Liz Cheney on Obama’s speech: Unsurprisingly lame
posted at 3:25 pm on June 4, 2009 by Allahpundit
Share on Facebook | printer-friendly
It was lame, or lame-ish, but not for the reason she gives. She wanted more tough talk on Iran to galvanize Sunni antipathy to their nuke program, but in fairness to The One, that’s not what this was about. It was a kumbaya singalong with Muslims, Shia included, and there’s no place for ultimatums in a drum circle. What made it lame, apart from didactic Mr. Rogers-esque pap like, “It is easier to blame others than to look inward; to see what is different about someone than to find the things we share,” was how few concrete solutions it offered, opting instead for the usual “le Change, c’est moi” persona-as-policy Obama shtick. As Andrew Bolt put it, “Of actual proposals to solve anything he has few. He’s offering not plans but himself. He is the Healer.” The NYT admitted the same thing buried 15 paragraphs in, natch. Politico actually reached this surreal depth in trying to rationalize why the speech was so important:
The 55-minute speech was remarkable and historic not so much for the delivery or even the words, but for the context, the orator, the moment. Obama included blunt talk about the United States, Israel, Iraq, his predecessor and al Qaeda.
When you’ve got the media calling you an oratorical genius notwithstanding the content or delivery of your speeches, you’ve got it made, kid.
Beyond the kumbaya, the most memorable bits were his whitewash of Islamic culture, culminating in the absurd assertion that every religion — including one that explicitly endorses holy war — is based on the Golden Rule. Gay Patriot, a conservative, wonders why The One had nothing to say about Islamic persecution of gays; Peter Daou, a liberal, wonders why the kaleidoscope of abuse women suffer in Muslim countries was ignored in favor of an endorsement of the hijab. At one point, to emphasize how both Israelis and Palestinians have suffered over the years, Obama even drew a tacit comparison between Gaza and, um, the Holocaust. Some bloggers, my esteemed colleague included, are impressed that The One did throw down the gauntlet on certain issues, like the fact that the Holocaust happened and that 9/11 was indeed perpetrated by Muslims, but to me that’s like having someone address a conference of flat-earthers and insist that the Earth is round. It takes no courage to do so, given the evidence; rather, it’s spine on the cheap, designed to give him cover as having “talked tough” to Muslims even though he didn’t talk tough on issues that really matter, like, say, the right of return. If he wanted to avoid contentious issues altogether in the name of kumbaya, fine, but don’t serve weak tea and then expect credit.
The strangest part? At one point, he lapsed into full-blown neoconservatism:
The fourth issue that I will address is democracy. I know there has been controversy about the promotion of democracy in recent years, and much of this controversy is connected to the war in Iraq. So let me be clear: no system of government can or should be imposed upon one nation by any other.
That does not lessen my commitment, however, to governments that reflect the will of the people. Each nation gives life to this principle in its own way, grounded in the traditions of its own people. America does not presume to know what is best for everyone, just as we would not presume to pick the outcome of a peaceful election. But I do have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn’t steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose. Those are not just American ideas, they are human rights, and that is why we will support them everywhere.
That’s pure Bush, up to and including the caveat that we don’t seek to impose our values on others. Bush never couched his Iraq rhetoric in terms of bending Arabs to his will; his point was always an essentialist argument, as Obama’s is here, that human beings naturally desire to be free and to govern themselves and that he was merely giving Iraqis the chance to fulfill that desire by taking out Saddam. I.e., democracy isn’t our value, it’s everyone’s value. Is that true, though? I’d bet an awful lot of progressives and “realists” would beg to differ.
Anyway, here’s Cheney.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Comment pages: 1 2 Next »
Cute and apt.
myrenovations on June 4, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Of course there is this tiny little matter of all that was said that is provable untrue.
Also: You need to take history bcak to the 7th century if you want to understand the full brutality of Muslims.
tarpon on June 4, 2009 at 3:30 PM
This speech was far worse than “lame”. It was destructive. You’ll see.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Finally, I wanted to hear what the man really said. (laugh)
Thanks, AP, Liz does have an interesting take on things.
Larry Farr on June 4, 2009 at 3:31 PM
Somewhere GM bondholders are doing a big old face palm.
