TIMING (Letter to Independent Coast Observer)

“Timing has a lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.”

This bit of folk wisdom arrived in my in-box at about the same time an ICO contributor suggested President Obama’s timeline “is not always ours.”  

The truth of both statements was evident as Americans watched Mr. Obama   bask in the attention he received for presiding over the killing of America’s Most Wanted Terrorist.  In a speech rife with references to “I,” “me” and “my,” our Narcissist-In-Chief triumphantly announced the success of a comprehensive mission put into motion nearly ten years ago by then-President Bush – and subsequently opposed by then-Senator Obama.  

With campaign season upon us, this administration’s timeline for exploiting another “gutsy, defining moment” could not be postponed.  Obama’s address, broadcast within three hours of bin Laden’s death, gave him an immediate bump in the polls – and may have compromised our ability to effectively utilize information seized in the raid.  

  

Had Obama stayed mum a bit longer, intelligence experts tell us we likely could have disrupted the entire al-Qaida organization in a very short time. Also, some administration officials are concerned that leaks of details best left secret jeopardize the safety of Special Forces involved in such operations. 

Last week a frustrated Defense Secretary Robert Gates remarked, “We all agreed that we would not release any operational details from the effort to take out bin Laden.”  As Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell summarized, “The more that’s in the public domain the less likely we’ll be able to pull these operations off in the future.”  

Which brings to mind another time-tested truism: “Loose lips sink ships.”

President Obama couldn’t wait to spill the beans, for the opportunity to campaign as a war hero.  I can’t wait for the opportunity to put a grown-up back in the Oval Office.

Linda Clyne

INEXPERIENCE (Letter to Independent Coast Observer)

President Obama often bemoans the fact that he has been burdened with unique and extraordinary challenges. But all presidents have faced great challenges and all have had to deal with multiple crises. Even so, Obama may find the job exceptionally difficult for two reasons:  (1) He did not bring to the presidency any meaningful work experiences that prepared him to handle the profound challenges inherent to the position, and (2) he and his advisors are mostly left-leaning ideologues who arrogantly believe they can reshape the country and the world by applying their “superior” intellect and ideas to difficult domestic and foreign policy issues. Instead the President and his minions have littered the political landscape with failed policies and broken promises (e.g., high unemployment, Obamacare, closing Gitmo).

But the President’s dithering throughout the Libyan crisis has awoken many to the fact that this seemingly decent, pleasant person may be in well over his head. No one can say with certainty whether bombing Libya was the right decision. However, there is substantial unease among even his most ardent supporters that the President has mishandled the entire affair. Richard Cohen, the liberal columnist, wrote that it was three strong women, Hillary Clinton, Susan Rice, and Samantha Powers, who pushed a reluctant Obama into the decision to attack Libya without Congressional approval. (Even Bush got Congressional approval!)

Cohen sums up the concerns many have about this presidency, “ . . .  the Obama administration has applied incoherence to confusion. It is an odd, dangerous, mix . . . . The change that Obama promised has settled on us all like an irritating drizzle. His ideas were untested by either age or experience . . . .” (Washington Post, 3/22/2011) 

These latest actions (and inactions) regarding Libya are part of a continuing pattern of incompetence in the oval office and in the administration in general.

Jim Littlejohn

MIXED SIGNALS (Letter to the Independent Coast Observer)

Faced with an “across the ocean” crisis, American leaders typically look at two things: (1) which of our deeply held principles will best guide our actions? and (2) what actions can we take consistent with these principles that are in the best interests of our nation? As we watched events unfold in Egypt, we have searched in vain for a consistent application of principles and actions coming from our current leaders. Vice President Biden started the ball rolling up hill with his unbelievable gaffe that “Mubarak is not a dictator.” A few days later, President Obama’s special envoy to Cairo, Frank Wisner, stated that “Mr. Mubarak was indispensable to Egypt’s democratic transition.” The New York Times noted that the “trouble in sending a clear message was another example of how divided Mr. Obama’s foreign policy team remains.” (NYT, 2/12/2011)

The President has put forth an array of mixed signals in a frantic effort to put his administration on the right side of history. Jake Tapper of ABC News reported that early on the President supported Mubarak as a pillar of stability. But as the media increasingly portrayed the protestors as the real thing, the President scurried to catch up by aligning himself with the people in the street. His “jack-in-the-box” TV appearances were not reassuring to those who respect leaders with strong principles, principles that do not change with every news cycle. His premature announcement of Mubarak’s departure was embarrassing.

The President’s new-found passion for pro-democracy intervention would be more believable if he had found his voice in the summer of 2009 when Iranian thugs were killing student demonstrators. Or, if he occasionally pointed out that Israel is the only true democracy in the Middle East. We’d even settle for a shout-out to the Castro brothers to “Let your people go!”

Jim Littlejohn

THOUSAND CUTS (Letter to Independent Coast Observer)

Many Americans have come to believe that President Obama is in over his head. It’s not just the results of the November 2 Congressional election in which the President’s Party received a “shellacking.” The party in power often loses seats in a mid-term election. However, the scope and depth of the losses were of historical proportions and reflected a deep unease with the President’s leadership in a number of areas. These include his decision making (or lack thereof), his inability to match deeds with words, his arrogance in dealing with the opposition, and his increasingly shrill and un-presidential rhetoric directed at various individuals and organizations. Such self-inflicted wounds are a thousand cuts on his Presidency. When combined with one misstep after another on highly important matters, they have ripped apart the fabric of confidence required for an effective leader.

