A Beleaguered America

The thought occurs to me as I do a mental count that the Obama Administration may be wrestling more hogs in the mud that most of the predecessors including the infamous Clinton Administration.  Looking over the list, the one glaring issue missing is a good old sex scandal within the confines of the White House.  While I am certainly relieved that one does not exist, I caution you not to count it out.  There is still time left on the clock.

Obama promised change throughout his campaign for the high office.  Not just change, but real change.  Some would say “transparent change”.  Regardless, the administration hit the ground running to implement change.  The unspoken mantra was “comprehensive reform” in every arena.  It matters little whether the public has a problem with an area or an issue; it is on the block for change in the Obama philosophy.  After all, Americans have no idea what is good for them.  If the did, many of those sitting in Congress today would have never darkened the door.

Of course there was urgency.  Initially many felt Obama would take it easy for his first term and merely attempt to set the foundation for change. Then, with the second election behind him, he would press for action on his plan in areas like healthcare and finances.  Sorry, Charlie but even Obama can see the handwriting on the wall.  By the time his second term rolls around, his voting base in the Congress may be severely reduced as seats are lost in mid-term elections and in the elections of his second term attempt.  Of course there is urgency here and there should be if he has any hope of implementing all the change he desires through his Presidency.

Think of the various controversies plaguing this administration at the present.  The healthcare debacle and the negative reaction the public demonstrated toward it in the aftermath of a vote that literally muscled in the law much to the disappointment of a majority of Americans.  Of course the current disaster in the Gulf has taken the administration to the mat on several occasions.  The desire to be in charge but clear of any responsibility has not endured this administration to the public who watches.

Israel now faces a potential cold-shoulder from the USA in the recent embargo incident although Obama vowed time and again during the campaign to stand with Israel.  North Korea feels confident to wage attacks in open waters on South Korean ships in light of the fact that the USA is a strong ally with the south. All we can muster is a talk with the Chinese to see if an apology might be forthcoming.  Strength, as Dan Rather might say.

The immigration issue, while not birthed on Obama’s watch, certainly has come home to roost on his term.  The argument and the reaction of the American public does not stem from whether he created the issue. No, the public frustration roots itself in the fact that the President and his Justice Department are more than willing to go after Arizona for attempting to, in essence, enforce the current law which is on the federal books.

Arizona continues to bleed while the President stands with Mexico’s leadership on the steps of our White House and accuses Arizona of seeking to carry out acts of racial profiling.  This is not a pill most Americans want to swallow on this issue. 

Then, of course, there are the accusations that the Obama Administration played a significant role in the offering of jobs to democratic candidates in elections in both Pennsylvania and Colorado. Transparency in the response to such accusations lingered behind the smoke and mirrors of the administration conducting its own internal investigation only to conclude that there is no smoking-gun here.  Possibly they forgot that Watergate was not that long ago in the public’s mind.

Throw all those issues into the mix with Obama’s snubbing of the military both in foreign service and here at home.  Mix in the calls for “comprehensive reform” in more arenas that one can count with no significant explanation as to what comprehensive reform entails in any of those areas.  Add in the daily partisan political shenanigans that occur on both sides of the aisle and America’s disgust with all of it.  Add in the President’s inability to gain some bi-partisan consensus and restore some level of decorum to our legislative branches and you have yourself one hot-bubbling cauldron here that has not been near this full since Bill Clinton redefined the word “is” for us.

America is so sadly in need of some healing leadership at this time.  We need a leader who can take folks back to the centerline that America runs best on.  We need someone to lead us out of this perpetual ditch we seem to be driving down.  We need a leader who can raise the face of America to our allies and to those who oppose us with the same message, “we bow to no one”.  We need a leader who will uphold our military and their rights to defend this great country. We need a leader who will walk over to the Congress and shame the whole damn bunch for their lack of leadership, professionalism, and simple adult behavior and accountability.  We need a leader who can lead not one who demands that we follow.

Politics and government functionality are in one sad state of affairs today.  Answers are not forthcoming from our elected officials and political gamesmanship is the sport of the day.  Billions and billions of hard-earned taxpayer dollars pour into a bottomless abyss that will never be filled yet the only solution offered is to keep pouring.

The American public is little by little losing its faith.  Faith is the glue that keeps this country together. Faith, trust, and an enduring belief in the powers of an Almighty God are all we as Americans have left. If we persist in the direction in which we are headed, those too will be gone and America will look much like Humpty-Dumpty after his unanticipated fall from the high wall.  We need to think about it.

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