Ted Torgerson on June 4, 2009 at 3:31 PM
It should NOT have been a singalong. It should have been a warning that the US will not abide a nuclear armed Iran.
csdeven on June 4, 2009 at 3:32 PM
Once again, Liz Cheney demonstrates why I love her. :D
Daggett on June 4, 2009 at 3:32 PM
+100 Allah.
portlandon on June 4, 2009 at 3:33 PM
Liz is ruining the narrative, that Ogabe made the foreign crowd swoon in ecstasy.
Bishop on June 4, 2009 at 3:34 PM
And I would like to add: Obama is destructive. Not only will you see but you will feel the pain.
izoneguy on June 4, 2009 at 3:35 PM
Why is it OK for Iran to pursue nuclear energy but not us?
m2 on June 4, 2009 at 3:35 PM
No, it’s demonstrably not. Some people want power over others. We call them nanny-staters. The fact that they want this power “for the good” of those they would control doesn’t change this fact.
TheUnrepentantGeek on June 4, 2009 at 3:35 PM
Is Obama going to make a czar for the Missle East, and will either Cheney make fun of him for it?
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:36 PM
Nice post, AP.
(emphasis mine)
Out: Ed; In: AP?
BuckeyeSam on June 4, 2009 at 3:36 PM
That is exactly why I give Obama no credit for saying those things. He did not have to go there and he did not have to give the speech. But since he did, those things should have been said and it is not special that he said them.
myrenovations on June 4, 2009 at 3:36 PM
The Liz gets down to biz.
She is a true Statesman, I think on par with Bolton.
TheSitRep on June 4, 2009 at 3:36 PM
She was a nice wet blanket for the campfire that they had burning for Obama on Morning Joe this morning after the speech.
BuckeyeSam on June 4, 2009 at 3:38 PM
I’m sorry, but Gays are obsessed with their state of Gay. As much as this speech was Barry’s ego rant on how he knows Muslims ’cause he is one, only a Gay would wonder why he wasn’t mentioned.
Gain some perspective outside of your anus.
Hening on June 4, 2009 at 3:38 PM
Liz and her father will make a great team in 2012 if they do go down that route.
jencab on June 4, 2009 at 3:39 PM
speaking of “Moral Equivalence”, Ron Paul is lecturing Congress for criticizing China for Tianamenn!
He says the US has no right to get involved or rather make a statement about that and should mind our own business(”Don’t Tear down that wall!”) and then draws a Ridiculous Moral Equivalance between the Tianammen Mascre and Gitmo and “US Torture”.
jp on June 4, 2009 at 3:40 PM
WTF?
The Race Card on June 4, 2009 at 3:41 PM
While I totally agree with your assessment, what about Lynn, who is great in her own right?
I love that whole family.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
That man needs to vanish. In all seriousness.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
Good post
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
I love you, you love me, lets not bomb Americans please!!
sargentj on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
Czars are for domestic matters, in which he wants to do an end run around Congress.
In foreign affairs it’s an “envoy.” Mitchell to the Middle East, Holbrooke to Pakistan, Hill (I think) to North Korea. To do an end run around Hillary.
Wethal on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
Nice job AP.
Knucklehead on June 4, 2009 at 3:42 PM
it was the State Dept. that pushed for Democracy in Iraq, I’m guessing from reading this speech many of those people are still working and crafting speeches and policy
jp on June 4, 2009 at 3:43 PM
Medved hated it, with the exception of a few passages.
capitalist piglet on June 4, 2009 at 3:43 PM
I much prefer Ms. Cheney to Ms. McCain.
rbj on June 4, 2009 at 3:43 PM
The Carter comparisons are truly kryptonite. Whatch them squirm.
Liz does bring reality to the table.
the_nile on June 4, 2009 at 3:44 PM
He credited Islam with things like inventing the arch, algebra, figuring out how diseases spread, and such like. He mentioned Islam’s tolerance for other religions.
The mind bobbles.
Akzed on June 4, 2009 at 3:44 PM
Again good post.
This is something that many people of different political persuasions can rally around. Perhaps we don’t want to CHANGE the Muslim world, but to simply turn a blind eye (while funding them) is not acceptable.
Also, did Barry acknowledge Tienanmen today? I know Hillary did.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:46 PM
I’m actually quite surprised that he hated it.
myrenovations on June 4, 2009 at 3:46 PM
“But I do have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn’t steal from the people”
Well well…
the_nile on June 4, 2009 at 3:47 PM
Hehe
The truth can hurt.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:47 PM
“The Holocaust Happened” – Barack Obama
Great job there, chief. Way to strike out into bold new territory.
