Writers of all stripes seem to find comfort in excusing the growing and obvious incompetence of Barack Obama, by contrasting his popularity with the “hatred” for George Bush. George Bush was only hated by the left, those on the right did not hate the president but they were extremely disappointed with some of his fiscal policies. Additionally, former President Bush was much too tepid in responding to the libel from liberals. 

Those who faulted the president for his fiscal transgressions and his reticence to aggressively fight back against his liberal aggressors need to look again at the Bush Years. The intention here is not to focus on policy specifics, rather to focus on governance versus autocratic rule. George Bush practiced the former; our new president is in the process of the latter. 

 “Moving forward;” that is the mantra of the Obama administration. It is small wonder that President Obama and his administration cohorts avoid the immediate and especially the past, as the ruins of his actions lay in the wake of his policy decisions. It bears attention however, to view the consequences of the current administration with respect to those of his predecessor.   

George Bush was excoriated by the left for what they perceived as an abuse of presidential power. They accused him of “spying” on Americans when the surveillance of foreign cell phone calls from suspected terrorists was leaked to the press. No manner of evidence to the contrary would persuade them otherwise. Mr. Bush was said to be totalitarian, a hate monger and akin to Adolph Hitler.  

It is Barack Obama however, who has commandeered our financial institutions and set forth limits as to the monetary compensation of its executives. This, even though these institutions are still non-government entities. It is Barack Obama who just created the office of “Pay Czar.” Imagine, a government official in the executive branch of government who is going to examine and possibly propose limitations on acceptable pay levels. Simply stunning! 

Moreover, President Obama has now effectively absorbed two of the three giants in the auto industry. In so doing, he trampled on bankruptcy laws, contractual agreements, has forsaken bondholders and given majority stakeholder status to those with the smallest investment, the Auto Unions. He has used federal loans to these companies as leverage to mandate the terms of their operations, even though he declares that “he” doesn’t want to run the car companies. Certainly, the president doesn’t want to run the businesses directly, he just wants to mandate automobile styles, fuel standards, executive compensation and the fate of still profitable dealerships.

The most critical of all the policy shifts between the Obama administration and the Bush administration is foreign policy and national security. It was clear as George Bush neared the end of his presidency that the powers that be were going to test the resolve of his successor. Since the inauguration of Barack Obama, North Korea has launched a long-range missile, conducted an underground nuclear test, fired several short-range missiles, is in the process of another long-range test and has threatened to end the armistice that ended the Korean War. And the president’s response? Threaten UN sanctions of course. 

Not to be outdone, Iran has slammed the diplomatic door on the overtures by the Obama administration to end its nuclear program. To further exacerbate the issue, Obama has taken a belligerent tone with Israel and that nation’s “legitimate” concerns for a nuclear Iran. And the president’s response? In a strategic counter move, Obama has declared that Iran has a legitimate right to pursue nuclear power as long as it is for peaceful purposes. Again, simply brilliant!

Now, even as he travels to the Middle East to praise Muslim nations for their contributions to the world, while failing to remind these nations of the sacrifices we have made on their behalf, he has succeeded in once again snubbing one of our NATO allies. To date, Barack Obama is making a smash hit with the nations that pose the greatest threat to our national security while insulting the British Prime Minister, breaking protocol with their Queen, incurring the annoyance of the German Chancellor  and dissing the French President. What would John F Kerry say? 

Yes, looking back, as Barack Obama lays siege to the economic, business, educational, health and energy sectors of this nation, while simultaneously gutting the heart of our national security systems in a flurry of foreign policy faux pas, the bad ol’ days of George Bush seem rational and reasonable in retrospect. 

Republicans suffered an embarrassing defeat in the elections of both 2006 and 2008 and they still don’t seem to have a clue as to why. The answer is because they stopped being conservative Republicans and behaved more like tepid Democrats. That is, they assumed the “big government” posture, just without the conceited arrogance.  

