In his best tough guy voice, Barack Obama made a promise to America that’s worth used toilet paper, just like every other promise Obama has ever made:
“Because of this law, the American people will never again be asked to foot the bill for Wall Street’s mistakes,” Obama said in a ceremony at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington. “There will be no more taxpayer-funded bailouts. Period.”
“Read my lips- no more bailouts!”
In fresh wave of bailouts, Obama plan directs $30 billion to aid community banks
WASHINGTON – People are fed up with bank bailouts that risk taxpayer billions. The government’s apparent solution: call them something else.
Congress is at work on a new program that would send $30 billion to struggling community banks, in a process similar to the huge federal bailouts of big banks during the financial crisis. This time, money is more likely to disappear as a result of bank failures or fraud.
Obama Signs $26 Billion Bailout for Cash-Strapped States
President Obama signed a bill that he says will save hundreds of thousands of teacher and other public workers from unemployment.
Obama signed the measure into law just hours after the House passed it in a special one-day session during what would normally be the lawmakers’ summer break.
The $26 billion bill would protect 300,000 teachers, police and others from election-year layoffs. Obama and Democrats said quick action was necessary before children return to classrooms minus teachers laid off because of budgetary crises in states that have been hard-hit by the recession.
Nevermind that money is being sent to states who don’t need this funding:
With the passage of a $26 billion aid package Tuesday to help states pay for Medicaid and teacher salaries,
most state budgets will get some help in paying for education programs, but states not facing massive teacher layoffs and cutbacks are also set to receive millions in federal money.
Business digest: Government providing $3 billion to unemployed homeowners
The Obama administration will provide $3 billion to unemployed homeowners facing foreclosure in the toughest job markets. The Treasury Department said it will send $2 billion to 17 states that have had unemployment rates higher than the national average for a year. They will use the money for programs to aid unemployed homeowners.
All this is aside from the bailout-in-perpetuity guaranteed for Fannie and Freddie
The Obama administration pledged on Thursday to back beleaguered mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac no matter how big their losses may be in the next three years.
As discussed here, Fannie and Freddie aren’t even touched in the Dodd-Frankenstein financial bullsh*t reform.
And here comes the Apocalypse:
Main Street may be about to get its own gigantic bailout. Rumors are running wild from Washington to Wall Street that the Obama administration is about to order government-controlled lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forgive a portion of the mortgage debt of millions of Americans who owe more than what their homes are worth. An estimated 15 million U.S. mortgages – one in five – are underwater with negative equity of some $800 billion. Recall that on Christmas Eve 2009, the Treasury Department waived a $400 billion limit on financial assistance to Fannie and Freddie, pledging unlimited help. The actual vehicle for the bailout could be the Bush-era Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP, a sister program to Obama’s loan modification effort. HARP was just extended through June 30, 2011
The cost?
That’s if the economy strengthened. $1 trillion if not.
We’re at Not.
That Obama has absolutely no sense of business is painfully evident. And who does he surround himself with?
The Cabinet from another planet.
A week ago, as the secretary of labor greeted grim job data by hailing the economy’s “turnaround,” the Dow fell 100 points in seconds — a vivid sign America is wising up to this administration’s incompetence.
Only minutes after her department reported that payrolls had shed another 131,000 positions in July, there was Secretary Hilda Solis speaking brazenly of the “strong and immediate action” the White House had taken to save or create “more than 2.5 million American jobs.”
But as the market action showed, investors could see she didn’t know what she was talking about.
But then, Solis is no different from any number of administration officials who by their comments or actions demonstrate almost daily that they know nothing about creating jobs or anything else to improve the economy.
His continued bailing out of unions and those who walked away from their second mortgages is enough to elicit myocardial infarction. $26 billion for teacher union bailouts- how long does this last? Is this something we’re going to have to do every year?
Yes, that was rhetorical. These bailouts are stimulus junior. When do those of us who have conducted ourselves responsibly get a bailout? When do we get something other than the bill for Obama’s largesse?
