Mostly in private, there are moments when our president is such a complete jerk, I half-jokingly call him President Asshole. I think the first time I did was when he compared his bowling skills to that of someone in the special Olympics. Seriously, for the most powerful man in the world to compare to make fun of some of the weakest? That is a straight up asshole move. Presuming to dress down the Supreme Court in the middle of the State of the Union? Another straight up asshole move. Giving the finger to people when he thinks he is being sly? Big time asshole.
And now after treating Israel like a red-headed stepchild for months, he then has the nerve to suggest that the reason for the deterioration in their relationship is bigotry:
[W]hen confronted with the anxiety that some Israelis feel toward him, Obama said that "some of it may just be the fact that my middle name is Hussein, and that creates suspicion."
(Source.) Yeah, I know we have to show respect for the office, but seriously, what an asshole. And I am really starting to think this guy is a bit of a bigot, too. I find that incredible if only because it is almost certainly a hypocritical bigotry, but I am starting to suspect it is true. Weirder things have happened, especially in politics.
Of course he can’t possibly be an anti-Semitic, because some of his best friends are Jews. Yes, really.
"Ironically, I've got a Chief of Staff named Rahm Israel Emmanuel. My top political advisor is somebody who is a descendent of Holocaust survivors. My closeness to the Jewish American community was probably what propelled me to the U.S. Senate," Obama said.
And I find the part here where he says “particularly in the Middle East” to be more than a little troubling:
"I think that sometimes, particularly in the Middle East, there's the feeling of the friend of my enemy must be my enemy, and the truth of the matter is that my outreach to the Muslim community is designed precisely to reduce the antagonism and the dangers posed by a hostile Muslim world to Israel and to the West," Obama went on to say.
You know, Mr. President, for a guy who blocked a ban on infanticide—that is he blocked a law that said that if during an abortion you accidentally have a live birth, you can’t kill the baby—and gave the defense that he didn’t want to give Republicans a political victory, you are one to talk. Particularly in the Middle East? How about particularly in the West Wing.
Oh, and besides all of this, there is this idiotic passage:
Obama was asked whether he was concerned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would try to attack Iran without clearing the move with the U.S., to which the president replied "I think the relationship between Israel and the U.S. is sufficiently strong that neither of us try to surprise each other, but we try to coordinate on issues of mutual concern."
Okay, now he has veered away from being an asshole back to being clueless. Look, Obambi, the correct answer is “Israel is going to do what it feels it has to do.” Maybe say it a little nicer, but here’s the thing. Israel is going to do exactly that. I mean that is true of any nation, but when the President of Iran, Amadanutjob,* says that Israel will be wiped off the map, and then he goes reaching for a nuclear eraser, sorry but I don’t expect those Israelis to go quietly into the gas chambers. And if you say Israel will not act without coordinating and then Israel acts without coordinating, you will have a problem. You will either have to admit that Israel could give two shits what you think on preventing a second holocaust, or you will have to own that strike. Now maybe at that point in time, you will want to own that strike, but wouldn’t you rather make that decision when it happens?
The only way this makes any sense is if he is actively trying to prevent Israel for striking. But again, Israel in general and Netanyahu in particular consider the risk of holocaust a non-negotiable issue. And can you blame them?
* Yes, that misspelling is intentional.
By the way, we are like on day 71 of the gulf spill, right?
Update: Ace of Spades nails it:
It's kind of amazing that every single criticism of, or lack of proper enthusiasm for, Barack Obama is rooted in some sort of bitter, clingy ignorance and malice. Apparently not a single critique of him is well-founded, or founded upon anything at all, really, except hatred and mental retardation.
Of course, you see Obama is so self-evidently awesome that the only reason oppose him is because you are a bitter clingy kind of person.
