Michael Hirsh (defying the odds by writing something other than the sort of fawning tribute to Obama which has become the mainstay of the new Newsweek) reviews North Korea’s behavior of late and writes:
As much as he might like to, it doesn’t look as if the president has anyone to engage with, even in North Korea’s traditional language of blackmail.
The puzzle in Pyongyang is bad enough for Obama, but it’s just one part of a larger problem now facing Washington.
On a number of perilous fronts—Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Mideast—this most diplomatically oriented of American presidents, who came into office four months ago eager for “engagement,” has few responsible or dependable parties with whom he can negotiate. As a result, despite Obama’s best intentions, each of these foreign-policy problems is likely to grow much worse—possibly disastrously worse—before it gets any better.
Hmm. That sounds problematic. What’s more, it suggests that Obama is in his own make-believe world in which dialogue, “respect,” and smart diplomacy are met with goodwill, reciprocal gestures and acts of loving kindness. It suggests that the president has constructed an approach to foreign policy that is divorced from reality. Well, what to do about this? Hirsh explains:
The result of all this one-sided talking is likely to be stasis, drift and a certain amount of incoherence, as spokesman Kelly demonstrated this week. Repeatedly questioned about U.S. policy toward North Korea, Kelly said the Obama administration still believed a “multilateral approach” in the form of six-party talks was the best way forward—even though his boss, Clinton, recently told Congress that she thought the likelihood of Pyongyang returning to those talks was “implausible, if not impossible.”
Perhaps we should just talk among ourselves.
Perhaps we should try something else. Maybe stop needlessly hammering Israel to prevent its citizens from building add-ons to their homes in the West Bank in search of some nonexistent “peace process.” Maybe it’s time to reverse decisions to curtail missile defense programs. In other words, respond to the world as we are experiencing it rather than pursuing a fruitless policy of talk, talk, talk with people who don’t want to listen. We were told this president was going to be “pragmatic” and not be driven by “ideology,” but the question remains whether he persists, despite all evidence to the contrary, on an entirely ideological and a-factual policy which is allowing dangerous problems to fester. Is it too much to hope for a change?
“You’re doing a great job, Timmy!”
Keep your eyes peeled for the Obama Greyhound. It can’t be far.
Agree with Grumpy. Tiny Tim and Weird Uncle Wright are going to meeting up soon under the bus.
If I were a socialist, posing as a capitalist, my 1st priority would be a billion/trillion dollar stimulus plan that no one would have the time to look. Inside of it would be billion dollar handouts to failed capitalists, with a wink and a nod to keep it up!!! You are doing a great job!
Then, when those capitalists give out the bonuses according to contract, I set up the pinata and take a lot of swings in front of a lot of cameras. Now that is getting my money worth! You are now in the service of the federal government and this administration is paying you do to one thing. Be a failed capitalis. We want you to hand out money without merit. That’s what we do, too! Its socialism all around and back again.
I’m still way less disgusted by the AIG bonuses than by all the sleazy political posturing from the Monster Deficit Rally spenders in Congress who have just spent the last six months behaving EXACTLY like AIG’s Department of Overleveraging In CDSes And Other Bad Debt, and who themselves approved the bonuses in the original TARP bill, and now want to hoot and hop around like chimpanzees on Xanax or whatever it was (and now I’m having ANOTHER automatic vision of Obama, induced by the recent Political Cartoon Sensitivity Intervention).
I think Rush Limbaugh is correct on this one. Too many people are salivating on cue over those dreadful BONUSES, and ignoring the actually significant things going on behind the curtain.
There’s GOT to be a pony somewhere.
While I am depressed and frustrated with this administration, we should be careful. I love your stuff but you can’t say Geithner failed at the “simple” task of overseeing AIG, and then say his failure proves that government shouldn’t be managing “complex” companies.
We should be more precise, especially when it’s like shooting fish in a barrel.
Last note: Another problem of Obama is that he defers to Congress which is a body prone to hyperbole because they have come to expect that there’s a grownup in the Whitehouse to ultimately restrain policy. They normally get to vent their “emotions” relying on the steadying hand of the President. Either the Democratic Congress needs to realize the new dynamic and become more mature or Obama needs to lead. Unfortunately, I don’t see either happening.
