Chris Christie: President Obama's Just a 'Bystander'

Chris Christie: President Obama's just a 'bystander'

Gov. Chris Christie on Monday tore into President Barack Obama in the aftermath of the supercommittee’s failure to reach an agreement on debt reduction last week, asking the president, “What the hell are we paying you for?”

Calling Obama “a bystander in the Oval Office,” the outspoken New Jersey governor said the White House spent the weekend tossing out a whole lot of “spin” about the supercommittee’s inability to come to an agreement before the Nov. 23 deadline.

“I was angry this weekend, listening to the spin coming out of the administration, about the failure of the supercommittee, and that the president knew it was doomed for failure, so he didn’t get involved. Well then what the hell are we paying you for?” Christie said during a press conference in Camden, N.J. “It’s doomed for failure so I’m not getting involved? Well, what have you been doing, exactly?”

In a related story, President Obama managed to take another two strokes off his golf score.



H/T Mememorandum

Are You Better Off Than You Were Four Years Ago?

If you don't mind a bit of redundancy to make a point, here's a nice little video I saw over at I Own the World. Particularly good is the contrast between Reagan's words and Obama's.



Toward the end, when Obama gets to "the cycle that are (sic) crippling our economy", don't be too hard on Mr. Teleprompter!

A Little Monday Morning Levity

Time for Hillary in 2012?

A couple of Democratic pollsters, one for Jimmy Carter and one for Bill Clinton have an interesting editorial in the Wall St. Journal. Here's a taste:

When Harry Truman and Lyndon Johnson accepted the reality that they could not effectively govern the nation if they sought re-election to the White House, both men took the moral high ground and decided against running for a new term as president. President Obama is facing a similar reality—and he must reach the same conclusion.

He should abandon his candidacy for re-election in favor of a clear alternative, one capable not only of saving the Democratic Party, but more important, of governing effectively and in a way that preserves the most important of the president's accomplishments. He should step aside for the one candidate who would become, by acclamation, the nominee of the Democratic Party: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Frequent leaders of this blog will note that a Hillary candidacy has been expected, even if she has to be reluctantly dragged to the nomination. (Depends on what your definition of "reluctantly" is.) Caddell and Schoen provide the rationale for a Hillary draft.

Never before has there been such an obvious potential successor—one who has been a loyal and effective member of the president's administration, who has the stature to take on the office, and who is the only leader capable of uniting the country around a bipartisan economic and foreign policy.

It's the three AM phone call all over again!

Certainly, Mr. Obama could still win re-election in 2012. Even with his all-time low job approval ratings (and even worse ratings on handling the economy) the president could eke out a victory in November. But the kind of campaign required for the president's political survival would make it almost impossible for him to govern—not only during the campaign, but throughout a second term.

Put simply, it seems that the White House has concluded that if the president cannot run on his record, he will need to wage the most negative campaign in history to stand any chance. With his job approval ratings below 45% overall and below 40% on the economy, the president cannot affirmatively make the case that voters are better off now than they were four years ago. He—like everyone else—knows that they are worse off.

In essence, they are saying that even if Obama manages to get himself re-elected, he will continue to damage the party beyond repair. And they're right. Whether Obama wins the nomination or goes on to win next November, it will be a Pyrrhic victory for Democrats.

Hillary is by no means a lock on the White House, but either way, she damages Democrats (and the country) less.

Read the rest here.

H/T Memeorandum

Cross posted at LCR, Say Anything.

Who Is Responsible for the Economic Disaster in the US?

Correct.

Occupy Obamaville

During the Hoover depression, they called 'em "Hoovervilles".



The only differences between a Hooverville and an Obamaville are the quality of the building materials, the lawlessness and lack of cleanliness of the inhabitants.

It's a Wonderful Lie

"Damn, Michelle! Who are all these typical white people?"

Crossroads GPS Ad Buy in Swing States

At first glance, Crossroads GPS sounds like it might be an alternative to Garmin for the Christmas shopping season. It is not. The present they hope for under the tree won't get here 'til next November...

The Republican-affiliated outside group Crossroads GPS has launched a major ad buy contrasting President Obama's policies with clips of President Clinton seemingly arguing against tax increases on wealthy Americans.

The large $2.6 million ad buy will run for two weeks in the swing states of Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Colorado, and North Carolina, according to the group.

"President Obama has launched a tax attack on American jobs that hits Main Street businesses, home mortgages, and school and road repair funds," said Crossroads GPS president Steven Law in a statement. "Former President Clinton and bipartisan majorities in Congress agree that Obama’s tax hikes won’t solve the problem. The ad aims to get Obama to stop attacking and start listening."

Granted, while I would like to see the unedited clips of Clinton speaking to get the entire context, Obama is the poster child for Tax and Spend.