And Obama? He says the worst of the recession is over.
“So while we have fought back from the worst of this recession, we’ve still got a lot of work to do,”
The worst is over? That’s why we have continue to need these bailouts?
The Washington Examiner recently said that it was time to admit that Obamanomics has failed.
It’s also time to admit that Barack Obama has failed.
DrJohn has been a health care professional for more than 30 years. In addition to clinical practice he has done extensive research and has published widely with over 70 original articles and abstracts in the peer-reviewed literature. DrJohn is well known in his field and has lectured on every continent except for Antarctica. He has been married to the same wonderful lady for over 30 years and has three kids- two sons, both of whom are attorneys and one daughter on her way into the field of education.
DrJohn was brought up with the concept that one can do well if one is prepared to work hard but nothing in life is guaranteed.
Except for liberals being foolish.
So nice to know that billions of the AIG bailout went to shore up banks in Germany and France. Thanks taxpayers, it is really white of you bail out the world and accept a lower standard of living so that Bo can look like a hero to the workers of the world. This is what Socialism or a dictatorship of Elites is all about.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100812/D9HHSM180.html
Has everybody forgotten eo12919???Obama can do and say whatever he wants. Clinton made sure of it.
Man must not live for the sake of another man, nor should he force another to live for the sake of himself. Unfortunately, that viewpoint is termed ‘selfish’ by many, including most democrat supporters. What the detractors of that viewpoint fail to realize is that by living for oneself, to be concerned with one’s own happiness over another’s, is what gives the most back to society.
Obama would have you believe in ‘shared sacrifice’. What that really means is that all who live under the flag, except his chosen beneficiaries, must sacrifice themselves, to Obama. That is why the Stimulus Bill directs funds at particular groups, that is why all these non-bailout bailouts direct their funds to particular groups. When the bill comes calling, the producers in the country will be forced to pay for it all, under the guise of ‘shared sacrifice’. When unemployment runs out, another few months will be added on, under the guise of ‘shared sacrifice’.
What happens when there are too few producers left to share in this ‘shared sacrifice’? What happens when there isn’t any more to loot from the producers? What happens when those who are dependent on others, who force them to live for the sake of the ‘unfortunate’, find they cannot depend on someone else anymore, because their isn’t anymore wealth to redistribute to them?
That is the truth of the endgame of socialism, in all it’s forms, that leftists do not want people to see. When the well runs dry, it affects everyone. Wealth is not being produced in America anymore. People are hanging on to whatever they have, and not engaging in economic action any more than they have to, and it is due to the fear of the reaper when he comes calling(the reaper being the tax raises, in whatever form). The needy, those on the dependent side, are growing in number daily, despite the lying from the WH. Sooner or later, that number will become too great for the producers in the country to support. We already owe trillions to other countries and our own citizens. What happens when that credit dries up?
All of these “bailouts” were just to begin the collapse of the system- if there had been NO bailouts, yes, we would have had a severe recession, possibly another Great Depression, but we would have emerged sooner and stronger from it.
If BHO really had wanted to “care” about jobs, the stimulus would have really gone to jobs instead of his circle-jerk union buddies.
Case in point- GM (Government Motors) touts its success in the last year, indeed, they are going to open another plant to make cars- in Mexico. How in the hell does this help jobs in the US?
Until the unions acknowlege that they are addicted to bloated, out of touch with reality pensions and benefits, the cure for GM and Chrysler, and to an extent Ford will be out of their hands, and they will again fail.
Meanwhile, China wants to import their cars here, and if they are better and cheaper, they WILL be bought.
Understatement of the century. My position is our MSM failed in the process of telling America the qualifications 0-bama and therefore he got elected. He is completely lacking in qualifications for this position. Having said that, yes he is a complete failure and hopefully this next election will slow the tide of destruction of America.
Excellent piece Dr.
