Thoughts of Obama from Bama

Week Eighteen: Point – Counterpoint

“Jane, You Ignorant Slut” “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”

On Thursday of Week 18 of the “Yes We Can Transform our National Security into a Pacifist Blame America First Train Wreck” the political geniuses at the White House bit off far more then they could chew taking on former Vice President Dick Cheney on the subject of national security. This clash of diametrically opposed political points of view and personalities was reminiscent of the classic Saturday Night Live Weekend Update segments of Point/Counterpoint back when SNL was actually funny.

Bringing to mind Dan Aykroyd’s now legendary retort to co-anchor Jane Curtin, “Jane, You Ignorant Slut”, we can imagine Mr. Cheney responding in kind, “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, in reaction to President Obama’s numerous misrepresentations and rewriting of history regarding the Bush/Cheney Administration.

Blatantly politicizing national security the spin doctors in the West Wing scheduled a major Presidential speech addressing national defense, our Overseas Contingency Operations, aka, War on Terrorism, Enhanced Interrogation Techniques and Gitmo. They scheduled the address immediately prior to a Cheney speech to the American Enterprise Institute on the same subject that had been planned weeks in advance. An obvious attempt to take advantage of the President’s popularity in a one on one match up with the allegedly unpopular and so called “Darth Vader” of the W. Administration.

Thoughts of Obama from Bama is more than happy to acknowledge the Administration’s success in orchestrating a riveting made for TV moment chalk full of political drama and intrigue. We are also tickled pink to further acknowledge the entire affair blew up in the White House’s face as Vice President Cheney took our 44th president to the woodshed with his deliberate, considered, authoritative, and convincing advocacy of W’s successful anti – terrorist policies and his reasoned critique of Mr. Obama’s strategy of appeasement, apology, weakness and retreat.

Cheney’s rhetorical victory was so overwhelming even most of the left wing media elite pinheads were forced to admit the President’s best case result from the event was a draw. A few of the more enlightened liberal reporters and commentators even grudgingly acknowledged the Vice President’s superior performance.

The President’s speech, which was staged and expertly choreographed at the National Archives in front of the U.S. Constitution as the main prop for maximum effect, was typical Obama political rhetoric full of soaring oratory but lacking in substance, full of contradictions, and artfully deceitful. The President repeatedly called on us to look forward, put the W Administration’s transgressions and crimes behind us and in the same breath whined incessantly about the mess he inherited. All told the president made 28 negative references about the previous administration.

In an effort to fully appreciate Mr. Cheney’s decisive victory in this high stakes political battle for the hearts and minds of “We the People”, Thoughts of Obama from Bama has prepared a comparative summary of both speeches from a point-counterpoint perspective:

Mr. Obama: In the midst of all these challenges, however, my single most important responsibility as President is to keep the American people safe. It's the first thing that I think about when I wake up in the morning. It's the last thing that I think about when I go to sleep at night.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, give us a break, you know the first thing you think of in the morning is to make sure the teleprompter is working for your daily made for TV event and the last thought is contemplating how to implement the passage you just read from the text of Karl Marx’s “Communist Manifesto”.

Mr. Obama: We are less than eight years removed from the deadliest attack on American soil in our history. We know that al Qaeda is actively planning to attack us again. We know that this threat will be with us for a long time, and that we must use all elements of our power to defeat it.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, eight years removed from and not one attack on the homeland since 9/11, thanks to my former boss and our administration’s anti-terrorist policies. So please, by all means, use all of the elements of our power at your disposal and don’t restrict our defenses to appease your comrades at the U.N., ACLU and over in France.

Mr. Obama: I've studied the Constitution as a student, I've taught it as a teacher, I've been bound by it as a lawyer and a legislator. I took an oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution as Commander-in-Chief, and as a citizen, I know that we must never, ever, turn our back on its enduring principles for expedience sake.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, you surely did take an Oath, to Preserve and Protect and not to retreat, apologize and appease, especially on foreign soil. A little backbone and expression of pride in America would be most appreciated on your next overseas junket.

Mr. Obama: In other words, we went off course. And this is not my assessment alone. It was an assessment that was shared by the American people who nominated candidates for President from both major parties who, despite our many differences, called for a new approach -- one that rejected torture and one that recognized the imperative of closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, its way past time to stop whining, man up, and take responsibility for your own actions. The fact that a liberal and somewhat misguided republican candidate agreed with a couple of your policies of appeasement is far from a mandate or a real consensus for implementing your boneheaded Overseas Contingency Operation, aka, War on Terrorism strategies.