Go here to see a photo of the bus
http://i532.photobucket.com/albums/ee323/bassethound2/obamabus.jpg
I think it’s more like this bus:
http://ckmac.com/images/b500-999/rb-509.jpg (bigger image at http://ckmac.com/images/b500-999/rb-509b.jpg )
B. Hussein Obama is a closet fascist — who is now coming out.
Oh, come on, people. Obama will be kickin’ it with Jay Leno tonight! Let’s see some smiles.
How bad could things be if they President of the United States has time to, you know, chill on a late night talk show?
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article5937841.ece
Assuming that Edward Liddy’s testimony before Congress yesterday accurately reflects the nature and necessity of said “bonuses”, i.e. they where to keep employees in place at AIG who had NOTHING to do with the firm’s implosion so as to pare down the financial services division risk exposure, the why are these bonuses “disgusting” at all?
Does anyone here know a senator? I want to propose an amendment to the Bad American Confiscation Bill now pending:
“There is hereby imposed on any person who become President and wipes his ass with Article 1 section 9 of the Constitution of the United States (relating to bills of attainder and ex post facto laws) a tax equal to 100% of any compensation received by such person at any time for the purported teaching of Constitutional law at any institution that ever thought about receiving Federal money for any activity whatsoever, it being now apparent that such person has no clue what the Constitution is about and so cannot possibly have taught anyone about it and was, therefore, taking Federal money under false pretenses.”
We evidently need a pretend “ruling class” to ridicule, to take our eyes off the ball so that the actual ruling class (Obama & fellow lefties in high places) can do whatever it wants.
Regarding Comment #11:
Once the US owns or dictates to the banks, it will take out our money as it desires whenever we are not obedient enough to our Maximum Leader and his mega-flunkies. The new, radicalized Supreme Court (coming soon!) and the old, bought-and-paid-for Congress will not object. If Kramer’s amendment were to be enacted by some miracle, the Court would explain it away in its inimitable anti-constitutional style.
Mr. Kramer,
Our President is a leftist, and considers the USC a flawed document because it enshrines negative rights. He is on record to that effect and would rather see it confer “positive” rights that would effect economic and social change, so Aritcle 1 section 9 is way past its “expiration date” and must be ignored and thus has no use at all, even as toilet paper. Not to menion, it is exceeding difficult to wipe your tush when your head gets in the way….as Obama would no doubt find out if he tried to use it nonetheless.
LK: Priceless! Forget amending the BAC bill. Attach it to the constitution. If he’s impeached, he’ll lose his salary as well.
Now that, Lawrence Kramer, we agree on.
#11 will very likely be the true CotD, but, for certain obvious reasons, probably won’t be selected for same.
Meanwhile, the House has just passed its anti-bonus bill.
The “simple” task of overseeing AIG? I don’t think so. Besides, the first AIG money came from the Fed. If you want to go after someone for lack of oversight, start with Bush’s guy, Ben Bernanke. As for Obama’s temperament, he has kept his cool. At the moment, he cooly and calmly angry. Nothing wrong with that. An even temper doesn’t mean a cold temper.
If this was Bush, your drunken, Republican faker-in-chief, he’d be in Texas, sleeping it off.
Article 1 section 9 of the Constitution of the United States (relating to bills of attainder and ex post facto laws)
No bill of attainder there. No individuals are named, and it applies beyond AIG. The fact that it’s motivated by AIG’s arrogance and stupidity, and will affect people there, does not make it a bill of attainder. And guess what? The bonuses were paid in the 2009 tax year. Ain’t nothing “ex post facto” about changing this year’s tax rates this year.
If there were any doubt remaining, this demonstratesthe superficiality of the argument that Obama would be an excellent President because he was an excellent campaigner. My brother, one of the most thoughtful Obama supporters I know, when pressed to show evidence of executive experience and ability, pointed to the management and direction of Obama’s presidential campaign. I saw similar comments from the popular media mob. The campaign was executed with such extraordinary skills that surely Obama would prove to have a near-miraculous ability to get the country running smoothly again.