Allow me to add this bundle of kindling to the bonfire:
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100050412/the-stunning-decline-of-barack-obama-10-key-reasons-why-the-obama-presidency-is-in-meltdown/
The stunning decline of Barack Obama: 10 key reasons why the Obama presidency is in meltdown
There are an array of reasons behind the stunning decline and political fall of President Obama, chief among them fears over the current state of the US economy, with widespread concern over high levels of unemployment, the unstable housing market, and above all the towering budget deficit. Americans are increasingly rejecting President Obama’s big government solutions to America’s economic woes, which many fear will lead to the United States sharing the same fate as Greece.
Growing disillusionment with the Obama administration’s handling of the economy as well as health care and immigration has gone hand in hand with mounting unhappiness with the President’s aloof and imperial style of leadership, and a growing perception that he is out of touch with ordinary Americans, especially at a time of significant economic pain. Barack Obama’s striking absence of natural leadership ability (and blatant lack of experience) has played a big part in undermining his credibility with the US public, with his lacklustre handling of the Gulf oil spill coming under particularly intense fire.
On the national security and foreign policy front, President Obama has not fared any better. His leadership on the war in Afghanistan has been confused and at times lacking in conviction, and seemingly dictated by domestic political priorities rather than military and strategic goals. His overall foreign policy has been an appalling mess, with his flawed strategy of engagement of hostile regimes spectacularly backfiring. And as for the War on Terror, his administration has not even acknowledged it is fighting one.
Can it get any worse for President Obama? Undoubtedly yes. Here are 10 key reasons why the Obama presidency is in serious trouble, and why its prospects are unlikely to improve between now and the November mid-terms.
1. The Obama presidency is out of touch with the American people
In a previous post I noted how the Obama presidency increasingly resembles a modern-day Ancien Régime, extravagant, decaying and out of touch with ordinary Americans. The First Lady’s ill-conceived trip to Spain at a time of widespread economic hardship was symbolic of a White House that barely gives a second thought to public opinion on many issues, and frequently projects a distinctly elitist image. The “let them eat cake” approach didn’t play well over two centuries ago, and it won’t succeed today.
2. Most Americans don’t have confidence in the president’s leadership
This deficit of trust in Obama’s leadership is central to his decline. According to a recent Washington Post/ABC News poll, “nearly six in ten voters say they lack faith in the president to make the right decisions for the country”, and two thirds “say they are disillusioned with or angry about the way the federal government is working.” The poll showed that a staggering 58 per cent of Americans say they do not have confidence in the president’s decision-making, with just 42 per cent saying they do.
3. Obama fails to inspire
In contrast to the soaring rhetoric of his 2004 Convention speech in Boston which succeeded in impressing millions of television viewers at the time, America is no longer inspired by Barack Obama’s flat, monotonous and often dull presidential speeches and statements delivered via teleprompter. From his extraordinarily uninspiring Afghanistan speech at West Point to his flat State of the Union address, President Obama has failed to touch the heart of America. Even Jimmy Carter was more moving.
4. The United States is drowning in debt
The Congressional Budget Office Long-Term Budget Outlook offers a frightening picture of the scale of America’s national debt. Under its alternative fiscal scenario, the CBO projects that US debt could rise to 87 percent of GDP by 2020, 109 percent by 2025, and 185 percent in 2035. While much of Europe, led by Britain and Germany, are aggressively cutting their deficits, the Obama administration is actively growing America’s debt, and has no plan in place to avert a looming Greek-style financial crisis.
5. Obama’s Big Government message is falling flat
The relentless emphasis on bailouts and stimulus spending has done little to spur economic growth or create jobs, but has greatly advanced the power of the federal government in America. This is not an approach that is proving popular with the American public, and even most European governments have long ditched this tax and spend approach to saving their own economies.