Lehosh on June 4, 2009 at 3:47 PM
Fortunately, cheney and her ilk were not the audience form President Obama’s historic speech.
benny shakar on June 4, 2009 at 3:48 PM
You say that like it’s a good thing. Are you saying the life of an Egyptian is freer than that of Liz Cheney?
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:49 PM
Czar’s are something that should have never BEEN in this Nation!
I didn’t vote for this FOOL. And no one is noticing anything…. just letting it pass on by.
This speech (which was blundersome to say the least) is exactly what we should be seeing here. No one clapping, saying a word… being silent for the idiot who think that everyone loves him.
Obama is an embarrassment to this Nation. And we are now going down like Rome.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:49 PM
He had them coming over on the Mayflower with Miles Standish & Co., didn’t he?
BuckeyeSam on June 4, 2009 at 3:50 PM
headline at lewrockwell.com:
http://lewrockwell.com/paul/paul534.html
Ron Paul to China, while lecturing USA: “Don’t Tear Down that Wall!!!!
jp on June 4, 2009 at 3:50 PM
benny… did you just have a stroke? No, we aren’t (as in everyone who disagrees with Obama) do not “form” around Obama. We aren’t putty like you.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:51 PM
I liked the part where he said … “I speak for all Americans” and then stated that we were willing to basically Islamacize the U.S. in order to better understand Muslims.
Nope – he doesn’t speak for me.
I know he wants to expand the number of Muslim students that come to this country to study – I think that stinks and he doesn’t speak for me. When American students can go into Muslim countries and wear Christian jewelry, or hold a Bible study, or attend a Islamic University that doesn’t preach hate for Americans and Jews …
Then yeah – when that happens – I’m willing to accept them into our homes. But as long as they consider us dogs – this whole plan of “understanding” is just crazy.
If there are any Muslims reading this – I’d like to reiterate – Obama DOES NOT speak for all Americans. There are a significant number of us out here that think your tolerance of Islamofascism makes you look quite dopey. Count me as one of them.
HondaV65 on June 4, 2009 at 3:52 PM
Do.Not.Care.About.Ron Paul.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:52 PM
I didn’t know there were over 1 billion flat-earth adherents and a major US political party committed to making sure that the flat-earthers feel welcome while shielding them and the rest of us from THE EVIDENCE?
mankai on June 4, 2009 at 3:52 PM
Passive rather than active voice.
No entity identified as the cause. I expect more “happened”, “occurred” moral equivalence in Europe this week, too. “Everyone suffered” stuff.
Wethal on June 4, 2009 at 3:53 PM
No Czars for the Middle East. Obama will apoint ayatollah’s for each district.
portlandon on June 4, 2009 at 3:54 PM
Neither, most ilkely, were Egyptian Coptic Christians, who make up 10% of the population. They are barred from attending this university becuse they’re not Muslim.
Wethal on June 4, 2009 at 3:54 PM
unfortunately, alot of fiscal minded conservatives, Glenn Beck and Andrew Napolitono for example do and are open ears to these views.
worse, impressionable college minds who oppose Obama are in many cases into this stuff. Little wonder that new polls shows that the Youth vote does not think Peace is acheived through Strength.
jp on June 4, 2009 at 3:54 PM
I like to call it the ‘I am Jello’ speech. Pour it in a mold and you can make it into anything you like.
Limerick on June 4, 2009 at 3:55 PM
port that is even scarier then czars.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:55 PM
Well… let’s see what he said (using your post)
This resolution “calls on the People’s Republic of China to invite full and independent investigations into the Tiananmen Square crackdown, assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Committee of the Red Cross…” Where do we get the authority for such a demand? I wonder how the US government would respond if China demanded that the United Nations conduct a full and independent investigation into the treatment of detainees at the US-operated Guantanamo facility?
Do you want the UN to investigate us?
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:55 PM
Paul has been proven over and over again how far off he actually is. Get over it.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:56 PM
Fortunately ;)
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 3:56 PM
I have to say, I am no longer surprised by anything this man does.
youngO on June 4, 2009 at 3:56 PM
So what I seem to be hearing today is that other than failing to take the Muslim world to task for its pesky abuse of women, it was a good speech? How nice to have a president who doesn’t let basic human rights get in the way of some good speechifying. His free American daughters must be so proud that their dad isn’t losing any sleep over a few billion enslaved Muslim girls. How inconvenient their tragic lives must be to Obama’s mythical vision of the Muslim world. It’s probably best to pretend they don’t exist.
