Because You Never Asked

(9/10)

     As Barak Obama’s presidency approaches its first bout with mid term elections, there can be no doubt the value of his political stock has fallen. Rather than try to solidify their gains, the Democrats are in a minimize-their-losses mode in an attempt to maintain the majorities the Great Black Hope’s victory presented them with. Such losses could be mitigated by the bloody fratricide now going on between the conservative Republican Party and a radical right (quasi-fascist?) wing of the Party that is trying to purge it of any semblance of moderation. It’s been a cage fight with very few rules and the reconciliation of bloodied and battered foes is in doubt. This could soften the blow for the Democrats, but it will be less for Obama’s success and much more because the opposition has fractured into smaller pieces. But that is just a best case scenario for the Democrats. Barak Obama’s first two years have been a failure, and much of the blame falls squarely on his shoulders.

     On the day Mr. Obama was inaugurated I started an essay called “Barak Obama: 3 Things We Want”. They were (are):

     1) Military disengagement in the Middle East, and a whole new face to American foreign policy; 2) Health Care; 3) prosecution of possible criminal acts in the previous administration. (This essay will only discuss #’s 1 and 3. A further discussion of #2 will ensue in the next essay, “Barak Obama: Health Care We Didn’t Get”).

     The referenced essay explained why I did not include the economic crisis on the list, stating how it was a given any new President would have to deal with. Obama’s policies have not, as of yet, turned the situation around and most pundits see this as a serious political liability for him and his Party. This could be an overrated concept. He inherited this extremely mutilated body directly from the opposition and their particular policies. As of now, this opposition has offered no new ideas --- zero, zilch, nada, a big goose egg --- in trying to put Humpty-Dumpty back together again. If Obama has erred, it’s because he has done pretty much what his predecessors did and it has not been enough. The alternative offered by the Republican Party’s extreme right, that is, do nothing (the market, etc.), is really not a viable option, even for them (talk is cheap). The continued economic sluggishness is not good for Obama and his Party, but the opposition does not have a leg up on him here. Obama can defend himself on this front. (There will be more discussion of this in the next essay, “Barak Obama: Health Care We Didn’t Get”).

     Obama’s fall from grace is more emotional than ideological. The most telling evidence of this is seen amongst his most passionate followers, whose vigor and commitment have waned with Obama’s tepid leadership.

     Let’s look at the “3 things we wanted”:

     1) With regard to the almost generic state of war America’s identity now seems to rest upon, Obama’s handling of this bellicosity has already been examined in depth in such essays as “Barak Obama: 3 Things We Want”, “Barak We Hardly Know You”, and “It’s Mumbai Not Bombay”. As a result, I’ll keep it simple in this essay: There is virtually nothing that differentiates Barak Obama’s policy from George W’s policy. The nation is still mired in the same commitment, the same debilitating expense, and, worst of all, the same bull crapping rhetoric glorifying our heroic efforts to fight side by side with the Iraqi and Afghan people in defending themselves from enemies we seem to have created and defined for them. As always, the word “oil” is conspicuous for its absence and the “déjà vu” qualities of Obama’s war policy become almost spooky with the hoopla created by the draw down of troop levels in Iraq and the supposed end of our combat role there. In much the same way W. prematurely declared victory with his “mission accomplished” speech, Obama seems to have inherited a similar bloodline.

     The political ramifications of this “stay the course” policy are peculiar. Although it makes sense, it is quite significant that this is perhaps the only element of anything where the opposition has not tried to bludgeon the President. Even the most radical elements of “tea party” venom have left him alone on this issue. And why not? They love guns and combat fatigues and dead heroes in flag draped caskets who honor the name of John Wayne and everything he acted for. They’ve never seen a war they didn’t like and there are plenty of other reasons to hate that darky for anyway.

     But it will hurt Obama politically and perhaps in the most telling way possible. Those who most passionately worked for his election hate these imperial wars, and not just as bad policy but in an emotional-moral sense. This is not the America we can love and feel proud of. Perhaps betrayal is too harsh a word and we would never vote for the horrendous option of provincial decay offered by the opposition, but Obama has lost our enthusiasm. We’ll vote for him, but we won’t bust our tails for him. This could be fatal.

     2) (I remind the reader that discussion of the second thing “we wanted”, that being health care reform, will be discussed in the next essay, “Barak Obama: Health Care We Didn’t Get”).

     3) With regard to the prosecution of criminality in the W. Bush administration, the name Roger Clemons comes to mind.

     Roger Clemons, the great baseball player?

     Yes. I write these words about ten days after his indictment for lying to Congress with regard to his alleged steroid use. It seems the full wrath of the Obama Justice Department --- William Holder, Esq., Attorney General --- is about to come down on ageing super star athletes who tricked us into thinking they were better than they really were. Rest assured Mr. and Mrs. America , people like Roger Clemons will no longer terrorize this country and we will all have more peace of mind for it.

     Meanwhile, the previous administration’s role in lying us into a disastrous war that  led to the death and maiming of tens of thousands of Americans, perhaps millions of Iraqis, along with the physical destruction of their country; that led to the breaking of international treaties on torture and prisoners of war the United States signed; that led to a public expense perhaps in the trillions by now; that led to the wiretaps and spying on American citizens that has treated the Constitution more like a piece of toilet paper than a hallowed piece of parchment, is deemed not important enough for the Obama-Holder Justice Department to bother itself with --- I mean, who are such people as the President of the United States, the Vice President, the Secretaries of State, Defense and a whole host of important government underlings, compared to Roger Clemons?

     It’s as if the current administration has decided to suspend the Rule of Law at their convenience, in much the same way a banana republic dictator would.

     As the 2010 mid terms approach, none of this is even remotely on the political radar and it will have no bearing on the elections. This does not change the importance of such non-action. It has set a very bad precedent for the future, one that allows the Executive Branch to do anything it darn well pleases for any reason it darn well creates --- just like any banana republic dictator.

     If it wasn’t so pathetic, it would be hysterically laughable that the Republicans, licking their chops in anticipation of victory in these elections, have already begun boasting of how they will prosecute Barak Obama for --- (fill in the blank). If they do wrest control of Congress from the Democrats, I’m sure Fox News can come up with something trivial or illusory (see Bill Clinton) to put him on trial for (I hear they have him on tape not picking up after his dog), while the Obama Justice Department --- William Holder, Esq., Attorney General --- has desisted from even investigating, let alone prosecuting, the most important Republican political figures of this era for crimes that shatter the whole idea of our socio-political system.

     But you can rest easy America ; they will use the full force of the law in protecting us from Roger Clemons.

     (Which brings me to the next essay, “Barak Obama: Health Care We Didn’t Get”)