6. Obama’s support for socialised health care is a huge political mistake
In an extraordinary act of political Harakiri, President Obama leant his full support to the hugely controversial, unpopular and divisive health care reform bill, with a monstrous price tag of $940 billion, whose repeal is now supported by 55 per cent of likely US voters. As I wrote at the time of its passing, the legislation is “a great leap forward by the United States towards a European-style vision of universal health care, which will only lead to soaring costs, higher taxes, and a surge in red tape for small businesses. This reckless legislation dramatically expands the power of the state over the lives of individuals, and could not be further from the vision of America’s founding fathers.”
7. Obama’s handling of the Gulf oil spill has been weak-kneed and indecisive
While much of the spilled oil in the Gulf has now been thankfully cleared up, the political damage for the White House will be long-lasting. Instead of showing real leadership on the matter by acing decisively and drawing upon offers of international support, the Obama administration settled on a more convenient strategy of relentlessly bashing an Anglo-American company while largely sitting on its hands. Significantly, a poll of Louisiana voters gave George W. Bush higher marks for his handling of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, with 62 percent disapproving of Obama’s performance on the Gulf oil spill.
8. US foreign policy is an embarrassing mess under the Obama administration
It is hard to think of a single foreign policy success for the Obama administration, but there have been plenty of missteps which have weakened American global power as well as the standing of the United States. The surrender to Moscow on Third Site missile defence, the failure to aggressively stand up to Iran’s nuclear programme, the decision to side with ousted Marxists in Honduras, the slap in the face for Great Britain over the Falklands, have all contributed to the image of a US administration completely out of its depth in international affairs. The Obama administration’s high risk strategy of appeasing America’s enemies while kicking traditional US allies has only succeeded in weakening the United States while strengthening her adversaries.
9. President Obama is muddled and confused on national security
From the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to the War on Terror, President Obama’s leadership has often been muddled and confused. On Afghanistan he rightly sent tens of thousands of additional troops to the battlefield. At the same time however he bizarrely announced a timetable for the withdrawal of US forces beginning in July 2011, handing the initiative to the Taliban. On Iraq he has announced an end to combat operations and the withdrawal of all but 50,000 troops despite a recent upsurge in terrorist violence and political instability, and without the Iraqi military and police ready to take over. In addition he has ditched the concept of a War on Terror, replacing it with an Overseas Contingency Operation, hardly the right message to send in the midst of a long-war against Al-Qaeda.
10. Obama doesn’t believe in American greatness
Barack Obama has made it clear that he doesn’t believe in American exceptionalism, and has made apologising for his country into an art form. In a speech to the United Nations last September he stated that “no one nation can or should try to dominate another nation. No world order that elevates one nation or group of people over another will succeed. No balance of power among nations will hold.” It is difficult to see how a US president who holds these views and does not even accept America’s greatness in history can actually lead the world’s only superpower with force and conviction.
There is a distinctly Titanic-like feel to the Obama presidency and it’s not hard to see why. The most left-wing president in modern American history has tried to force a highly interventionist, government-driven agenda that runs counter to the principles of free enterprise, individual freedom, and limited government that have made the United States the greatest power in the world, and the freest nation on earth.
This, combined with weak leadership both at home and abroad against the backdrop of tremendous economic uncertainty in an increasingly dangerous world, has contributed to a spectacular political collapse for a president once thought to be invincible. America at its core remains a deeply conservative nation, which cherishes its traditions and founding principles. President Obama is increasingly out of step with the American people, by advancing policies that undermine the United States as a global power, while undercutting America’s deep-seated love for freedom.
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In short, I tend to agree with the authors 10 points. Mr. Gardiner pretty musch summed up the highlights of the Pretender in Chiefs watch thus far. Leadership with a lower case L has been the effect so far and since there seems not to be a sense of Love of Country in the Magic Half Kenyan, no Respect for the Constitution as written and too many unanswered questions regarding his qualifications for office take some time to reflect on this thought… and be sure to thank your friends, neighbors and the most ill informed American Voters evah for their lack of judgement in the 2008 election.
