an investigation of the White House and spending public money on this matter. The same was not the case with the Democrats in Congress during the administration of President George H. W. Bush. Kudos to Noel Sheppard at News Busters for this scoop and pointing out yet another in a long list of hypocritical double standards employed by Democrats in Congress.

Cheney: Obama Team Should Be Debriefing CIA Interrogators, Not Investigating Them

It should not take even the assistant of the assistant of a rocket scientist to realize what actions such as these do. For one thing, they lower the morale of people who work at the CIA and are involved in national security. Secondly, if lawyers who give legal opinions which lead to or influence policy have to be concerned about future administrations even talking about (let alone actually) looking at investigating them for supposed "criminal behaviour"{1}, then this will inexorably lead to a weakening of national security. How could it otherwise since -the absolute idiocy if these assertions aside for a moment{2}- any motivations for taking tough measures against non-Geneva following enemy combatants will have to be weighed against the possibility of the person's views being considered "criminal."

This would furthermore (if the current crowd's methodology is observed and presumed to be the future norm in this area) not to be not be done an objective manifestation of the evidences.{3} Instead on the mere subjective intentions{4} of any given polemicist who finds himself in power later on and wants to extract political revenge against positional adversaries. The latter is what they do in communist/socialist/totalitarianist nations, it should not be what we see in a republic such as ours.


Notes:

{1} I say "supposed" because whatever one thinks about the manner in which detainees were treated, it borders on banana republic behaviour for one administration to be playing the "our predecessors were criminals" schtick. Plus, the idea that we were engaging in "torture" is so laughable as to be absurd but then again, when you have people refusing to define their terms, this is the sort of irrational drivel you get: people mindlessly parroting words and slogans as if this suffices to make their argument.

{2} Namely, this one:

On the Subject of CIA Interrogation of Terrorist Suspects In Light of Recent Events (circa April 30, 2009)

{3} On the Difference Between Objective Manifestation and Subjective Intention (circa February 27, 2007)

{4} See footnote three.

Van Jones Resigns

I wish I had not lost the text of a private chat a good friend with whom I was discussing late last week the next person who would be gone from President Obama's cabinet. I said it would be Van Jones, they said it would be Leon Panetta. Nonetheless, they know who they are and I simply want to note this for the record and say five words on the resignation of self-avowed communist and 9/11 "truther" Van Jones; namely: good riddance to bad rubbish!!!