H/T Memeorandum

Obama: The Grinch Who Taxed Christmas

President Obama’s Agriculture Department today announced that it will impose a new 15-cent charge on all fresh Christmas trees—the Christmas Tree Tax—to support a new Federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees.

Two questions: First, where in the Constitution does it instruct the Federal Government to be in the business of promoting Christmas tree sales in any way shape or form?

Second, do only people who make more than $250,000 a year buy Christmas trees? Or is this going to be a tax on those Obama swore not to tax?

H/T Memeorandum. More at Weasel Zippers.

Quote du jour

Know who else inherited an economy from George Bush? Rick Perry.

-David Burge (Iowahawk)

What's the Motivation for All of the Sudden Sexual Allegations Against Herman Cain?

Unless you've been in a come for the last twenty four to forty eight hours, you've heard something of the allegations of a sexual nature against Herman Cain. Now, one might expect it is simply the product of being a front runner. One of Cain's opponents is afraid of him rising in the polls and takes a preemptive swing at the front runner in order to drag him down. But, I think there might be something else in play.

Most Democrats have become disenchanted with Barack Obama. They long for the days of Bill Clinton in the White House. Maybe this is a concerted effort to make Cain look more like Clinton?


Maybe a Karl Rove/James Carvillesque campaign strategist figured that the Hermanator would appeal to Democrats more if he had a little more of Clinton's bad boy in him?

Obama is a lost cause. No one would ever believe that he would cheat on Michelle! Not if he knows what's good for him! Michelle's got him by at least twenty pounds, and with those "well toned upper arms" everyone's always talking about, she would beat him within an inch of his life! Besides, not only does she have his "family jewels" locked away in her jewelry box, but she has the look and the reputation of someone you do not want to cross!

Obama might ogle the girls' butts, but Herman is the one with the twinkle in his eye who doesn't need a teleprompter to chat up the ladies. And Mitt?? Mitt wouldn't even cheat on his taxes! Yeah. I'm thinking it's Bad Boy Herman Cain they're marketing in 2012.

"Longing for the days of Bill Clinton? I've got your Bill Clinton right here!"

Mr. Cain: I am available to write your campaign copy for you. But don't wait too long! The Huntsman campaign is in need of some sweet, sweet scandal. Or some NO-DOZ®...

(Author now removes tongue that was firmly planted in cheek.)

Happy Halloween!

Pretty scary, eh?

Barry Claven

Cliff's slightly less bright, but still "know-it-all" brother.


Every night's a "beer summit"!

Wagon the Dog

"Just for the record, Joe, I don't believe you have a trick knee!"

Barack Obama, Chickenhawk?

If there's one thing we know about the Left, it's their consistency and dedication to principle. (Stop laughing!) And so it struck me as odd, that I have not heard any on the Left calling President Obama a "chickenhawk". You know, someone who didn't serve in the military but is all in favor of sending others to fight.

Now, I know the military has lawyers, but I don't think they have community organizers, so I'm pretty sure that Barry didn't serve in uniform. And to what extent has Obama favored sending others to fight? In addition to maintaining troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for the last three years, Barry O has sent troops into Pakistan, bombed Libya and sent military "advisers" to Uganda, and utilized fighter aircraft and drones in Yemen.

Now, realistically, if this were a Republican President with the same lack of military service, don't you think we'd be hearing the "C" word every day? But Obama's followers, rather than berating him as a "chickenhawk", are praising him for "his" military accomplishments. The cretins who hate the military, march in the anti-war demonstrations, and protest "torture" and the lack of prisoner's due process at Gitmo (which Obama promised to close and hasn't) , are bragging about Obama's "kills".

What's with the sudden blood lust among liberals? They get their undies in a bunch if we pour water on the face of terrorists, but if you shoot them in the face or pour hellfire from the sky in the form of a Predator drone, they wet themselves trying to give Obama all the credit. And in the case of Qadhafi, the Obamabots are waving their foam fingers in the air (carved, no doubt, from Obama's phony Styrofoam Greek columns) giving credit to Obama for what the rebels have done (without a trial or "due process", we might note).

In short, the one thing that is consistent about liberals is their hypocrisy. Nearly all of the complaints made against Bush in Iraq could have been made against Clinton in the Balkans, but weren't. Nearly all of the complaints made against Bush in Iraq could have been made against Obama for the last three years, and crickets chirp in the anti-war Left.

Where's Cindy Sheehan when you really need her? Doonesbury?? Nightline??? Beuller????

Mission Accomplished in Iraq!

Have you heard President Obama on his (premature?) withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq?

“THE LONG WAR in Iraq will come to an end by the end of this year.”

Will come to an end, Mr. President?? So, if you were to withdraw all the U.S. troops from Germany by the end of the year, would you say that World War II will come to an end this year, too? Would you like to take credit for that, too?