So much for that idea. Obama lurches back and forth between “the sky is falling” and “let me fill out my March Madness bracket and go on Leno,” all while the administration over which he is supposedly the chief executive is floundering and making one unforced error after another. When the administration has a problem, rather than fixing it, Obama goes back into campaign mode. Obama may be the best salesman we’ve seen in a long time, and the product he has sold relentlessly for almost two decades now is himself. But this is proving that campaigning skills are quite different from governing skills; they do not transfer. Simply because he inspires large rallies and huge sums of donations does not mean he will be an effective governor of the nation.
The only thing more unseemly than seeing the continuing adulation of Barack and Michelle in the media, while the economy is on fire, is the Congressional Crying Chorus that’s been singing louder and louder the past few days. Liddy did *exactly* what they had agreed to. Congressional Democrats passed the bill that made this possible, and one of their leaders (Dodd), at the urging of the White House, inserted specifically the rule that allowed for this. That these Congressional Democrats should throw together bills and scarcely read them before voting “yea,” and then turn around and excoriate a CEO for doing exactly what they consented to, is thoroughly repulsive.
Assuming that Edward Liddy’s testimony before Congress yesterday accurately reflects the nature and necessity of said “bonuses”
Yes, and assuming that there are little red men from Mars who are running the electric power grid … Come on, why trust Liddy? Oh, and who ever said that lack of culpability matters here? Are you crying crocodile tears about all the autoworkers who have lost pay and benefits when their contracts were ripped up and rewritten? Of course not. You’re a Republican, and you care only about the rich.
“Bills of attainder, ex post facto laws, and laws impairing the obligation of contracts, are contrary to the first principles of the social contract, and to every principle of sound legislation…”
JM, Federalist #44, 1788
I apoligize for my never-ending cliches like “You’re a Republican, and you only care about the rich.”
I know I’m a tiresome bore, but I’m a product of the public schools. Please forgive me.
“there is a total absence of executive skill here”
Serious question: What in this man’s background gave anyone an idea that he had/has “executive skill”?
To John Hartache – dont worry about it. I learned a long time ago to skip over Hartland’s entries. I imagine most others that read this blog have, too.
Mr. Hartland,
Concerning Mr. Libby. Would you not agree that he is certainly more trustworthy than his political inquisitors who would have us believe that they were thrown a curve ball by AIG when it came to these bonues? Indeed, the very fact that he chose to come out of retirement for a salary of $1 makes him by definition more trustworthy than his pilloring politicos since he has much less to loose than they do.
As far as the Big 3 autoworkers, they can always try to go to work in the financial services industry if they have contract envy, or they can stay in their current line of work and earn a wage that is more in line with the remainder of their industry and thank their luck stars that they still have a job at all. If they agreed to have their contracts ripped up to get in bed with Uncle Sam, that’s on their head. If AIG was able to have their contracts preserved, that’s not the fault of the GOP, since the stimulus plan had only 3 GOP votes, one of which was by a Senator who had an amendment precluding the bonuses REMOVED IN A CLOSED DOOR MEETING BY THE DEMOCRATS AT THE LAST MINUTE! So, JH, are you sure it’s not the Democrats that only care about the rich?
#25
I don’t think the FP said anything about torture…but I could be wrong. What does Leon Panetta and our current President think about absolutely exlcuding torture?
#17. J. H.: As for Obama’s temperament, he has kept his cool. At the moment, he cooly and calmly angry. Nothing wrong with that. An even temper doesn’t mean a cold temper
Your attachment to Mr. Obama is touching, Mr. Hartland,
especially in view of his firm commitment to Israel:
“Israel is a strong ally of the United States. They will not stop being a strong ally of the United States”, Obama told the Al Arabiya television in an interview.
“I will continue to believe that Israel’s security is paramount. “
Mr. Hartland, the lonely ObamaBot on contentions. We know the Teleprompter Prez is flailing by the viciousness of the lonely troll….don’t need no stink’in polls either.
“Are you crying crocodile tears about all the autoworkers who have lost pay and benefits when their contracts were ripped up and rewritten? Of course not. You’re a Republican, and you care only about the rich.”
You mean the contracts that were renegotiated by the autoworker’s own union representatives?