Thank You, Charles Krauthammer <http://www.bizzyblog.com/2009/12/28/thank-you-charles-krauthammer/>
Filed under: Taxes & Government <http://www.bizzyblog.com/category/taxes-government/> --- TBlumer @ 10:17 pm Rephrasing what I've mentioned a couple of times in the past week, when we desperately need an updated version of the December 1981 model of Ronald Reagan <http://www.bizzyblog.com/2009/12/23/ronald-reagans-december-23-1981-address-to-the-nation-on-christmas-and-poland/>, we instead get the 2009 clunker known as Barack Obama. Charles Krauthammer rips into Obama's relative indifference <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohF2NayTNAA> (HT Taxman Blog <http://taxmanblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/krauthammer-rips-obama-meaningless.html>), after Fox's fair and balanced Jim Engel attempted to give President 'Prompter <http://www.bizzyblog.com/2009/07/21/and-you-wonder-why-i-call-him-president-prompter/> cover for having uttered "strong words": *Full Text:* *President Obama:* The decision of Iraq's leaders to govern through fear and tyranny will not succeed in making those aspirations go away. As I said in Oslo, it's telling when governments fear the aspirations of its own people more than the power of any other nation. *Jim Engel:* Now, strong words, Charles, but what is the administration doing? What can it do with a regime that is so obstreperous <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/obstreperous>? *Charles Krauthammer:* Flaccid <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/flaccid> words. Meaningless words. He talks about aspirations, he talks about rights, he talks about "justice" in the statement he made. This isn't about "justice," this isn't about a low minimum wage, this isn't about the absence of a public option in health care. This is about freedom. This is a revolution in the streets. Revolutions happen quickly. There is a moment here in which if the thugs in the streets who are shooting on the crowds stop shooting, it's over, and the regime will fall. The courage of the demonstrators and their boldness isn't only a demonstration of their courage, it's an indication of a shift in the balance of power. The regime is weakening. This is a hinge of history. Everything in the region will change if the regime is changed. Obama ought to be strong out there in saying "It's an illegitimate government, we stand shoulder to shoulder with the people in the street." He talks about diplomacy. He should be urging our Western allies who have relations to cut them off, isolate the regime. To ostracize it he ought to be going into UN, every forum, and denouncing it. This is a moment in history and he's missing it. Ronald Reagan didn't miss it. You'll note in his December 23, 1981 speech <http://www.bizzyblog.com/%3Ca%20href=> that he announced specific symbolic and substantive actions. They weren't overwhelming by any stretch, but they demonstrated a willingness to do something beyond complaining. And of course, Thatcher, Pope John Paul, Lane Kirkland, and many others also started doing a lot of heavy lifting behind the scenes. By contrast, Barack Obama is from all appearances avoiding doing anything, and even seems to require convincing to get in front of a microphone. Not only is Obama missing the moment, he is doing way too much to give the regime of Khamenei, who really runs things <http://www.bizzyblog.com/2009/06/21/now-they-tell-us-how-many-know-that-khamenei-has-virtually-limitless-authority/>, and his puppet Ahmadinejad legitimacy they do not deserve. Elections matter, don't they? _____________________________________________________ *Related:* Michelle Malkin <http://michellemalkin.com/2009/12/28/open-thread-obamas-statement-on-the-christmas-day-jihadi-attack/> on Obama's response to Flight 253 --- "Perfunctory, hasty, and bloodless." Obama's reax to the attempted takedown is related to the situation in Iran because Iran funds and facilitates Al Qaeda <http://xrdarabia.org/2009/03/29/is-iran-funding-al-qaeda/> in the Arabian Peninsula, which would include Yemen <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yemen>. Comments [moderated] (0) <http://www.bizzyblog.com/?comments_popup=15147> -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