Ironically, it is the Democrats who enact legislation that grows the size of government, imposes greater and greater limitations on personal freedom and civil liberties and seizes larger portions of our income. All this as they simultaneously blame Republicans for the consequences. Unfortunately, the response from Republican Party leaders is to assume the passive puppy position.

 Watching elected Republicans, party leaders and especially some, who call themselves members of the conservative media, prostrate themselves in response to this challenge from Democrats, is grounds for revolt. The lesson is that passive opposition by Republicans, in the face of a deliberate attempt by the Democrats to marginalize, humiliate, intimidate and defeat them is not an effective strategy. 

An example is the tactic of Democrats to intimidate Republicans with threats of humiliation and increasing obsolescence should they dare criticize the pick of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. The tactic serves two purposes. First, it all but guarantees that Ms. Sotomayor will not be subjected to the rigorous vetting required for the position and second, it further inflames the growing disgust of the Republican Party base for what they rightly perceive as Republican Milquetoast. For the Democrats, it epitomizes the term “win, win.”   

There is also an interesting contrast between the strategies of the two parties in “reaching out” to the electorate. Republicans seem intent on reaching out to their opposition while letting go of those who most support them. The Democrats are intent on reaching out to those who fall away from the Republican Party and after they have voted in their favor, dropping them like hot rocks. Loyalty it seems is subjective in both parties.

What amazes is that the socialistic policies of the left have proven to be inefficient, ineffective and debilitating in terms of governance and the public at large.  By contrast, Republican policies of smaller government, with emphasis on individual and personal achievement, stands as the foundation that propelled this nation to its greatness. And yet, through demographic pandering, ridicule, manipulation and propaganda, the Democrats succeed in selling their message while the Republicans sift through the yellow pages in search of an ad agency. 

The good news for Republicans is that they are at the threshold of being handed one of the greatest political opportunities since Jimmy Carter. Yes, the Democrats will, and perhaps with some success, try to place the blame for our current ills on former President Bush but the tactic is becoming stale and transparent. 

As North Korea sets off nuclear and long-range missile tests, Iran moves ever closer to the nuclear club, Pakistan engages in a low-grade civil war, Russia gains a foothold in South America and our domestic tranquility turns to civil unrest, Republicans can firmly seize the mantle of leadership. The question remains as to whether they will, who their champion will be and do they have the fortitude to endure the slime of liberal intimidation, gutter tactics and mudslinging that will surely follow.

It seems that elected members of the Republican Party have selective hearing. In a recent Townhall style meeting, “leaders” in the Republican Party vowed to create a new message for the party and to “listen” to their constituents. They declared that it was time to leave the good old days behind and move forward. The word of the day of course was “bipartisan.” 

The message that leaders in the Republican Party either do not or refuse to hear is the message that was communicated so clearly on Tax Day. Those who attended those rallies were shouting in unison:  “Start doing the people’s business and get your hands out of our pockets.” What the politicians heard evidently, was, “keep giving the people the business because they have deep pockets.”

The media is daily pronouncing the death of the Republican Party, with an added dose of good riddance, and the mental morons in the Republican Party want to “reach out” to their opposition. Radical Islam wants to bury the United States and the Democrats are kissing their ring. The Democrats want to bury the Republicans and the Republicans are kissing their ring. It is small wonder that our government is such a failure when such aversion to standing up to your aggressors is so prevalent.   

With the defection of Arlen Specter to the Democratic Party, the left is working overtime to sell his actions as a clear message to the GOP that they must move left or forever wander in the wilderness. To the extreme frustration and ire of the Republican and conservative electorate, leaders in the Republican Party are doing just that. Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend Republicans your ears because they can’t hear that the Democrats are coming to bury them, not praise them for their cowardice.

In addition, what Republicans in elected office fail to hear is that it isn’t about numbers, demographics and to whom they must pander to hold their numbers in congress, it is about issues. Moreover, it is about leading the way on the real issues that are affecting this nation and most importantly, being steadfast to those positions. Simply stated, until Republicans again choose to lead, they will wallow in the minority status they deserve. Leadership is not a numbers game.          

