Big Dogs House

Obama’s Suggestion; Plug The Damn Hole

May 26, 2010 Political

When Katrina hit the liberals went into high gear to blame George Bush and to slam the federal response. I have often written that the federal response did lack in some areas but it was not as bad as the liberals portrayed it. The bulk of the blame for the problems at the state and federal level went to Mayor Nagin and Governor Blanco. Their missteps caused undue delay and made the federal response much more difficult.

Barack Obama promised not to forget the Gulf Coast when he was running for office. He told us that he remembered the storm and he would not forget the Gulf Coast implying that Bush had forgotten about it.

Why would he not give that impression? Bush was blasted for not going there right away, blasted for being on vacation, blasted for fundraisers, blasted for a slow response and accused of hating black people. The left painted this unfair picture and it stuck. It was deliberate and it played politics with the lives of those affected.

But Obama fairs no better. He has made one trip to the Gulf (I think Bush had visited the Gulf nearly 10 times by this time frame during Katrina), the federal response was slow, he went on a mini vacation after the disaster and he is going on another this weekend, and he is squeezing a fundraiser in as well.

Obama had no plans to go to the Gulf but has capitulated and will visit the area this Friday after he returns form a fundraiser today and then he will go to his home in Chicago for some time off. He is so worn out from his quest to destroy our nation that he will miss the Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.

He will reportedly go to a cemetery in Illinois on Memorial Day. I hope his vacation is not interrupted too much.

Obama is getting hammered from the right (and now some of the left is chiming in) for the way he has responded to the Gulf oil spill. He is being held to the same standard that the left held Bush to during Katrina and to the standard he promised would be better than the one Bush had set.

Perhaps this is why Press Secretary Robert Gibbs called the media into the West Wing and scolded them for asking too many questions about the oil spill. I don’t recall the media letting up on the questions asked of Bush about Katrina and I am sure that the liberals kept asking questions. It is funny how things change when the ones who criticize are on the receiving end.

And Obama, who is very thin skinned, is not happy. He knows his messianic reputation is taking a hit. He knows he is teetering on being a failure in the eyes of the public because he knows what unfair accusations did to Bush. Obama participated in those accusations. He is getting tense by the day and is reported to have snapped, “Plug the damn hole.”

Gee, if only BP had thought of that…

And yes, I said unfair accusations. No occupant of the White House can slip into a phone booth and change into Superman and fix things. Bush could not swoop into New Orleans and fix things any more than Obama can swoop into the Gulf and fix things. Leaders have to rely on the people under them who have responsibility for things. Bush had to rely on a state and city that was led by incompetent boobs and who worsened the situation. Obama has to rely on the experts in the oil industry to fix the problem that the government is not equipped to take on. He had to rely on a decades old plan that ended up falling flat because required equipment was not in place. That plan was in place long before Obama (or Bush for that matter) was in office.

It sucks being the leader when the things that are supposed to be taken care of are not. It sucks when you get the blame for things out of your control.

But Obama was happy to criticize Bush and the response to Katrina. He was happy to pile on the unfair accusations and he was happy to say he would do better.

That is important to remember. He said he would do better and he has not. Whether the problems are his fault or not means nothing because he made promises he is now unable to keep.

And he is being held to the same standard that he held Bush to.

Liberals do not like it and Obama does not like it but you reap what you sow.

So while Obama is out at fundraisers and on vacation the Gulf remains in peril and the people there feel forgotten.

Even though they were promised that would change.

How is that Hope and Change working out for you now?

Never surrender, never submit.

Tags: bp, Bush, fundraiser, gulf coast, katrina, Obama, oil spill, vacation

Reid His Lips, No Weekends Off (Except For Fundraiser)

Dec 11, 2009 Political

The debate in the Senate over health care is dragging on and the pressure is on Harry Reid to get a bill passed. He has met stiff resistance and no matter what he does he alienates another segment of the Senate so that he does not have the number of votes needed to pass the bill. Reid feels the debate is so important that he recently decided that the Senate would work weekends because this issue is just so darned important:

“The American people don’t get weekends off from this injustice,” Reid said. “Bankruptcy doesn’t keep bankers’ hours. The bills don’t go away just because it’s a Saturday; the pain doesn’t go away just because it’s a Sunday.” Las Vegas Sun

Reid probably figured that Republicans would cave because they had to work weekends but that will not happen but I have felt from the start that it would not be long before all of the Senators grew restless. They will all want to get home for Christmas and will stop debate.

Harry Reid has however, found one thing that is more important than the health care debate and that would be his political career. Reid is in a fight for his seat and it appears, unless something drastic happens, that he will lose next November. If the comments in the linked article are any indication, the people in Nevada can’t wait.

Yes, health care is very important to Harry Reid and he mandated weekend work but his career is more important so he has asked that the Republicans agree to taking this weekend off so that Harry can attend a fundraiser in New Orleans. Political whore Mary Landrieu and Harry Reid will be in the Big Easy at a $1000 (plus) per plate dinner in order to raise money for their reelections.

Yes ladies and gentlemen, a political fundraiser is more important than the health care debate. The American people might not get the weekend off from the “injustice” but Harry Reid wants the weekend off so he can raise money for his political career. Remember this the next time the morons tell you how important this issue is. It is not too important for Reid to stop work so he can raise money for his reelection campaign. Reelecting him would be the true injustice.

This should say all that needs to be said about the priorities of Harry Reid and for that matter, most other politicians. Their first two priorities, no matter what, are to get elected and to get reelected.

Reid can see the writing on the wall. He knows that he is toast next year and that he will have to give up his plush job. He knows that he is pushing an agenda that most Americans do not support and he knows that the reason that it is being pushed is to make Obama look good. This will backfire.

The stimulus was so important that it had to be passed immediately and before anyone had time to read it. Then it sat on Obama’s desk for four days while he took his wife on a date.

Health care is so important that it must be done immediately (even though no benefits will be seen until 2013 or 2014) and it is so important that the Senate must work weekends.

Until Harry Reid needs some time off to raise money for his reelection.

Self serving is a good description of Harry Reid.

LATE WORD: Late word from the linked article is that Republicans did not agree to the weekend off. Senator Mitch McConnell said that Reid told them they would be working every weekend and Republicans took him at his word.

Republicans rejected Reid’s request Thursday morning to fast track several spending bills, clear the floor for health reform votes next week, and take the weekend off.

“Republicans are prepared to provide a platform for the debate as long as it takes,” said Sen. Mitch McConnell, noting that “The majority leader said we would be working every weekend and we took him at his word.”

We expect to be here this weekend and we look forward to it. Republicans believe there is nothing more important we can do than stop this bill and start over… we are eager to continue the debate.”

“I know people have fundraisers because they are running for reelection and people have other important things to do, but there is nothing more important to do than this,” said McConnell.

What a nice way to make Reid choke on his own words. I have issues with McConnell but I agree with him on this one. Shove Reid’s words down his throat and make him choke on them just as the Democrats are doing to the American people with the health care bill.

UPDATE: The fundraiser has been canceled. This is outstanding. Of course Reid and Landrieu will make it appear as if they are doing such important work that they could not be pulled away. The reality is that Republicans held Reid to his word. This is getting fun. Perhaps ole Harry should have thought about this when he mandated the weekend work (not that I am opposed to them working weekends). I mean, he had to have known the fundraiser was scheduled…

Tags: fundraiser, Harry Reid, hypocrisy, mary landrieu, Senate, weekend off