Clinton Takes Charge; Obama Takes a Powder — Update: Clinton Stance on ‘Bush Tax Cuts’ Changed From 2004
**Written by Doug Powers
President Obama met with Bill Clinton on Friday. Clinton agreed to publicly back Obama on the tax/unemployment extension agreement with Republicans. Obama then brought Slick out before a hastily assembled press corps, and then left Clinton alone with them to work his Bubba magic:
In terms of Washington political drama, Friday was an instant classic.
President Obama ushered former President Bill Clinton to the White House briefing room late Friday for an impromptu press session, then abruptly left the wonky and winsome Arkansan at the podium by himself to defend the Obama administration’s tax deal.
“I’ve been keeping the first lady waiting for about half an hour, so I’m going to take off,” Obama said.
Clinton chuckled, joking, “I don’t want to make her mad. Please go,” and then quickly turned back to the microphone and began taking questions from the White House press corps, which had been given no advance notice of the two presidents’ trip to the briefing room.
The press corps will now report back to Obama’s very disenchanted left-wing base and the rest of those who are contributing to Obama’s perpetually foundering poll numbers of how it reminded everybody in the room of a happier, more competent time — and somebody on Team Obama thought this was good idea?
A few minutes in, President Obama excused himself because he had to “get to a Christmas party.” Clinton barely batted an eye while continuing to take questions for another half-hour under the “White House” backdrop, leaving onlookers with a palpable “let the adults take over now, Barry” feeling:
After the 2008 media deification of Barack Obama, that was like watching somebody who was billed as Zeus getting into a fight and responding by hiding behind his dad.
Why would Obama leave Clinton alone with the press corps under these conditions? A bigger mistake hasn’t been made since Eddie Fisher agreed to let Elizabeth Taylor share a makeup trailer with Richard Burton on the set of Cleopatra.
I always thought a “Hillary 2012″ challenge was a real possibility — I just didn’t think Obama would help usher it in so agreeably.
Update: Bill Clinton was against the Bush tax cuts before he was for them.
From Clinton’s speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention:
At home, the president and the Republican Congress have made equally fateful choices, which they also deeply believe in.
For the first time when America was in a war footing in our whole history, they gave two huge tax cuts, nearly half of which went to the top 1 percent of us.
Now, I’m in that group for the first time in my life.
And you might remember that when I was in office, on occasion, the Republicans were kind of mean to me.
But as soon as I got out and made money, I became part of the most important group in the world to them. It was amazing. I never thought I’d be so well cared for by the president and the Republicans in Congress. I almost sent them a thank you note for my tax cuts until I realized that the rest of you were paying the bill for it. And then I thought better of it.
Until yesterday.
Update II: This 2008 piece from Iowahawk still holds up:
WASHINGTON DC – Ending weeks of speculation and rumors, President-Elect Barack Obama today named Bill Clinton to join his incoming administration as President of the United States, where he will head the federal government’s executive branch.
The rest here.
**Written by Doug Powers
Twitter @ThePowersThatBe
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Categories: Barack Obama,Bill Clinton
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With every action he takes, Obama diminishes his office. I’ve never seen anything like it. Is it 2012 yet?
Presidentin’ is hard. When does Carter take over?
This is the weakest move I have ever seen. I have to wonder if he is having some sort of breakdown, and I am not kidding about that. It appears that the pressure has gotten more than he can stand.
What’s sad is – this ain’t that much pressure. Many of his predecessors had to actively face down Stalin, Brehznev, and daily face the prospect of imminent nuclear war. He is facing an angry electorate and some unhinged lefties and is largely responsible for his own future success or failure.
It is obvious that Obama does not like being President. He let Clinton take over that role so he could go party. Nothing has changed in the two years he has been in office. He is either partying or traveling. He is in way over his head and he knows it. His solution? Escapism of some form or another. We have an absentee President and our country has been considerably weakened. We MUST get someone adult and qualified in office in 2012.
It’s because he spent most of his life as a community organizer. As a C.O., if you want to take a break at anytime, no one is likely to care for there is no pressure in that capacity. He has carried his experience as a C.O. into the White House.
Exit Question: If North Korea had of launched a nuclear attack against South Korea, would the Pentagon of notified Barack or Bill considering Bill was temporarily taking over Barack’s responsibilities?
Karl Rove, you magnificent bastard.
Even for Obama this is weird.
Maybe Clinton mans the Red Phone from 11pm to 7am.
“This is Col. Bat Guano calling collect for the President of the United States.”
