The Best And Worst Of Obama’s SOTU

13 Jan, 2016 by William Teach

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No, I did not watch the State Of The Union. NJ Devils hockey was on. If it wasn’t, I would have watched Masterchef Canada. And don’t you dare tell me who won! I did not watch all of Bush’s, either. But, no matter what, I had no intention of watching a snippy man lecture the American public, nor sneer and look down his nose, nor tell falsehoods, give use cherry picked facts, nor listen to his strawmen.

The number 1 best? It’s his last one. Breitbart offers up ten lies, which include

2. “Anyone claiming that America’s economy is in decline is peddling fiction.”With that line, Obama took a shot at his would-be Democratic successors, as well as his Republican critics. But the truth is that despite the slow recovery–the slowest since World War II–labor force participation is the lowest it has been in decades. Wages are stagnant, household incomes still have not recovered from the recession, and young people see a bleak future.

Worst. These are the same policies that Hillary or Bernie would continue, and even make worse.

6. “Seven years ago, we made the single biggest investment in clean energy in our history. Here are the results.” It is laughable that Obama would claim his failed clean energy spending–think Solyndra–led to the fracking-fed energy boom we have enjoyed for the past several years, especially when the administration did all it could to stop oil and gas development. He also nixed the Keystone pipeline and started a plan to kill coal plants.

Worst. Obama could have made real investments in alternatives, pushing for research and projects that would work, rather than rewarding campaign donors who had projects of a dubious nature. He could have pushed for next generation nuclear. He could have put the USA on a true path to renewable energy. Sadly, no.

7. “No nation dares to attack us or our allies because they know that’s the path to ruin.” Of all the lies in Obama’s speech, this was undoubtedly the worst, coming hours after Iran seized two U.S. Navy boats and ten sailors. Obama did not even mention those Americans in captivity at any point in his speech, declining the chance to reassure the nation that they would come home safely. It is an omission that will define this address in history.

Worst. Iran released those sailors and the boats at 4am EST, long after Obama’s silly remarks. Perhaps Obama has forgotten about Russia’s territorial gains in Crimea. Of course, not us or our allies, but they thumbed their nose at the world, including Obama. Or how Russia told US forces to get the hell out of the way in Syria.

9. “We are training, arming, and supporting forces who are steadily reclaiming territory in Iraq and Syria [from Islamic State].” The Obama administration’s attempt to train and arm Syrian rebels has been a disaster. Belatedly, the administration has helped Kurdish peshmerga forces, and the Iraqi military has made gains lately, but Obama has not made a serious effort to defeat the Islamic State, and is even giving up on regime change in Syria.

Worst. He’s, at best, made half-hearted attempts to deal with them. Perhaps he can think back to when he attack Libya, then walked away, leaving the eastern half a mess, run by Islamic radicals linked to ISIS. Switching over to a Fox News article

“Let me tell you something, the United States of America is the most powerful nation on Earth. Period,” Obama said, to those who say America is getting weaker.

Best and worst. Best because we are, worst because Obama doesn’t seem to believe that, and he has worked to weaken America. Remember his red lines schtick, among others?

“Masses of fighters on the back of pickup trucks, twisted souls plotting in apartments or garages, they pose an enormous danger to civilians. They have to be stopped. But they do not threaten our national existence,” Obama said. “That is the story ISIL wants to tell; that’s the kind of propaganda they use to recruit.”

Best. He’s sorta right on that, in that they do not threaten our national existence. At this time. They do need to be stopped. Who thought little Germany would be such a threat in 1935? In ISIS, one must consider that if just 1% of Muslims are the hardcore violent ones, that’s 16 million worldwide. If 10%-25% of Muslims believe in the hardcore tenets of Islam, the regressive version based on the life and teachings of Mohammad, that’s an upward number of 400 million.

He also dug in on what effectively is an administration policy of not referring to the terror threat as radical Islam. He urged against “echoing the lie that ISIL is somehow representative of one of the world’s largest religions,” and said: “We just need to call them what they are – killers and fanatics who have to be rooted out, hunted down, and destroyed.”

Worst. To defeat something, you must name that something in order to understand. They are Islamic. They represent Islam.

He also began, and closed, his address with a call for bipartisan cooperation on key issues, saying Washington “might surprise the cynics.” On issues ranging from criminal justice reform to prescription drug abuse, Obama suggested both parties can find common ground.

Best and worst. Best because we do need cooperation on some issues. Worst, because, for one thing, Obama is the largest enabler of strife in Washington. For another, Democrats have shown that, on big issues, they refuse to cooperate.

He also yammered on about Guantanamo Bay detention facility, and issue he’s been mostly impotent on, despite him signing a statement to close it down as his first act in office. Yammered about gun control, while having armed security protecting him in the Congressional chamber. Raising the minimum wage. Free college. Climate change. There was a strawman about immigrants, where he blamed stagnant wages on “boardrooms”. A brief mention of refugees (I expected more, but, perhaps he didn’t want to put this issue back in the minds of Americans). Obamacare.

All in all, a silly speech from a silly man. The question now is, how much more will he check out from his job?

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.