The Next, Next Four Years

Yesterday I expressed my fear that a second Obama term could catastrophic for America.  Sounds grim, and maybe a little overstated?  Not really.  I base my rational fear on Obama’s actions during his first term.  Consider the facts.  During his first term, Obama has:

• Forced a government controlled healthcare system through Congress by bribing certain members for their vote and using a questionable tactic (reconciliation) so that he would only need a simple majority in the Senate.
• Redirecting over $700 billion from Medicare to Obamacare in an attempt to make the financials look better.  Regardless, the Congressional Budget Office now believes that Obamacare will add $2.5 trillion to the debt over 10 years. 
• Obama made recess appointments while the Senate was still in session, avoiding Senate augment over the qualifications of his appointment.  This was a clear violation of the powers given to the president by the constitution. 
• Obama violated the Constitution when he bypassed Congress and granted amnesty to illegal aliens.  His way of purchasing Hispanic votes. 
• Obama bullied Chrysler's secured creditors into accepting 30 cents on the dollar, while junior creditors such as labor unions received much more. This ignoring of creditor rights violated not just bankruptcy law but also the federal constitution. 
• The Department of Health and Human Services granted nearly 2,000 waivers to employers seeking relief from Obamacare's regulations. Nearly 20 percent of these waivers went to gourmet restaurants and other businesses in Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco district. Nevada, home to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, got a blanket waiver, while Republican-controlled states like Indiana and Louisiana were denied. 
• Congress approved and president Clinton signed welfare reform into law. Obama did not have the authority to waive the work requirement, and by doing so he violated the constitution.  Presidents are not allowed to rewrite existing legislation.

The blatant disregard for the U.S. Constitution, and the balance of power should strike fear into all Americans.  Maybe these things don’t mean much to you personally, but Obama has gotten away with it so far.  Imagine how far he might go if he had no fear of another reelection campaign?  Or even worse, might he believe that a two term limit doesn't apply to him?  It's not hard to imagine.

The Trinket

A bright and shiny trinket was held up in front of the masses.  They stood in awe of its dazzling brilliance.  They couldn't take their eyes from it.  Many entered a hypnotic state where nothing could be perceived except the bright shiny object.  They placed their faith and hope in the trinket thinking that something so brilliant would ensure their well-being.  They followed the trinket.

And so the trinket led.  Being only a trinket, it led poorly.  Soon the people under the trinket's leadership began to suffer.  Many of them lost jobs and fell into poverty.  Others relinquished control of their lives by accepting unearned gifts from the trinket.  Yet, many still believed the trinket gave them the best hope for better days.

The trinket gave them hope that if given another chance, it would move forward with the change they wanted.  Many of the people succumbed to the shiny brilliance that remained.  How could the trinket let them down twice?  Their devotion to the trinket even increased.  They became willing to tell lies about how much better they are under the trinket's leadership.  They were also willing to lie about anyone who opposed the trinket.  This is the country we now live in.

Four years ago, I blogged that we would survive an Obama administration.  I wrote "the greatest danger of the Obama presidency will be the Supreme Court nominations he will no doubt make. Currently the court is slightly tilted to the conservative. With at least 2 justices on the verge of retirement, this balance will quickly reverse. This change will be the lasting damage of our collective mistake."

It was brilliantly written, but wrong.  While Obama did name two Supreme Court justices and both were hard left, the only real damage done by the court was done by a Bush appointee.  The most devastating impacts of Obama's first four years are the massive deficit spending that has raised the national debt to $16 trillion, and the expansion of poverty under his watch.  It is simply unbelievable that 8% unemployment is now considered the "new normal".  It is criminal that we have saddled future generations with debt.

After four years under the trinket, America is like a massive, powerful battleship that once ruled the ocean, but has taken multiple torpedo hits and is beginning to flounder.  Survival of the battleship is not certain.  One more blow could send it to the bottom.  That blow could be a second administration for the trinket.