Arlington, VA February 9, 2016
Obama wants 'kinder and gentler politics'
Barack Obama returned to the same Statehouse chamber in Springfield Illinois where he launched his bid for the Presidency and bemoaned the fact that politics during his term has become so 'negative'--something he did a great deal to create.
In an article in the Washington Post today (2-9-2016), the President is quoted as saying, "It’s been noted often by pundits that the tone of our politics has not gotten better since I was elected; it’s gotten worse.” In that he is correct; politics has grown worse since he entered the White House, and a good deal of that rancor and distrust was generated by his gutter, street-side political antics, refusing to cooperate in anything with the Republicans; instead simply steamrolling ahead on his own. The result has been possibly the worst administration in history, and the most rancorous since Andrew Jackson. His administrations scandals are the worst since Ulysses Grant, and he has amassed the largest deficit in American History.
Some of his comments really stretch credulity, such as:
--Castigating politicians who touted their refusal to compromise as “an accomplishment in and of itself. Such hard-line positions don’t fix roads, educate children or keep the streets safe," he continued. Look at the real record of who has refused to compromise on virtually everything in the past eight years. In many cases, both Republicans and Democrats have opposed his proposals, and in most cases, he has refused to actively defend and support his own initiatives, then blaming the Republicans.
--On Politics, Obama warned that Americans’ unity and common purpose were being “threatened by a poisonous political climate that pushes people away from participating in public life. It turns folks off. It discourages them and makes them cynical.” My question is who created the poisonous climate--I will argue it was the man who decided he did not have to abide by the Constitution or the Nation's laws; instead simply issuing executive orders even in the face of specific congressional disapproval of his proposals.
In these last few months of his administration, Obama is making a major effort to create some sort of legacy for himself out of the major failures and scandals which have plagued his years in office., Most of his major 'accomplishments' are tied up in the courts; many of his cabinet heads have been like revolving doors; Benghazi at State, the debacles ongoing in Iraq, Syria, Lybia, and the spread of ISIS all occured on his watch. There is little to commend him for, but he is trying to find something and remain relevant until the end.
Good luck, Mister President.
Read the entire article for yourself here. You can also read the reporting in the USA Today And is the Chicago Sun-Times
Read the complete speech here.
