Obama "We tried that and it didn't work"

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 socialized 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.