The President’s flamboyant signing of an Executive Order to close the Guantanamo detention facility within one year and his subsequent failure to do so was just the first of many errors brought on by his lack of experience and gravitas. Another was his light-hearted “shout out” to a conference attendee just before announcing the terrible tragedy of the Ft. Hood massacre; this faux pas was compounded by his reading details of the disaster in an emotionless monotone as if it were a weather forecast. A long list of poor decisions followed: the health care debacle, the failed stimulus package, the mishandling of the BP oil spill, and his more recent characterization of Republicans as “hostage takers,” to name a few.

It must be a sad spectacle for his supporters to watch their “Man of the Left” being forced now to tack to the middle on many issues, but that may be his only path to reelection in 2012.

Jim Littlejohn

CONDESCENSION (Letter to Independent Coast Observer)

President Obama came into office in January 2009 with an approval rating of about 70%. That number is now in the low- to mid-40s. The President’s policies and his inability to show leadership in critical areas have contributed to a feeling of discontent among a majority of voters. Democrats in Congress running for reelection are so concerned about voter frustration with their leadership’s policies that they refuse to embrace the key legislative achievements of the Obama Administration; e.g., the GM/Chrysler take-over, ObamaCare, the Stimulus Package.

This should be a wake-up call for Democrats. Instead, the President continues a pattern of behavior viewed as condescending to Americans who question his policies. This past weekend President Obama raised $900,000 at a Boston fundraiser attended by well-heeled donors. That’s okay. Presidents often raise funds from wealthy donors. But what isn’t okay is the language he used to describe the “problems” of the American people. As writer Peter Wehrner put it, President Obama “faulted the economic downturn for Americans’ inability to ‘think clearly’ and said the burden is on the Democrats ‘to break through the fear and the frustration people are feeling.’

The people I know think very clearly and have very specific reasons for voting against the policies of this Administration. Their fear is that President Obama and his minions will continue to place the boot of government on the neck of America’s entrepreneurs; that massive regulations and tax increases will choke off innovation and threaten our free market system. The elitist mindset of Pelosi and others that “we have to pass the bill to find out what’s in it” is an anathema to a free people. On November 2, we hope you will join the throngs of concerned voters who will “think clearly” and “vote clearly” to put America back on track. 

Jim Littlejohn

VOTE FOR CHANGE (Letter to the Independent Coast Observer)

Twenty months into his Presidency, many folks still believe President Obama is a gentleman and a scholar but now question his ability to lead. This administration’s failure to show tangible results on jobs and the economy is a serious problem, for Americans in general and the Democrat Party in particular. With a huge House majority and a filibuster-proof Senate, Democrats have passed massive legislation that shifts unprecedented power into the hands of Federal bureaucrats. The majority of Americans are not comfortable with these policies and many Independents and Democrats are wondering who and what they voted for two years ago.

Good leadership involves far more than reading campaign-like speeches from teleprompters. It requires communicating a coherent vision to gain broad support for effective policies. Instead we’re getting a plethora of multi-thousand paged bills on topics like national health care, auto bailouts, and massive stimulus packages. The recent financial regulations inexplicably ignored the significant role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the housing crisis!  Deliberating on weighty issues has become passé. We were told these bills must be passed immediately with no time to even read them! 

The administration has adopted “Obama-Speak” to cover their ineffective programs, such as “jobs saved or created.” Remember the Obama mantras, “shovel ready jobs” or “Recovery Summer?” How did those work out? The President’s most consistent response to the economic crisis has been to blame his predecessor, or even the American people. This continued tone of denial doesn’t set well with most Americans. If you drive your car into a ditch, you pull it out, fix it, and keep on going. American ingenuity has done this time and again. But if you push it over the cliff, it’s lost!  We’re not off the cliff – yet. Why go there? Vote for a change in November.

Jim Littlejohn

OIL AND THE BUREAUCRACY (Letter to the Independent Coast Observer)

A majority of Americans now believe that our government has not done all it can to stop the oil flow into the Gulf and to assuage the impact of the oil spill on the marshes, beaches, and wildlife of the Gulf States. Spokespersons appear on TV assuring us that all available resources are being thrown into the battle and that they have their “boots on the neck of BP”. The President flies to the Gulf and bends down before the cameras to seriously examine the balls of tar that have washed up on the beaches. When his poll numbers sink, he throws a contrived tantrum and vows that the experts he talks to on a daily basis have the useful function of telling him whose “ass to kick.” 

Here’s the problem. Evidence is oozing out revealing that many more actions could have been taken to soak up the oil before it washed up on the beaches. Dozens of companies have proven techniques for separating the oil from the water and fleets of skimming vessels are sitting in warehouses not being used. CEOs of these companies state they sent paperwork to the EPA weeks ago, but received no response. The Administration has refused to set aside the Jones Act, which prevents willing foreign flag vessels from assisting with the clean up, and so on.

The President’s role in a crisis is to cut through the Gordian Knot of bureaucracy and apply sound management principles to achieve a quick resolution. Ideas and discussions are fine, but without decisive action, they’re meaningless.  This President and his coterie of advisors excel at process and appearances as well as shifting blame to others. For the bureaucracy it’s business as usual. If the President wants an ass to kick, he should look closer to home!

Jim Littlejohn