“This is Obama.”
“Aren’t you listening – I said I want to talk to the President, put Clinton on.”
Every day, in every way, obama freaks me out more and more.
What a coward! To just leave like that?
What more did anyone expect from a community organizer? Pathetic.
I am absolutely STUNNED! Never in my wildest drunken dreams would I have thought that such a amateurish flop like this would be made by one of the top egoist presidents ever to hold the office. He might as well have said: “Here Willie, you are much better at this than I am. Give ‘em all your slick moves while I go and parrrtay with my friends”. What a dumb-ass move. I am surprised that Gibbs has not jumped off a parking garage roof yet. This guy has lost it. We have a president who has totally lost it half-way through his term. What a disappointment for America.
Pasadena Phil posited on another thread that Owebowmao might step down, I have my doubts, but others think it might happen.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2640861/posts
”…
Are all socialists such lightweights? This guy is pathetic. He is in so far over his head it isn’t funny.
Exit Question 2:
Could this be that Obama’s handlers are now disenchanted with him and this was done to give Hillary an opening to be his opponent for the democrat nomination in 2012?
Think about it. Even though it was the Republican congressional tax cuts that spurred the economy from 1996-2000, Clinton (Bill or Hillary) can claim that as their own.
Yes.
He kept the First Lady waiting?
M.O.: (Scowling, with arms crossed, tapping her foot) Where have you been?! You’re a half-hour late!
B.O: (Head down, eyes averted) Sorry hon, I just uhh… had a little extra work keeping me longer than I expected.
M.O: It’s always that damn job of yours! Who do you think you are?! President of the United States?!
B.O.: Well, uhh, that’s what’s painted on the sides of our vacation plane.
Obama just turned over the podium in the White House press room to the last President from his political party, and then left to go to a party.
Now imagine if George W. Bush had done the same thing…
…turned the podium in the White House press room over to the last President from his political party, and then left to go to a party.
The press would have ripped W a new one for being a little kid who turned it over to Daddy because he couldn’t handle the presssure and wanted to run away to play!
Barry,
WHO’S YOUR DADDY?!?!
Right now, it looks like it’s Bill Clinton!
Remember when the liberal press was always deriding President Reagan as a figurehead? They claimed he was too stupid to run a country and he was just the front man. Until the letters he wrote in response to correspondence he received were made public. They show a deep, intelligent, and thoughtful man. A top notch president.
Well, I’m thinking now the liberal press has their figurehead. Barack Obama, or Barry Soetoro, or whatever his name is, can be shown to be nothing more than the front man. Unfortunately for the knuckle-draggers, he has never written anything, and nothing of his has or ever will be made public.
The socialist oligarchy comes to America!
This is what happens when you elect someone with NO EXPERIENCE. Clinton was forced to work with a Republican controlled Congress after he pissed off the American People his first term.
The big Zero should have paid attention.
Announcer: “It isn’t easy being POTUS, but he brings hope and change to Washington.”
“Lesser men before him have tried and failed.”
“They gave him the Peace Prize, simply because they knew he would make the difference.”
POTUS: “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do, I drink YOURS.”
“Stay thirsty, my friend.“
Historic!
Unprecedented!
I mean, really, have you ever seen that done before?
Evidently, Obama needs a little help from time to time. Here
Bullpucky. He needed to have a smoke.
More of your tax dollars hard at work?
Comedy Gold! Best I heard was the one from HA, a tweet from Michael Goldfarb: “Finally, America has a black president again.”
Still lmao.
Our play president just doesn’t want to be president just Ride AF 1 and shuttle moochelle around, that’s alll he wants.
I could only watch the video of Barry handing it over to Bill one time. It scared me.
On December 11th, 2010 at 12:42 am, jrgdds said:
Well played! Very true!
Redpill-
Nothing suprises me anymore from the KBPOTUS.
What was totally disgusting is during the MOH ceremony is that he is the first president in history not to salute a living MOH awardee.
GSP
So, who is running the USA right now? Obviously it is not Obowmao.
Everyone’s blaming some unnamed handler for this image of Obama walking out and leaving Clinton large and in charge. I think it was strictly Barry. No, he doesn’t have any stomach for the job, just the adulation and power. He lacks the ability to examine himself from any perspective except his own self-proclaimed godhood (“Don’t doubt me.”) I just hope we have enough left of a country in 2012 to take the government back from this pretender.
who ever is on the other side of the blackberry..although it now looks like we have billy bob back…how pathetic…and how weak it makes this country look…
Oh, he likes being the prez. He just don’t cotton to doing the work it takes to be a good one.