Republicans must understand that their demonstration of political mushiness could well destroy the party forever. As warriors live and die by the sword, politicians choose to live and die by wielding political polls. They go into the political arena armed only with a favorability rating. It is beyond comprehension as to why they ignore the armor of how the majority of the electorate actually feels about the issues. 

In just over three months, the President of the United States has essentially annexed both the business and financial sectors of this nation. He is moving with high speed to do the same with our healthcare system as well as education. In conjunction with this takeover of the gross domestic product by the federal government, the United States Congress is in the process of an inquisition against its rivals by criminalizing the actions of its rivals and the Bush administration. 

To counter the destruction of our constitution and current laws that govern economics and business, the Republican Party is muttering something about the physical dimensions of a tent. Size doesn’t matter some say and in this instance, regardless of how big the tent is, it is a mere prop if no one is willing to enter. The people are tired of the circus that plays in the arena of politics and the clowns that daily perform their foolishness. 

It would appear from the document that if you believe in silly issues such as anti-abortion, secure borders, a crackdown on illegal immigration, smaller government or heaven forbid, state and local government as opposed to domination by the federal government, you are a rightwing extremist. The bottom line of this incredibly obtuse document is to intimidate conservative opposition to all things Obama and underscore that intimidation with the threat of finding yourself under surveillance by the FBI.  

There is a real problem in our government when it uses its power to criminalize activities it objects to. We have become a society that speaks our minds only in the most intimate of circumstances. We speak in faltering sentences in public lest we utter a word or phrase that might offend someone who overhears our conversations. When society controls our thoughts and our deeds, we are a “free people” no longer. 

One might think, that when conservatively, 500 thousand people demonstrate across the length and breadth of this nation to protest government gone wild, it would garner at least a modicum of attention in Washington DC. It would appear that the message fell on deaf ears however, as plans to pursue ever more invasive and restrictive measures on the population at large continues apace.  What has emerged is a vicious and threatening attitude of the left to destroy the last remnants of conservatism devoid of all pretense. 

Judging from the patriotic and peaceful demeanor of the thousands that gathered at the Tax Day Tea Parties, there was no desire to engage in angry confrontation. The grassroots of America made its presence known however and it has the liberal activist community that believed it had won both the battle and the war in a snarling snit. 

As a result, the pious and condescending left is determined to exact its own form of religious inquisition; one that eradicates religion from our society and all values and norms derived thereof. The vitriol to follow will almost certainly be of a most despicable nature.

As for President Obama, he as well has no tolerance for competition or views that oppose, contradict or challenge his own. His revealing, “I won,” reply to a Republican congressman, who proposed an alternative to Obama’s omnibus spending plan, says as much as needs be said for his willingness or intention to entertain any direction contrary to his own. It is in this regard that the document written by his administration, warning of “rightwing extremism,” is most relevant. 

It is beyond alarming when you consider that the department that was created to coordinate the activities of our law enforcement and intelligence agencies, in surveillance of terrorist activities, has taken it upon itself to eschew actual terrorist threats and focus on the political threat of its opposition. To that end, the progressive liberal agenda is to humiliate and politically destroy any person or movement that in anyway energizes conservatism. 

From warnings to law enforcement agencies deliberately profiling the conservative platform, to the vile, crude and belittling depiction of Americans who attended tea parties, the left is determined to smack down their opposition. They have overplayed their hand however, as more and more Americans, who were not paying close attention, are exposed to the true nature of elitist liberals and their subversive tactics.  

There appears to be enormous enthusiasm across a large segment of the population for the “Tea Parties” scheduled for April 15^th. There is also equal determination in the Daily Kos, Moveon.org, George Soros wing of the left to destroy the message and the credibility of the messengers. To use the vernacular, any effort by the radical left to dampen the enthusiasm of grassroots America has the potential for a spectacular “backfire.” 

The people have reached a saturation point with media propaganda, bureaucratic bumbling and with those who believe they know better how we should conduct our lives. Should the left try to scold the revelers for the peaceful expression of their most basic of freedoms, they will succeed only in exposing the radical intent of their Socialist/Marxist agenda. So far, the attitude against those who intend to disrupt those freedoms is, in the words of George Bush, “Bring it on.” 