Rational Thought on June 4, 2009 at 3:57 PM
still looks like poo to me.
upinak on June 4, 2009 at 3:57 PM
I’m glad it was fortunate that those “ilk” were not the audience otherwise they might question all the craven appeasement spewing out of his piehole.
Slightly off topic: Where’s worf hiding? I haven’t seen her around the whole trip.
elduende on June 4, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Palin/Cheney (either one) 2012.
Rebar on June 4, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Yes. That audience was reserved for friends and fans of The Precedent, like the Muslim Brotherhood.
The despicable, lying scum on the Left rides on in its attempt to destroy America. You people are the lowest of low-lifes. And your Precedent, with an 85 IQ, fits you perfectly. Now go run off and send your donation to Hamas, one of the offshoots of the audience for your Precedent’s “great” speech.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 3:58 PM
We are soooo screwed.
geo on June 4, 2009 at 3:58 PM
This years fall back to school outfits will be abercrombie & fitch Bhurkas & Nike Headscarves.
“But she has such pretty eyes.”
portlandon on June 4, 2009 at 3:58 PM
Hopefully, exercising her right to wear a burka.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 3:59 PM
There were moments in his speech where his facial expression was a spitting image of Mussolini speaking from his balcony to the throngs in the plaza.
fogw on June 4, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Every speech the fool gives is just so much more blah blah, blah blah blah. Reminds me of the cartoonish adult speeches in the Charley Brown specials.
katiejane on June 4, 2009 at 4:01 PM
And here is the contradiction…
Obama can’t even manage a word on human rights (for example women’s rights)… but the media swoons at Michelle Obama’s toned arms… You know Barry, you are probably offending the Muslim world by letting your wife show skin.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:01 PM
Why? I thought the fur would cover that.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:02 PM
MichelleCleopatra couldn’t go to Arabia due to the Muslim/Christian marriage rule.portlandon on June 4, 2009 at 4:02 PM
I think I’m in love.
CurtZHP on June 4, 2009 at 4:03 PM
Show too much skin? That’s a slapping. via Gateway Pundit.
portlandon on June 4, 2009 at 4:05 PM
getalife called. Her diaper needs changing again.
Del Dolemonte on June 4, 2009 at 4:07 PM
Liz Cheney is a chip off the ol’block,she speaks
awfully well!
Teleprompter free,at that!
canopfor on June 4, 2009 at 4:07 PM
Apparently the Muslims didn’t give the world tolerance of bangs.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:08 PM
Depends on what the definition of “golden” and “rule” is.
Jim Treacher on June 4, 2009 at 4:10 PM
oh he said alot more than that, and we already have had foreign groups call for bogus UN investigations into our “torture”…..the larger issue here is this moron finding a moral equivalence between Tianamen Square(innoncents masquered) and waterboarding 3 AQ Ops leaders for intel(hint, not innoncent, life saving intel derived). He just mindlessly parots the leftist talking points, just like he has with similar resolutions against Hamas, Russia, etc.
jp on June 4, 2009 at 4:11 PM
AP wins this one, sorry Ed.
The part about women covering their hair and offending “Westerners” was a classic Barry straw-man arguement.
Lame^3
omnipotent on June 4, 2009 at 4:11 PM
I think this woman is one of the most impressive conservative minds out there. Her ability to process huge amounts of information, analyze it, and opine on it is astounding… not to mention the fact that her reasoning is superb.
She’s smart and fearless!!
D2Boston on June 4, 2009 at 4:13 PM
OK, like him or not, you can’t say that him asserting American sovereignty is somehow a leftist talking point. Yeah, he might have some far out positions, but do you agree that he is right about the UN bit?
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:13 PM
Yep yep… AP wins today.
And, no, not just because I agree with him more. He seemed to put a little bit more thought into this one.
That said, I wonder if he was testing the waters before posting…
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:15 PM
Though he managed to rip into one of the foundations of Turkey with that one (which no one seems to have noticed), which is a small part of why I said that people will discover that this speech was actively destructive.
And The Precedent should take notes from Turkey about how islam and state power interact. Ataturk loved islam, but he understood it, unlike most Westerners today. That’s why the secular military was the supreme power in Turkey (until those morons in Europe forced Turkey to change their Constitution, after which the islamists have been on a steady rise).
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 4:20 PM
<strongome day—Some day our politicans and part time messiahs are going to wake up and understand that kissy face diplomacy is B.S of the first magnitude. People who rule over countries have THEIR agenda and NOTHING will deter them.