The question is can we lose any more respect for this man? I mean, running away from his own party to appease MO. Now what do you think our enemies think he will do if they present an even greater threat?
God help us!
Was it Time or Newspeak that said the Presidency was just too much for one man?
So here we actually saw a Sock Puppet making excuses to LEAVE HIS JOB!! To go PARTY!! Leaving an ex-president to take over as ACTING PRESIDENT? Like a lot of other people before me, I have never heard let alone witnessed such a thing, ever, in any country let alone the United States.
I’m growing weary of this limpwristed Napoleon.
One pathetic weakling asking another pathetic weakling for help.
*Exasperated Sigh*
Luke 6:39 And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?
This is the man[genetically speaking] who thinks he can negotiate with the likes of Ahmedinejad on the error of their ways. Give me a break!! The last shred of credibility this man [again, genetically] has is lost forever. Anyone else got the impression that Obama just handed a tough job over to to someone he knows is more competent and breathed a sigh of relief as he was doing it?
Come on now, people, what does it matter who man’s the podium, all the clowns get out of the same little car in the center ring, don’t they? the only real question is; Where’s Hillary when Obambi needs a pantsuit to hide behind?
It is clear that Obama is one big loose cannon. No decent advisor would have allowed him to do this (and he has many). This was more than a, “What were you thinking moment”; this is a guy who is disconnected from reality. A President simply does not do this. All he had to say was, “Thank you folks, we have to go”.
If you try to view this from his point of view, it makes no sense. What benefit [to him] is leaving Clinton out there alone at his podium? He either doesn’t care, doesn’t understand (back to advisors) or he simply can’t handle it anymore.
As I watched the Slickmeister, my mind strolled back a few years to the quote from Alexander Haig, RIP: “As of now, I am in control here, in the White House…”
Does this make Willie, President #42 and #44.5???
I guess bho saying he didn’t want to keep mo waiting beats the daylights out of the last excuse that he had to take the dog out to do its business! This man makes me sick!
Having bill bring up the start treaty really ticked me off. This thing needs to be voted down, IMO.
L
One other thing. If Clinton cared more for his party than himself, he would have left as soon as Obama did.
All you people need to cut Zero some slack – it’s hard work being Prez, up every day early and at work at the crack of 9AM! It’s a good thing for us that he’s good at it, as he himself has so humbly told us. Maybe this will turn out to be a sort of co-Presidency, he can “spread the power around” – he could even share it further with Jimmy! Talk about a troika of losers…
What’s the big deal? Everyone knows Clinton is The expert on triangulation, and everyone knows Clinton is better at handling press conferences, and everyone knows Clinton is a microphone hogging policy wonk who loves to go on and on and on and on ….
Barry was just delegating, as he always does.
Don’t get me wrong. I like bashing our first Affirmative Action POTUS when he screws up, which is most of the time, but I don’t see the beef here.
Think: Who in their right mind would rather listen to Obama than Clinton? It’s entertainment, people. Everything on TV is entertainment. It’s the Circuses side of the equation.
BTW, the economy in 2004 was just a bit different than the one we are in now, so Clinton being against the tax cuts in 2004 doesn’t mean he has to be against them now.
How much more evidence do people need to see how far over his head the Messiah is?
“daddy, daddy come help me — No one wants to listen to me!”
The textbook example of the “Empty Suit”
OMG, David Burge is Nostradamus !!!
This is funny and sadly true.
Comment by Iowahawk:
The Saudi’s took itseriously, they were elated that O’Muslim was out of the closet, so to speak…
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/133221-saudi-media-take-joke-about-obama-coming-out-as-muslim-seriously
Barry really doesn’t want to run in 2012. But he doesn’t want to leave having completely destroyed the Democratic Party which is what would be the case were the economy to continue to deteriorate and the GOP to surprise everyone and be competent.
The only hope for the Dems in 2012 seems to be Hillary although I think Evan Bayh could evolve into a viable candidate with crossover appeal.
I have great confidence that the GOP will make a total mess of it.
I never thought i’d say it, but I miss Bubba. At least he knew when he was whipped and triangulated. BHO’s ego prevents that. Although, I think a Pres. Hillary (*shudder*) is ALSO incapable of triangulation.
I am also wondering if this is a signal of things to come on other issues. When forced to take questions, Barry can’t go more than 2-3 questions before he starts lashing out at his “enemies” in lieu of answering the question. He simply cannot operate without his pre-scripted teleprompter.