There is a confrontation that is about to take place and it is going to be both interesting and telling as to how the parties react. Mainstream America has finally risen from its political slumber and they are in no mood to be “ruled.” Our newest president however, has adopted the attitude, “I won,” and believes his election has given him a mandate to remake America. In this regard, the term, “hands on” has taken on an entirely new perspective.

There has been an undercurrent of anger in mainstream America that is fed up with the constant creep of bureaucratic control and loss of individual liberty to the socialist agenda of the left. They have watched as their efforts to secure the American dream have been assaulted with the “good intentions” of liberal/socialist policies that strip them of ever-increasing amounts of what they earn and produce. The frustration has been evident in the constant cry from the mainstream minions of, “what can I do?” 

The answer has manifested itself in the form of the “Tea Party Rebellion,” probably the most powerful symbol of the attitude of America they could have chosen. Yes, the enthusiasm is growing, the anticipation is keen and the hope of actually making a difference is over-powering but it raises an even bigger question, what happens on April 16^th? 

As it was in 1773, at that first Tea Party in Boston, what followed was the “Declaration of Independence.” What should naturally follow the “Tax Day Tea Parties” is that for the “second time in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another.” The 4^th of July should be the day when we again declare the time to “End Dependence” on the government. The government can certainly be considered “another” at this point; it is surely no longer an entity of the people.

For some time now, the government has found it appropriate to “overrule” the will of the people. If these were measures of extreme national security, it might make sense but all too often, it is in the form of the social values that the public at large wishes to establish as its norms. Clearly, the people are losing their patience with a system that has become near dictatorial, highly ineffective, absolutely inefficient and is taxing them into poverty.   

Yes, America, with the election of Barack Obama to the office of President of the United States, we are once more the “home of the brave and the land of the free.” Let freedom ring; mercy! Yes, the open road once again beckons us, the American Dream is upon us and our children’s future looks brighter than ever. 

Never again will we worry about a repeat of the horrendous attack that happened on September 11, 2001.  Barack Obama has returned to the end of the Cold War era mindset. He has taken his cue from our great American President, Jimmy Carter, and announced drastic cuts to military programs at a time of heightened world tension. Yes, this demonstration of standing down should send a clear message to both our enemies and those of the free world.

You can bet that the Russians have also breathed a collective sigh of relief now that Barack Obama has declared that he wants to eliminate our nuclear weapons and is against any upgrades to our current deteriorating arsenal. One can only sense the euphoria of a Russia, now returning to its aggressive posture in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, as President Obama reveals his intentions to return to a treaty and negotiating style that was so successful (for them) in the past.  

Moreover, the amazing foresight of our new president to work with his close associates in the Democrat controlled congress, to lock up our nation’s energy reserves, even as Israel threatens action against Iran, is a marvelous demonstration of rational thought. Certainly, our current infrastructure of highly efficient windmills, solar tanning fields and the accompanying power grid will stave off the collapse of energy production from the near shutdown of oil from the Middle East, should hostilities occur. 

And, talk about your fiscally responsible budgets.  In his infinite wisdom, Obama has found our need for a missile defense system too costly and has offered it for sacrifice on the budget chopping block.  Obama has made this clear, even though North Korea has now successfully launched its first long-range missile capable of striking our west coast. Surely, this demonstration of monetary discipline coupled with a clear signal that the United States is a sitting duck will deter North Korean aggression and bring them into the family of nations.  

When it comes to sound economic sense, President Obama’s intellect is a stunning display of clear thinking. Consider the benefits of introducing an energy policy in the form of cap and trade that will place serious financial burdens on energy producers, manufacturing and transportation during a serious economic downturn.  Not to mention the resulting increase in the cost of the goods and services that will be generated. Impeccable logic, simply brilliant!  

