President Obama: I am no fan of the president. That will not come as a surprise to any of you “laptop report” readers. But, just a couple hours ago (I am writing this on Friday evening from Washington, DC) the president gave a news conference that reached a new low for any politician in my memory – let alone a president.
He started the press conference describing how he had a phone call on which he was negotiating with the president of Iran. He extolled the virtues of “diplomacy” and “negotiation” in his engagement with Iran.
Last Friday, President Obama made another call. This one was to Speaker John Boehner. As has been widely reported, he told the speaker that he would absolutely not negotiate on the debt limit. His press secretary yesterday likened Republicans to terrorists saying, in reference to Republicans, “…we’re not negotiating with people who have a bomb strapped to their chest.”
So, let’s get this straight: The president has no problem negotiating with a leader of a country whose government has called for the extermination of all Jews, has directly sponsored terrorism throughout the world and, even as Iranian President Rouhani was on the phone with our president, had authorized the hacking of U.S. military computers (according to a just released report in the Wall Street Journal). Yes, President Obama will negotiate with a country whose government oppresses women and religious minorities at a level seen hardly anywhere else on earth, practices a cruel and tryannical form of sharia law, and has killed untold millions of people over the past 30 years. He will negotiate with a country like this in order to allow it to have “peaceful nuclear power” because it can, of course, be trusted not to use it to exterminate Israel or Americans or anyone else……….
……..but, he will not negotiate with John Boehner or Republicans in Congress…….because we have the audacity to agree with the majority of the American people in wanting the repeal of the massively-failed plan called “ObamaCare”. This, according to his press secretary, is actual terrorism.
I have been a Republican my entire life. I think Democrats are wrong on many things. I disagree with them and debate them. But, I have always known that they want a better America and are fighting for a better America, just as I do. We just have a disagreement on what that should look like and how to get there. But, I have always, and will always, talk and negotiate with them because they are basically good people. And frankly, we will never achieve anything lasting without some bipartisanship.
But, this president obviously does not see Republicans that way. To negotiate with the terrorist state of Iran and nearly simultaneously say he will not negotiate with the democratic opposition in his own country is the most reprehensible statement I have ever heard from anyone elected to public office.
This president is irresponsible and chooses to be extreme for dramatic purposes. He made that abundantly clear in the last 24 hours. I plead with my Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate to abandon their compulsion to follow their president. I understand that compulsion. We, Republicans, all had it with George W. Bush. But when the president is so obviously wrong, the members of that president’s party who have the courage to follow their own convictions are the real patriots.
Mr. President, if you can trust Iran, you should be able to trust John Boehner. If they can have “peaceful nuclear power”, then we can have the repeal of the obviously failed “ObamaCare” so that we can begin anew to reshape and truly fix American healthcare.
I may be leaving office in 15 months (something I realize I still have not discussed with you all), but, as the Monty Python phrase goes, “I’m not dead yet”. The president has gone over a line. Waaaay over. I forgave him a few weeks ago when he said “Republicans, some of whom are decent people.” The clear implication being that most of us are indecent. But, this indecent Republican has had enough. If the government does not shut down next week, it will be in spite of this president, not because of him. If it does shut down, it will be entirely because of his incendiary actions and words. Hopefully, reasonable minds will overcome this irrational, irresponsible president’s behavior.
Drive Fast and Live Free.