Here
we go again.
Once again America has bought into charm and lyrical words and very
likely is about to elect as its next president another self-absorbed,
psychologically impaired, megalomaniacal political operative.
The fact that he is a left of left lefty is important only in the
respect that Barack Obama is to progressive politics as George W. Bush
is to right wing politics. Comparing the two ideologically is irrelevant
except that as George W. Bush proved the most polarizing
figure of our times, Barack Obama will very likely prove to be equally
alienating.
That being said, while the clues of the reality of George W. Bush’s
inanity remained moderately hidden during his run for the presidency,
Barack Obama’s true nature is out there for all Americans to see. But
America appears to have closed their ears to truth.
Even in the face of irrefutable fact, Americans and people worldwide
have become members of the Obama cult, political groupies with about as
much sense as stoned followers of rock icons like Jim Morrison – dead,
Jimmy Hendrix – dead, Janet Joplin – dead. Oh, but didn’t they make
great music even if they were completely inept in every other aspects of
their lives!
While Barack Obama makes great music, he suffers from a character flaw,
and while one hopes that he won’t wind up dead from his lack of moral
turpitude, he may very well bring down America because of it.
Yesterday, Barack Obama gave us another example of exactly who the man
is. While political reform has been the lyric of his candidacy, and the
riff he’s best known for has been his support of public financing, it is
no small disappointment that now that Obama has become the Democratic
Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, Barack Obama opted out of the
very system whose praises he sang. And he is, by the way, the first
candidate to do so since that other character flawed individual, Richard
Nixon.
Never mind that campaign finance reform is a tune Obama has been singing
much of his political career. Or that in January 2007 he told Larry King that the
public financing system works. The following month he went as far as to
challenge Republicans to limit their spending and promised he would do
the same if he were the nominee. In February 2008 he said he would
aggressively lobby for spending limits. And, of course, there's that
Midwest Democracy Network questionnaire he answered reminding everyone
of his longtime advocacy for the public financing system. Apparently,
Senator Obama’s taste in music has taken a sudden change, or perhaps not.
What we learned yesterday in Senator Obama’s decision of political
expedience is that he will sing any song that will get him the job he
wants regardless what is right for America. And campaign finance reform
is essential to the future of this country.
Oh yes, Barack Obama is the great pretender.
But here’s the thing. Some people might applaud Obama for doing the
politically expedient, see him as strong for an astute political
maneuver. And, of course we want our presidents to be strong;
this is a mean world and to win against the world’s most evil dictators
requires a mercilessness most ordinary folks are incapable of. Therefore
we expect ruthlessness in our leaders.
On the other hand, what brought down the aforementioned Richard Nixon
was that his applied ruthlessness proved to about his personal gain. He
put man before country.
How far Barack Obama is willing to go and how far is he willing to
compromise his alleged ideals for his personal gain? I harken back to
Obama’s famous refrain “I could no more disown Reverend Wright than my
own grandmother.” Yet he did disavow his twenty year friend and
spiritual mentor when it was politically necessary for him to do in
order to save his candidacy.
David Plouffe, Obama’s Campaign Manager said this in the campaign’s
solicitation to supporters for money following Obama's announcement: “Opting
out of public matching funds was an extremely difficult decision, and
frankly we are at a disadvantage when it comes to raising money.”
But a paltry explanation for making an unprincipled political decision
and forgoing a pledge made to the American people is not the tune
America needs to hear from its politicians these days, particularly one
who has been trying to sell himself as someone who is singing a new
political song.