With few exceptions, President Barack Obama stands in opposition to everything I believe in. However, even during the height of the election cacophony, I generally respected Obama for his demeanor and intelligence. I thought he was able to articulate himself well and craft appealing ideas — even if the details of those ideas were disturbing.
Now, a few months into his presidency, I am astonished. What happened to Obama? He seems to have fallen from inspiring orator with a visionary spirit to bumbling buffoon with a lack of clarity in an extraordinarily short period of time. His administration has goofed on so many levels it’s hard to keep track of it all. Every day another dumb thing happens — stuff for which there is little excuse. The pathetic attempt to tar and feather Rush Limbaugh, a regular Joe who happens to be the #1 radio host in the country, is just par for the course. In the previous eight years of the Bush administration, I never saw Mr. Bush stoop to the level of sneering at his critics. If anything, conservatives wished he would engage his political enemies. But Bush had a healthy respect for the dignity of his office. Despite his widespread unpopularity, he genuinely believed he was every American’s president, and his ego had to be submitted to the responsibility of his post. Apparently, Obama has chosen a different course. I thought we were ready to move past the corrosive bickering over partisan ideology. Apparently, I was wrong.
Mr. President, I ask of you only one thing: get a grip. Be a man. Lead this country forward. Don’t stop to throw stones — or you may discover the house in which you live is made out of glass.
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4 Comments
Jared,
What’s happening is what many conservatives said would happen: Obama cannot possibly live up to the hype! In fact, no one could have lived up to the expectations put upon this president.
Obama was practically revered as a messiah (there’s a great YouTube video floating around that shows this to the tune of the Russian national anthem). The media was in love with the man and so many people thought this guy would solve all of our problems.
It wasn’t until he got the nomination or the presidency that he started back-peddling and saying that the problems he was going to fix wouldn’t be fixed in his first or second terms.
The man had charisma and is likable. I’ll give you that. But this was the presidency we were voting for, not prom king. We’re going to end up getting exactly what the people voted for and it’s probably not going to be good.
“The pathetic attempt to tar and feather Rush Limbaugh, a regular Joe who happens to be the #1 radio host in the country.”
A regular hypocritical Joe with an audience of millions (I don’t know about you, but most people aren’t “regular” to the tune of being extremely wealthy as a result of running their mouths) who openly remarked on his desire to see Obama fail. Multiple times. Now Obama has the temerity to comment in response, and you think he’s being overly snarky? That he should keep his opinions on the matter to himself-even when asked directly for his reaction? There’s something a little…inconsistent about all of that.
I can see why you’d hold the president to a different standard, but I’m surprised you have any patience with Limbaugh’s antics. He’s never been about anything besides dropping terms like “feminazi” and is constantly engaging in bogglingly wrongheaded rhetoric. You may think I dislike him for his politics, but really, he’s just an ass and would be one if he were a rabid Democrat. He often seems to not know the difference between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
I get a kick out of it when people make the Messiah reference, as if right-wingers weren’t the only people claiming Obama believes that about himself in the first place. Obama has actually been hurt by the widespread loathing of his failed predecessor, because people irrationally believed that Obama would basically work magic, and they haven’t even given him time to try. It’s amazing how people convince themselves that Obama’s presidency is still in its infancy.
I don’t actually listen to Rush Limbaugh all that much. I agree with some things he says and not others. It is however undeniable that he has a large and loyal following, and his success has come from hard work and a solid “product” that a lot of people never anticipated would take off. He’s a pop personality, just like Oprah is a pop personality. He’s entitled to his opinion, and if he hopes Obama fails due to his far-left agenda, that’s his business. Why are Obama and his cronies focusing on him when they should be focusing on the government they’re so far doing a lousy job of running?
I didn’t say Limbaugh isn’t entitled to an opinion–that’s a trivially accurate observation. I agree, if he wants to see the country tank in order to see his ideas vindicated, that’s all fine and dandy–about as “patriotic” as a painkiller habit, but acceptable. I’m saying it’s unreasonable to expect Obama to keep completely silent on the matter.
“Why are Obama and his cronies focusing on him when they should be focusing on the government they’re so far doing a lousy job of running?”
How does a few lines at a press conference qualify as “focusing” on Limbaugh? Do you really think he could have done more for America in the 15 to 30 seconds he devoted to the matter?
Face it; you don’t like Obama and you’d evidently like to see him fail as well, and as a result you sacrifice coherence. You’re entitled to do this just like Rush is, but expect to be called on saying things redolent of ludicrous double standards. The statement that Limbaugh is just some average Joe is incompatible with identifying him as one of the most popular pundits out there–it’s like talking about “Average Joe NBA players” or something.
Would you have blasted Bush for addressing, in passing, the ideas of Al Franken types? Because believe me, he’s done so, albeit lacking Obama’s ability to speak in useful English. Do you think he should have been quiet about Stephen Colbert’s mockery of him at the White House?