Just checking.

Cross posted at LCR.

A Little Thursday Afternoon Humor

This first joke I heard on the radio last night, barreling up I-5:

Q) "How do you starve an Obama supporter?"

A) "Hide his food stamps under his work boots."

The second just comes from sleep deprivation (and a touch of Michael Ramirez):

Q) "What do you get when you put a Kenyan, with a North Korean jobs plan, on a Canadian bus?"

A) "I don't know either, but what made you think of Obama?"

Warning: This Campaign May be Toxic to Your Political Health

Earlier this month, Claire McCaskill (D- Not the Sharpest Knife in the Drawer), disappeared with "prior commitments" (like getting re-elected) when Obama came to visit St. Louis. In Virginia and North Carolina, Democrats like Tim Kaine,former Democratic National Committee chairman and governor, Democratic state Sen. Phil Puckett, were running away as well.

In September, Democratic state Sen. Phil Puckett distanced himself from Obama after his Republican challenger started calling him "Obama's man in southwest Virginia". In southwest Virginia, House Minority Leader Ward Armstrong is having a tough political fight. One of his solutions? Stay away from Barack Obama,.

Sometimes, in politics, they talk about a politician's "coattails", how a lesser candidate can be carried into office by virtue of the fact that the top of the ticket was strong enough to draw votes for other members of the same party. More rarely, they talk about "reverse coattails", where a poor candidate drags others in his party to defeat.

Democrat politicians fear Barack's coattails in 2012. As well they should.

Cross posted at LCR, Lady Cincinnatus .

Dog? or Underdog?

I keep coming back to Obama's claim to be the "underdog" in 2012. Now that goes against nearly everything I had come to think of as traditionally denoting an "underdog". So, let's play a little game: "Dog" or "Underdog"?

The dictionary calls an underdog

"a person who is expected to lose".

Advantage Obama. Underdog 1, Dog 0.

"person in adversity or in a position of inferiority"

Hmm. Given the overwhelming advantage that the power of the incumbency gives to the re-election of politicians, the only way an incumbent could be "inferior" is if his candidacy was a real dog.

Advantage Dog. Underdog 1, Dog 1.

From the Urban Dictionary,

"Someone who is hardly noticed. Kind of the opposite of popular or the best, but not exactly the worst."

Someone who is hardly noticed?? As in, "historic first black president unnoticed" or "let me give a speech in Berlin unnoticed"?



Not an "underdog". Advantage Dog. Underdog 1, Dog 2.

In politics, I had always believed that the person with the least amount of name recognition was considered the underdog. Is there anyone on the planet who is not familiar with the name Barack Hussein Obama?

Advantage Dog. Underdog 1, Dog 3.

I suppose we could keep this up all night, but traditionally, the underdog is the newcomer to politics who doesn't have much of a track record to run on. Barack Obama finally has a record and is running away from it, full tilt. The first two years of his presidency was accompanied by his party's control of both houses of Congress. They had carte blanche to do whatever they wanted, to enact whatever legislation, pass whatever budget they wanted, to fund whatever programs they wanted, and to make whatever cuts they deemed necessary to keep America's fiscal house in order. Instead they wasted billions of dollars on programs that benefited special interests and their political donors rather than invest in infrastructure, like they promised, or proven and realistic energy programs or anything that could conceivably create jobs outside of unions and government unions.

Advantage Dog. Underdog 1, Dog 4.

"Dog" or "underdog"? The numbers don't lie. Look for Barack to be sporting a flea collar for Halloween. He could go as Bo, and his approval numbers would probably go up...



Update : Let's give the devil his due. I meant to comment on this one:

"Kind of the opposite of...the best".

That's got Obama written all over it.

Advantage Obama. Underdog 2, Dog 4.

He stills loses but maybe he beats the spread!

The Sorriest President in the History of the Republic™

In April of 2009, this is what Karl Rove had to say about Barack Obama:

President Barack Obama has finished the second leg of his international confession tour. In less than 100 days, he has apologized on three continents for what he views as the sins of America and his predecessors.

Recently, an apology was extended to the family of al-Qaeda propagandist and recruiter Samir Khan. Samir Khan was killed in an air strike that took place September 30 in Yemen.

Funny. At least one commenter said it was because liberals are more compassionate than conservatives are. Yeah. Right. Just for grins, want to check and see if Obama extended "condolences" towards Osama bin Laden's wife or family? Didn't think so...

And via wikileaks, we're told that Obama wanted to travel to Hiroshima to apologize for the way the US ended the war with Japan, over half a century ago.

You know, Clinton was known for frequently apologizing for the US when he was president, but I think the evidence suggests that no president is sorrier than the one we have now.

Cross posted at LCR.