As a further demonstration of a clear return of our founding principles of individual freedom, President Obama has proudly announced the inclusion of the “Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act,” in House Bill, HR 1388. The bill includes language indicating that young people will be “forced” to participate in mandatory national service programs. One can only marvel at the enhancement of our nation’s youth and their respect for democracy, as they are indoctrinated in this program that specifically forbids any inclusion of religious activities. 

What a grand new beginning it will be as we take comfort in the knowledge that our children are being so well trained in the skills and tactics of future community organizers. Imagine our pride as we freely sacrifice in the name of saving the planet when we hit the road on a warm, sunny, summer day, headed for our favorite beach or mountain retreat with our families.  And, we’ll all say neat as we’re crammed in the seat of our automobiles built for two. 

It is a new day America.  We no longer live in the shadow of personal responsibility or fear of achievement.  We have been unburdened from the task of the thinking for ourselves. We are free at last America, free to live in peace and harmony with those who are just like us, with the same standard of living, driving the same cars, subsisting on that which the government believes if fair and just compensation. So free to be all “they” want us to be.   

The new tactic of career politicians it would seem is “the word of the day.” During the last campaign for president, the word was “hope” or “change” but the newest word to adorn the mantle of political meaning is “transparency.” No doubt about it, our new president is true to the new mantra; it has taken precious little time to see through the gaping holes between his rhetoric and his actions. 

A window to current liberal reality has been opened, not only revealing the politics of Barack Obama, but clearly exposing the true nature of Democrats in congress as well. The Democrats seem so confident in their power that they scarcely notice that the curtain on their actions is open wide and they are exposed to the public sans political cover. The zeal with which they cavalierly spend money in unfathomable amounts is breathtaking. Most revealing is that most of this tsunami of cash will be spent on little of substance and heavily on liberal social engineering programs. 

In the week immediately following President Obama’s inauguration, the bulk of the mainstream media was flush with obsequious platitudes and praise to the man for whom they had sold their souls to get him elected. So too were the pronouncements by the Democrats and the media of the death of the Republican Party and especially the demise of all things conservative. In their haste and euphoria, they flung the drapes open wide on their idealism and their agenda, paying scant attention to the fact that their political slips were showing.     

Now, as the media, members of Obama’s administration and most of the leading figures in the Democratic Party scramble to regain an air of decency, they only exacerbate the revelation of their hypocrisy. Without a doubt, they are all in search of the moron behind the curtain who coined the catchword “transparency.” What was he thinking? If he only had a brain.

One of the most interesting developments in the time since the presidential inauguration, as first espoused by CNBC Reporter Rick Santelli, is the rapidly growing formation of mock “Tea Parties.” This symbolic notion of probably the most notorious act of the American Revolution, in protest of the economic policies of the new Obama administration, is enormous. For grassroots America, to come together under this banner does not bode well for the continued success of the direction Democrats want to take this nation. It may also bode equally gloomy for their continued majority status in 2010.   

Surprisingly, or perhaps not so, Democrats don’t seem to grasp the significance of the statement that the American people are making. For example, there was tremendous pressure on congress not to pass the enormous “spending,” aka “stimulus” bill, with a price tag unprecedented in congressional history; and yet, it was literally rammed through congress with nary a soul having a chance to fully read it. In spite of the objections of a majority of the people, the new president and a compliant congress “summarily” overruled them.

It is this arrogance and near dictatorial attitude, that has spurred the people to action. The current average for the right direction/wrong direction polls, as tabulated by RealClearPolitics.com, shows that 54.7% of the people believe we are headed in the wrong direction; hardly a resounding vote of confidence for either the president or the congress.

Many blame George W Bush for the entirety of our current ills. Many more hold him in extreme contempt.    History will show however, that President Bush was fairly effective in holding our nation and our economy together through a very perilous time. It will also judge him correctly as less than an inspiring leader.  

It was Barack Obama’s ability to inspire people as a true leader that gave him a very real mandate to be one of this nation’s greatest presidents. It is arrogance, selfish agenda, ideological myopia and yes, incompetence however, that will prevent it from ever being so. If Barack Obama had chosen to lead, he would be seen as a man among men. He chose instead to be nothing more than a Chicago style politician.