Obama’s Term 2: Same-old, Same-old?
Even though I am sitting in front of a computer, I feel like I am writing this column on a typewriter in 1972.
I feel like I am again writing about a presidential election in which an incumbent with a less-than-stellar past has defeated a challenger with great ideas for a new America.
But I am not talking about Richard Nixon and George McGovern. I am writing about Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.
Mr. Obama — who spent the last four years presiding over a nation devastated by a lousy economy and high jobless numbers; a country that is increasingly dependent on Uncle Sam for food stamps, housing help, free cell phones and other goodies – has been returned to office by a “massive” margin of 51 to 49 percent.
Personally, I’m disappointed that Romney lost. In the past, I have voted for candidates who lost, and I just learned to accept the winner. But never have I been so concerned about the future of this nation than I am now.
I thought we would get a break before the real nasty stuff happens. I figured there would be time to get used to the fact that taxes will soar in 2013 and that Obamacare will force us to be “penalized” (or taxed) if we don’t have health care insurance.
Obamacare is already happening. My wife and I have a friend who had breast cancer. She is a survivor, but has to be checked periodically. Just a few weeks ago, she went for a mammogram, but the ultrasound that generally accompanies this procedure was denied. This is apparently the beginning of a new era of government-run healthcare.
Even though the election is over, I was hoping that the investigation into the attack on the embassy inBenghaziwould shed some light of truth on this despicable act. I really don’t think it will. I have a feeling that Mr. Obama will squiggle out of his share of responsibility for failing to send reinforcements to Libya during that 7-hour battle.
Besides, two people have already fallen on their swords for this incident. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has taken the blame. And CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus has quit that office, citing an “affair” with his biographer.
What really angers me is the fact that on Nov. 1, two Iranian jets fired at an unmanned U.S. drone in international skies. It was not reported until after the election. Do you think there might have been a political motive here – wink, wink?
Since he can’t run for president again, Mr. Obama is officially unaccountable to the U.S. people. So imagine the things he could do now!
Here’s another Obamafact. Defense contractor Lockheed Martin heeded a request from the White House— one with political overtones — and announced last month it would not issue layoff notices to thousands of employees until after the presidential election.
Lockheed is one of the biggest employers in the key battleground state ofVirginia. The firm told the White House it would have to issue notices to employees as required by law. Such massive layoffs could have threatened Obama’s standing in the state which, as it turned out, he won – as he also did in 2008.
The Obama administration told federal contractors not to issue notices to workers based on “uncertainty” over the pending $500 billion reduction in Pentagon spending. The White House said it would cover the cost of any lawsuits filed by laid-off workers angered by lack of notice. And is it just a coincidence that, right after the election, the CEO of Lockheed was forced to resign, allegedly over an extramarital affair with a “subordinate?”
Republican Senators John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Kelly Ayotte have accused Obama of putting “his own re-election ahead of the interests of working Americans and our national security by promising government contractors that their salary and liability costs will be covered at taxpayer expense if they do not follow the law that requires advance warning to employees of jobs that may be lost due to sequestration,” said a New York Daily News article.
After considering all of this, ask yourself something. Are we better off now than we will be in four years?
