Green Room

Obama Diminishing the Presidency on the Taxpayer Dime?

posted at 8:12 pm on April 30, 2012 by

Allahpundit has a fuller post on the President’s snide stab at Mitt Romney in today’s press conference with the Japanese Prime Minister, but I wanted to throw in my two cents related to two different angles on the event: how I think the President is a) diminishing the stature of his office with a childish attack next to a foreign dignitary, and b) yet again campaigning on public dollars.

Regarding the second point, Americans must hold this President accountable for his “legal only in Washington” travels. Recently, the national liberal media finally picked up on how Obama is likely breaking the law, prompted by the Republican National Committee’s complaint on the matter to the Government Accountability Office and ABC’s Jake Tapper hammering of White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. Conservatives should keep the issue in the public discourse as we head into the general election season.

When it comes to how the President is diminishing his office, we should be a bit more careful – after all, most of us in the pundit world (including amateur pundits such as myself) are not qualified historical experts on the Executive Branch. It could very well be that every President since Washington has campaigned in the petty manner Obama has mastered. However, I doubt most Presidents made such silly and petty remarks next to the Japanese Prime Minister. To make things worse, this attack has been proven wrong for almost five years, and even PolitiFact has to stretch to call the President’s claim a half truth.

Now, the commenters at Race42012 are beginning to tell me I’m overreacting and making an issue out of something that really isn’t worth noting. However, I think it’s a small part of the much larger puzzle of just why and how President Obama has failed so badly at his job. I welcome your thoughts in the comments.

[An original version of this post was published at Race42012.com]

Dustin Siggins is an associate producer with The Laura Ingraham Show and co-author with William Beach of The Heritage Foundation on a forthcoming book about the national debt. The opinions expressed are his own.

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Comments

Shrinking the office to fit the man.

Should be about the size of a doghouse by November.

Joe Mama on April 30, 2012 at 9:05 PM

Excellent! Nail meet hammer!

lovingmyUSA on April 30, 2012 at 9:08 PM

So much promised,so much expected, so little delivered.
At least Rush got it right in the beginning.

Kissmygrits on May 1, 2012 at 10:14 AM

Shrinking the office to fit the man.

Should be about the size of a doghouse by November.

Joe Mama on April 30, 2012 at 9:05 PM

Well, they do say that “you are what you eat.”

mintycrys on May 1, 2012 at 10:20 AM

However, I think it’s a small part of the much larger puzzle of just why and how President Obama has failed so badly at his job.

What puzzle?
From the perspective of wanting America to be economically and socially strong, healthy, and respected in the world the Obama administration is a miserable failure.
From the perspective of communists who want to fundamentally transform America into a socialist utopia the Obama administration is succeeding beyond Alinsky’s wildest dreams.
There’s nothing puzzling about it.

single stack on May 1, 2012 at 10:23 AM

When it comes to how the President is diminishing his office, we should be a bit more careful – after all, most of us in the pundit world (including amateur pundits such as myself) are not qualified historical experts on the Executive Branch.

Whaddya mean? This government belongs to “We The People” and not even historians are more qualified than us to see how a President can be diminishing the office because it’s nothing more than basic common sense. The individual who holds the office is supposed to represent all of us, and especially the principles and the exceptionalism upon which this country was founded, and we have the final say on whether that person is representing us properly. We are responsible for shepherding this republic but we’ve gone to sleep, gotten complacent and many were duped into electing the amateur who currently holds the office of President. The problem is that nowadays we leave too many issues in the hands of the so-called experts and then this absolute disaster is what we end up with. Time to take back our country and our lives.

stukinIL4now on May 1, 2012 at 11:22 AM

Absolutely, I believe this President is diminishing the office. I would never have believed that a US President would jam down our throat Obamacare and then exempt himself and Democratic leaders. That’s not a leader for all!

Also, this family date night, family vacations at taxpayers expense crap! While the public suffers under high gas rates they spend with no regard or morals. America will not tolerate this King and Queen type of rule. Be gone and take your corrupt court with you. I’ve seen way to much.

karlinsync on May 1, 2012 at 1:45 PM