Friday, March 2, 2012

GOP letting Obama off the hook?

Obama is acknowledged by many as the worst president in recent memory. With such an opponent one would expect a relatively easy GOP win in November. To counter that happening, Obama’s political strategy is to assemble a large group of “Obama, no matter what” voters. Massive government entitlements have been doled out in all directions to guarantee return votes. The unions have been coddled by this administration like no other before. The black vote is totally racist, but automatic. Barack also plays to the Hispanic vote. The general theme is, “if you have a problem this administration will solve it for you.” Even with that solid group of likely voters, his general unpopularity continues to make him highly vulnerable.

Obama continues to help his opposition all he can. He apologizes and is “profoundly sorry” for the burning of the Qurans in Afghanistan. Americans can understand that such an act could be upsetting to Muslims. However, they fail to see why it calls for days of screaming riots and the killing of 40 people, including Americans. It gets especially hard to understand when, at the same time, Obama stomps all over the fundamental beliefs of the Catholics without apology.

Cornered by the rise in gas prices, Barack tells a bold face lie by saying he has supported domestic oil and gas drilling. And then, get this. With a straight face, he offers algae fuel as a solution to our energy problem. And the latest, he really is for the Keystone pipeline after all. Talk about a guy who may say absolutely anything no matter how absurd. Even his teleprompter must be growing a long nose.
But wait, the Republican candidates apparently want to give Barack a second chance. They continue to pound each other, and only in passing do they reference the massive Obama shortcomings.

None of the four candidates offers a clear and appealing presidential vision. About the best one can say about Romney is that he sounds like a nice guy and probably carries less damaging baggage than the others. However, it is hard to tell where he really stands on important issues. Gingrich? Please spare me an answer. Paul has some solid ideas on spending that unfortunately stand side by side with his “left field” positions on other issues. Santorum’s message gets muddled by his off-the-cuff preoccupations with social issues.

Americans care about the social stuff, but right now they are focused on what they see as more critical issues. The deficit, the economy, the desperate need to define a future America, and a plea to return to the concept of American exceptionalism all overwhelm social priorities. They also want a president who seems likely to promote American ideals to the world instead of apologies.

It’s not totally comforting to those of us praying for a Republican victory, but the best hope we have is that Obama will continue to be Obama. In our favor, he probably can’t help himself.