Image 01 Image 03
Sign In or RegisterLogout

Barack Obama Tag

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on November 22, 2017 31 Comments
After clearly stating that as president he had no power to change immigration law, then-president Obama went ahead in 2012 with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).  Obama himself referred to DACA as his "action to change the law," a power vested in the legislature, not the executive. In 2010, Obama told an audience of amnesty proponents that he's "not king" and "can't do these things just by myself."  In 2011, he explained further, "that he couldn't "just bypass Congress and change the (immigration) law myself. ... That's not how a democracy works."  And in 2012, he did it anyway. Then-presidential candidate Trump campaigned on ending DACA, and in September, he announced his decision to end DACA after giving Congress six months to pass it into law.  Passing DACA or some equivalent into law is perfectly within the purview of Congress.

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 19, 2017 21 Comments
At the 2012 Democratic National Convention, the big moment was Joe Biden triumphantly declaring “Osama bin Laden is dead, and General Motors is alive." It turns out that in order to make that narrative stick, Obama had to downplay the actual strength of al-Qaeda.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on October 28, 2017 22 Comments
President Trump's eraser and Twitter feed seem to be more effective that Obama's pen and phone. In the last days of his insipid administration, the former president created the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah with a stroke of his pen, claiming thousands of square acres of land for the federal government. Now, President Trump indicates that he is going to trim back the size of the land grab.
President Trump on Friday told Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah that he will shrink the size of Bears Ears National Monument, a 1.35 million-acre piece of land former President Obama designated as a national monument just before leaving office.

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on October 23, 2017 16 Comments
Former President Jimmy Carter sat down for an interview with Maureen Dowd for the New York Times and dropped some pretty interesting bombs.  Dowd focused her write-up on his answer to her question about acting as a go-between for the Trump White House and North Korea.  He said that he would go if asked, and that's certainly both important and within his wheelhouse.  In the interview, however, Carter also defends President Trump and offers surprising assessments of former-president Obama, failed presidential candidate Hillary, and the media. His comments in defense of Trump might be seen as an attempt to ingratiate himself in order to be called upon to assist with North Korea.  Maybe.  But that doesn't explain his apparent candor in unflattering critiques of Obama, Hillary, and the media.

Posted by Mary Chastain on September 18, 2017 15 Comments
Wait a second. I thought big banks are bad. Back in 2009, President Barack Obama called those on Wall Street "fat cats," which helped establish an uneasy relationship between banks and the White House. But less than a year out of office, Obama has had NO problem taking money from said "fat cats" for his speeches. Obama cannot run for president again, but remains an influence and just how will this affect a party that's already in shambles?

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on September 01, 2017 12 Comments
Appearing on today's Morning Joe, Rep. Joe Crowley, the fourth-ranking member of the Dem House leadership, stated that President Obama is "leading the charge" on efforts in state legislative races. Crowley was responding to Joe Scarborough's question as to what Dems will do differently from what they did in November, when they got "absolutely shellacked."

Posted by Mary Chastain on August 14, 2017 16 Comments
A report from Politico shows that national security officials warned former President Barack Obama of Russian interference in Western political systems, including the United States. Politico reported:
As early as 2014, the administration received a report that quoted a well-connected Russian source as saying that the Kremlin was building a disinformation arm that could be used to interfere in Western democracies. The report, according to an official familiar with it, included a quote from the Russian source telling U.S. officials in Moscow, "You have no idea how extensive these networks are in Europe ... and in the U.S., Russia has penetrated media organizations, lobbying firms, political parties, governments and militaries in all of these places."

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 04, 2017 76 Comments
When Donald Trump won the election last fall, many people wondered if Obama would be as courteous as his predecessor George W. Bush. Would Obama be able to fade into the background and stay out of policy debates? Now we know the answer is no. The spotlight is simply too alluring for Obama, who revels in attention. He is even mirroring Trump's actions in some ways.

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on June 26, 2017 13 Comments
In a transparent attempt at blame-shifting, former Obama spokesman Josh Earnest has tried to place responsibility for President Obama's failure to respond effectively to Russian meddling in the election . . . on Republicans. It's been reported that Obama was paralyzed into inaction by fears of seeming to help Hillary during the campaign. Appearing on today's Morning Joe, Earnest said:

"The first time, [McConnell] didn't have time to schedule time to talk about it. This is something that Republicans did not take seriously, and that did hamstring our efforts to respond to this as effectively as we would have liked."

Posted by Mike LaChance on June 23, 2017 38 Comments
If you know anything about President Obama, you know that he loves to campaign and he's quite good at it. He loves speaking to adoring crowds of fans, and answering softball questions from his disciples in the press. Obama signaled his eminent return to politics by weighing in on the special election in Georgia. Politics USA reported:
Obama Jumps Into GA Special Election Race To Slam ‘Shameful’ GOP Voter Suppression Tactics Just a day before voters in Georgia’s sixth congressional district will choose between underdog Democrat Jon Ossoff and Trump-supported Republican Karen Handel, former President Barack Obama jumped into the race to slam GOP efforts to suppress the vote.

Posted by Mary Chastain on June 08, 2017 24 Comments
The House Oversight Committee lashed out at former President  Obama and former Attorney General Eric Holder for obstruction over the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. A cartel member used a gun from the ATF and DOJ's Operation Fast and Furious to kill Terry in December 2010. From Fox News:
The House Oversight Committee also Wednesday released a scathing, nearly 300-page report that found Holder’s Justice Department tried to hide the facts from the loved ones of slain Border Patrol Brian Terry – seeing his family as more of a “nuisance” than one deserving straight answers – and slamming Obama's assertion of executive privilege to deny Congress access to records pertaining to Fast and Furious.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on May 26, 2017 22 Comments
Before I begin the review of Rising Star: The Making of Barack Obama by David J. Garrow, I feel the need to make a confession in the interest of full disclosure. Barack Obama has been very inspirational to me personally. He inspired me to help co-found the SoCal Tax Revolt Coalition. He inspired be to become an independent conservative blogger. He inspired me to re-register as "No Party Preference" in my home state of California. So, why did I order this 7-pound book on Obama?

Posted by Vijeta Uniyal on May 25, 2017 32 Comments
While President Donald Trump had a busy day getting all the 28 NATO partners on board the global anti-ISIS alliance, former President Barak Obama appeared at a youth rally in Berlin alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The event in Berlin was organised to mark the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. Taking a swipe at his successor’s immigration policy, Obama got cheers from audiences in Berlin with meaningless platitudes like “we can’t hide behind a wall.” Yes, Obama decried walls as he sat fenced behind a security cover with “helicopters patrol[ling] the skies and snipers with balaclavas watch[ing] the scene from nearby rooftops” -- as one news-outlet described it.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 05, 2017 16 Comments
Obama endorsed Emmanuel Macron for President of France yesterday in the tightly contested election which will take place this weekend. Obama's record on involving himself in the affairs of other countries might have Marine Le Pen's team smiling. USA Today reported:
French candidate Emmanuel Macron endorsed by Barack Obama Former president Barack Obama, who is wildly popular in France, has formally endorsed French presidential hopeful Emmanuel Macron, an independent centrist he calls the candidate of "hope."
Accessibility by WAH