Mr.Obama: Now let me be clear: We are indeed at war with al Qaeda and its affiliates. But we must do so with an abiding confidence in the rule of law and due process; in checks and balances and accountability. For reasons that I will explain, the decisions that were made over the last eight years established an ad hoc legal approach for fighting terrorism that was neither effective nor sustainable -- a framework that failed to rely on our legal traditions and time-tested institutions, and that failed to use our values as a compass. And that's why I took several steps upon taking office to better protect the American people.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, delighted to hear you publicly acknowledge that we are indeed at war, not an Overseas Contingency Operation, with al Qaeda and their murderous Jihadist Muslim affiliates. Having said that, all the high minded ACLU endorsed rhetoric about the rule of law; due process; checks and balances; and time tested legal traditions and institutions do not apply to the enemy combatants held in Gitmo and other prisons in Iraq and Afghanistan. As unaffiliated quasi military combatants adjudication in our criminal justice system is inappropriate, the rules of the Geneva Convention aren’t in effect and each and every one of these jihadist fanatics could be legally shot on sight as suspected spies and saboteurs according to the so called rules of war we typically adhere to. Compared to this option three squares a day, a fluffy prayer rug and clean sheets once a week to wrap their heads in as provided for at Gitmo sounds like one hell of a sweet deal.

Mr. Obama: First, I banned the use of so-called enhanced interrogation techniques by the United States of America. I know some have argued that brutal methods like water boarding were necessary to keep us safe. I could not disagree more. As Commander-in-Chief, I see the intelligence. I bear the responsibility for keeping this country safe. And I categorically reject the assertion that these are the most effective means of interrogation

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, As Commander-in-Chief you do see all of the intelligence and know for a fact that Enhanced Interrogation Techniques, including water boarding, work and were only used on 3 high value targets who finally spilled the beans possibly saving 1,000’s, maybe even 100’s of thousands of American lives. Repeated prior attempts using more traditional interrogation techniques had resulted in gathering intelligence with about the same value as a warm bucket of spit.

Mr. Obama: Now, in all the areas that I've discussed today, the policies that I've proposed represent a new direction from the last eight years. To protect the American people and our values, we've banned enhanced interrogation techniques. We are closing the prison at Guantanamo. We are reforming military commissions, and we will pursue a new legal regime to detain terrorists. We are declassifying more information and embracing more oversight of our actions, and we're narrowing our use of the state secrets privilege. These are dramatic changes that will put our approach to national security on a surer, safer, and more sustainable footing.

Mr. Cheney: “Barack, You Ignorant Nut”, admit it, our policies worked and you know it. Give credit where credit is due for a change. By the way, I’m planning a little quail hunt this weekend and would love to have you join us. Let me know!

Week

Week 18 ended with a media feeding frenzy amid President Obama’s announcement of Sonia Sotomayor as his nominee to replace Justice Souter on the Supreme Court. Not surprisingly and consistent with his governance from the far left, actually the extreme far left, the president has nominated a liberal activist judge who has publically advocated the duty of an appellate judge to legislate from the bench.

Judge

Judge Sotomayor has also made racist and sexist public comments about the superior intellect and judgment of Latino woman on the bench when compared to old white Men. Mr. Obama’s encouragement for all of us to band together, on common ground with a common purpose, rings hollow in light of his continued advocacy of radical leftwing socialist policies and nominations of extreme liberal ideologues for senior government positions including lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court. Lots more to come on this subject in future articles.

The iconic retort “Jane, You Ignorant Slut” and our satirical “Barack, You Ignorant Nut” are effective expressions for speaking truth to power and highlighting the absurdities in an opponent’s arguments and rhetoric. In Obama vs. Cheney on Thursday May 21, 2009 truth triumphed and the White House’s attempts to politicize national security and criminalize W’s successful anti – terrorist policies were an abject failure.

I’m Ron Garikes and you’re not. (Paraphrased, Chevy Chase, SNL)
"That's the news. Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow."(Jane Curtin, SNL)

I am, “American by Birth and Southern by the Grace of God”

Ron W. Garikes