An old rancher is talking about President Obama with a young man from the city. The old rancher compares Obama to a “post turtle”. The young man doesn’t understand and asks him what a post turtle is.
The old man says, “When you’re driving down a country road and you see a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that’s a post turtle. You know he didn’t get up there by himself. He doesn’t belong there; he can’t get anything done while he’s up there; and you just want to help the poor, dumb thing down.”
Obama is only a symptom of the real issue. Obama is a failure because he embraces Socailism. Socialism is a failure because rewards the politcally connected rather than those who create wealth. While a Capitalist base can support a Socialist agenda for a limited time, eventually, as Maggie Thatcher says, you run out of other people’s money.
Everywhere Socialism is tried, it ends up making the people poorer, with less freedoms, and inevitably social unrest if not outright genocide/civil war. My 9 & 6 year old children will have a standard of living significantly below what I have lived, and I can thank the populace that continued to be bribed with their own money by politicians.
@pablo
Excellent statement, but I would add that not only are they bribed with their own money, but also with money printed out of thin air, as if the government has ever produced any wealth in this country.
Ode To The Union Man
Oh so sacred, This shared sacrifice
But just beyond smoke and mirror
Is reality with such a cruel device
For we must, for the unions suffer
They plead with bloated wallet
Pathetic their righteous struggle
While we fight to stay just solvent
teacher, fireman, trades so noble
They lie with the scum of the earth
and revel in their sumptuous berth
One day they may live to see the joke
A splintered, bloody Communist yoke
In the bright glare of day he will face the truth
For a few pieces of silver, he sold his freedom
Now he yearns for what once was in his youth
Free to Americans, thrown away for Socialism
Skook- On a Saturday morning
Here’s an interesting article that is worth your time. I can’t help but wonder – if the author’s speculations are true (and honestly, I don’t know enough to have any idea), how will it affect the average US citizen in the long run…
http://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2010/08/is-china-executing-cunning-sun-tzu.html
The Euros spent less on their bailouts for their companies than we did. They even made it a point to ensure the money didn’t go to American companies, just their own. What a concept.
Dear Dr. John,
When will folks like you (the tragically blind) come to realize that Hussein is indeed NOT a “failure!” On the contrary, his efforts to destroy the US and “hope and change” it into a Marxist dictatorship are right on schedule!! In order to be a failure as you define it, he would have to be an actual American patriot, doing his level best to create employment, maintain a powerful nation, protect and defend the Constitution and work in the best interests of the American people. HE IS NONE OF THAT!!! On the contrary, he is an America hating thug, criminal and would be dictator, doing everything in his power to destroy the greatest nation in history. It is all, ALL OF IT deliberate. Given his list of “achievements” over the past 19 or so months, Hussein can therefore only be described as a raging success!! Please understand who and what this hoodlum IS! Quit looking at him as simply a super Jimmy Carter. He is a leperous distillate of everything treasonous, treacherous and tyrannical. And he will not stop until someone stops HIM!!
Free Trade and internationalism. These, along with a corrupt and amoral society, are the roots of our ills.
While I despise the Democratic/Socialist Party of America, I have great disdain for the “Free traitors” in the Republican Party.
They’ve sold the American worker’s soul (job) all for a few extra pennies on the dividend check!
We need a populist Republican Party! A party who cares about the US worker and our American culture. 🙄
@Hardright
Damn straight! America is being run by the banking/internationalist elite, and they care only about their investments, not about America.
😈
Obama will cause more damage to our country unless we elect conservative politicians to stop him in 2010 and 2012.
Agreed, the Dems need to be booted out in 2010 and 2012.
But then what? We saw this play out in 1994. The Republicans wanted to eliminate entire departments and they were destroy by Clinton in 1995.
Result? More spending and a bigger government.
I doubt the Republicans can or will do anything about the growth of government given the electorate is rabidly more liberal than in 1995.