— PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA, JANUARY 9 , 2009
It is quickly becoming apparent that the person that America elected as the President for the next 4 years is unable to manage the duties of being the President and is showing signs of incompetence.
For starters, let's just lay the groundwork. The Democratic Party controls, realistically, the entire federal government decision making process– having the majority in both the House of Representatives and Senate, and the President. So getting things passed, such as nominations for unheard of positions – Chief Performance Officer anyone? – should be a piece of cake. No problem. No problem?
Problem.
The people who Obama is nominating – and by the way, didn't these people need to answer a ridiculously comprehensive and intense questionnaire to even be considered – are almost methodically having the same issue: they "forgot" to pay their taxes.
Let's start at, ironically, the Treasury Secretary and Tim Geithner. It is fact that he failed to pay in timely fashion some $34,023 in self-employment taxes between 2001 and 2004. And what is the Treasury Secretary's role exactly? For starters, the Secretary of the Treasury is fifth in the United States presidential line of succession. But here is an excerpt of what Geithner's responsibilities are:
The Secretary is responsible for formulating and recommending domestic and international financial, economic, and tax policy, participating in the formulation of broad fiscal policies that have general significance for the economy, and managing the public debt.
Did you catch it, the "formulating and recommending….tax policy" part. So your Democratic President and Senate has confirmed a tax evader to be formulating and making recommendations on our tax policy. Now that is "change". Who needs honest, upright, people who pay their taxes deciding our tax policy.
Next though we will go to the failed nomination of Tom Daschle for the position of Secretary of Health and Human Services. Now Daschle is important because he would have been the point man for the non-socialist socialized insurance ponzi scheme. From Daschle's own mouth:
"Incremental change in our system is no longer a viable option. Instead we need comprehensive reform. In growing numbers the American people are demanding that we do something. Our goal should be to build what current and retired members of Congress have today, and make that available for all Americans."
But how do you fund that type of "comprehensive reform" that would make health care "available for all Americans"? You collect…taxes. Ironic isn't it? Yeah, apparently in order to help the under-privileged you need to pay that more than $140,000 in back taxes and interest. Oh and while you are thinking of the poor, underprivileged people that you will be helping, that $140,000 includes the use of a car and driver for three years, which isn't extravagance in the least.
Finally, on this tax issue, is Nancy Killefer – the nominee for Chief Performance Officer. First off, who has ever heard of this position? I didn't so I decided to look up what this person does. Well, to start off, it was created just this year on January 7 – another increase in the size of the government, and salaries that tax payers will need to burden. The Chief Performance Officer's role in government is a position in the Office of Management and Budget that concentrates on the federal budget and government reform. Wow, another financial position that Obama was trying to fill by someone who had some issues with taxes.
Although her issues, in relative terms, are not as bad as Daschle's or Geithner's, they are true and is based on the failure to pay $298 in unemployment compensation for household help, $48.69 in interest, and $600.00 in penalties.
Wasn't that questionnaire supposed to catch this?
Ok, so that is just a bump in the road for the most popular President in the history of mankind, with "political capital" to do whatever he wants. I mean, he's so powerful, when he said Governor Blagojevich should resign, he didn't. With that type of domestic power, just imagine the terror that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will feel when Obama say's he should be nice and not support terrorist that attack Israeli civilians – and not to mention he shouldn't think about building an atomic bomb.
But that aside…
Obama has decided that the stimulus money that will be passed – unfortunately – shortly will be spent on a planned "Buy American" policy. That is until the EU threatened to retaliate if the US Congress went ahead with sweeping measures in its $800 billion stimulus plan to restrict spending to American goods and services. Then our fearless President shrank at the first signs of opposition and changed course saying:
"I agree that we can't send a protectionist message…I want to see what kind of language we can work on this issue. I think it would be a mistake, though, at a time when worldwide trade is declining, for us to start sending a message that somehow we're just looking after ourselves and not concerned with world trade."
Don't worry Europe. We don't care to be a leader any longer. You tell us how we should spend our own money. I mean, we owe it to you. Putting up with Bush those past 8 years and all.
But maybe Obama will keep his campaign promise and theme of "Change". Change from a world leader in economics and military power. Change from being able to have the opportunity to becoming financially independent. Change from what has made America different and powerful. And great.
That's change you can believe in. Yes, we can.