Kissy Face is for the public and if something gets in the way of their agenda they will run over, or around, walk on and if that fails they will destroy what is in their way. Only flower children smell the flowers while bad folks grab more and more of what ever they want.
Herb on June 4, 2009 at 4:22 PM
The morons in Europe are the same morons that Obama gets along with so well. Then again, Europeans know what fanaticism is… They were really good at that.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:22 PM
I don’t agree that doing something with the UN is necessarily violating US Sovereignty as often alleged, personally I think its a cop-out on his part to get to his other points accross.
jp on June 4, 2009 at 4:23 PM
“it’s spine on the cheap”
The phrase of the week. Dude.
Attila (Pillage Idiot) on June 4, 2009 at 4:23 PM
So, you’d be fine with the UN investigating the American government?
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:24 PM
Wait until they find out how much he despises them.
Yep. Though, I think we must all thank them for neutering themselves in WWII. Otherwise, Europeans would have been the first nuclear powers and the whole world would be very, very different. I shudder at the thought.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 4:26 PM
Unfortunately, we may have neutered the Brits… Eh, but then Thatcher fought back (and we won the Cold War together).
Also, I’m not sure they’d be offended if they found out he despises them. Don’t they despise themselves? Angsty Germans come to mind.
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:29 PM
just listened to video, were Scarbrough goes the simple minded take on the 1953 Revolution.
basic history for Joe: We worked with Churchill to institute the Shah because the Government at the time was going Leftist, the Soviets had troops stationed in the region and were not leaving and it looked like Iran was going to be part of the Iron Curtain.
the US and Churchill, quite reasonablly, acted instead and instituted a pro-western, anti-Soviet regime. Monday Morning QB’ing the Cold War is stupid, Joe! You should know better, and this had nothing to do with the Islamic Revolution nearly 30 yrs later. good grief
jp on June 4, 2009 at 4:29 PM
I need to give Credit where Credit is due: This is an excellent essay and critique, while Ed’s post on the same speech was a near-total Mess.
The whole “Westerner” thing is really, really, problematic, because Hussein Obama does not consider himself a Westerner.
His delusion ( founded in anger and several personality disorders ) is that he is a Citizen of the World as well as its as-yet-unappointed ( or self-appointed ) Dear Leader.
What was the name of that guy who fell in love with himself while gazing at his reflection on the surface of a pond…?
Janos Hunyadi on June 4, 2009 at 4:30 PM
She’s a lot smarter than the one. And tougher.
jdflorida on June 4, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Just about everything we do with the UN is a violation of our sovereignty.
More importnatly, though, anyone who supports even the theoretical basis of an empowered, peerless, competitionless entity (let alone its actual implementation) is a dangerous fool. A very, very dangerous fool. No empowered, peerless, competitionless entity can ever be allowed to exist, since it is guaranteed to grow in grotesque and destructive ways. This is very basic evolutionary theory/capitalist theory and just plain common sense.
The very idea of the UN is without rational basis.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Sure, in the same context of innoncent Freedom lovers being Slaughtered by our Govt. at the hands of the military…I’d be all for it and be hoping for someone to do something.
but alas, I find no moral equivalence between Tianamen and Gitmo, I don’t feel like I live under that type of Tyranny.
jp on June 4, 2009 at 4:31 PM
Thank god for Liz Cheney, an unexpected discovery who gives great hope for future.
Please, run for office asap.
promachus on June 4, 2009 at 4:32 PM
As I said earlier, this speech was full of contradictions – contradictions to past Obama stances.
For example, he totally wiped away any stereotype of Bible gun-clenching Americans…
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:33 PM
Yes. Europe has been on a suicidal path since the fall of colonialism, for the whole of the 20th century, but wanting to kill oneself doesn’t mean that one welcomes all manner of insult, or others deciding how the death will occur. Suicidal people, and nations, like to choose their own demise.
progressoverpeace on June 4, 2009 at 4:34 PM
I did not specify under which conditions you’d be happy with the UN meddling with our sovereignty… and even under the most horrid conditions, well, they’d er still be meddling with sovereignty. I for one believe Americans can pick themselves up and we don’t need a corrupt UN to “fix things” for us. I don’t even think they could if they actually had an honest bone in their organization. If the UN must exist, they should be helping people grow food and get clean water. Nothing more!
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:36 PM
Heh +1
Upstater85 on June 4, 2009 at 4:37 PM
Comment pages: 1 2 Next »