With his administration now in tatters and having been outed as a incompetent fraud who is over his head, he has no choice but to bring in more capable people to actually handle the problems.
And I don’t buy into those arguments that this is just the act of a brilliant tactician who has the courage to devise new solutions to intractable problems. This is a man who believes the universe is all about him. He may not be brilliant but his is smart enough to appreciate the significance of appearing to be turning over the reins of power to his biggest political nemesis. He has surrendered his legacy of glory hoping to salvage a sliver of respectability.
BTW, the GOP leadership has already lost any traction on the “compromise” narrative. Unfortunately, they don’t have a Bill Clinton to resurrect. The GOP establishment is at war with the same people Obama is at war with. Is “W” about to make a comeback? Har-har-har!!!
W’s approval numbers are better than Barry’s these days…..
The potential establishment candidates (Romney, Huckabee, Pawlenty, Thune, Jeb Bush, Newt Gingrich) have failed to catch on. In more ways than one.
2012 is going to be the same as 2008. The GOP will run a RINO stampede with a couple of stalking horses guiding the way for the establishment favorite through the primaries and after we spend all of our time fighting off one RINO after another, we end up yet again with a RINO for GOP nominee.
A further problem is that the Tea Party people who got elected have already been knee-capped in Congress. Palin stated twice recently that she will not run if the GOP establishment (the Bush/Rove/McCain crowd) feels that she will be a counter-productive distraction and Michelle Bachmann caved without a whimper with her challenge for the chairmanship of the very important Republican Conference Committee. We Tea Party people once again find ourselves with very suspect representation in Congress. Lots of fight talk but no fight.
We need to get serious right now about finding a serious
3rd2nd party candidate for 2012. Obama is NOT going to run and I doubt Hillary will survive Wikileaks and BJ assuming the presidency. The RINO stampede is viable unless we throw another wrench in the machine, like we are doing again with this Obama/GOP Trojan Horse compromise.The field is wide open in 2012… for everyone… never better for a serious
3rd2nd party candidate. We are now free to get that going ASAP now that the GOP just destroyed any hope that things would be different this time. They are worse than ever. Nice pledge though.The only person with the star power to pull that off is Sarah Palin, I don’t think she’d run third party. I don’t think she’s running at all. JMHO
DeMint says he’s not interested, but would be my first choice. Pence might be running, might be a good candidate.
Whoever runs has to be held to a no amnesty pledge. There has to be a line in the sand or we lose the country.
So long as Palin holds on to her statements that she will not run if the GOP establishment thinks she will be a disruptive distraction, she is not a viable candidate for conservatives. She needs to stop equivocating with double messaging. Is you is or is you isn’t Sarah? We don’t need anymore “partly pregnant, sometimes honest” pols posing as conservatives.
From Protein Wisdom: (my emphasis)
Kind of says it all don’t it? Hello! GOP! Anybody home? We get it! You still suck!
They deserve to go the way of the Whigs. To save the Republic will take a new party. The RNC, et al., are too entrenched to root out, they are not going to let conservatives have the wheel, ever.
I was prepared to be disappointed once again, Can’t/or is my Congressman.
When I see Obama onscreen, the crawler across the bottom ought to read (as it does in my mind’s eye), “This man lies.” When I see Bill Clinton onscreen, the crawler should read, “This man lies to Grand Juries.” Send up Timmy Geithner. Surely we can believe him.
Paris: Do you love me, brother? Will you protect me from any enemy?
Hector: Last time you spoke to me like this, you were 10 years old and you’d just stolen Father’s horse. What have you done now?
Paris cowardly bows out of a duel with Menelaus, leaving everyone aghast, especially Menelaus]
Menelaus: [shouts to Helen] Is this what you left me for?
Billy Bubba, where’ve you been? Would you like some syrup with that waffle?
Goes to show that Mr. Obama is a figurehead president not up to the task. He is not qualified to be, nor does he really like, being President. He is a pontificator who likes power but not responsibility. A child in a man’s body.
I’m guessing the “man behind the curtain” has finally had it with his puppet’s inability to articulate anything other than “po’ pitiful me”, and is making him bend over and take it like the girly-boy he is.
So I expect to see O-Bama-Lama-Ding-Dong walking with a bow-legged limp for a couple of weeks…
***
Now all we need is Bubba paging Monicia in 10…9…8…to put the full Clinton “magic” back in the Oval Office.
***
Lock up your stogies–the First Black President is back on stage. And the American Pravda Media still loves him.
***
John Bibb
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