I have not always been in love with Barack Obama.
I’ve often found his presidency frustrating, agitating, irksome. On occasion, I’ve found it incompetent. Aloof. Arrogant.
When I’ve ripped him, my liberal friends have tended to say, “Hey, don’t you think he’s great?” To which I’ve occasionally replied, “Nope. Not today.”
Today, I consider Barack Obama to be great.
I hate that the government is about to shut down. I hate that people are about to lose their paychecks. I hate everything about it. It’s sad, shameful, unfortunate, pathetic, hurtful. But it is not—in any way, shape or form—the fault of the president.
I was thinking about the whole mess this morning, and here is what I came up with …
Me: I want Yankee Stadium torn down because I hate it.
Yankees: Uh, we’re not tearing down Yankee Stadium.
Me: Well, if you don’t tear down Yankee Stadium, I’m going to burn the houses of my 10 closest neighbors.
Yankees: I’m sorry, but we’re not tearing down Yankee Stadium.
Me: You see, neighbors! The Yankees want your houses burned down! They won’t even negotiate!
In this case, “Me” is the Republicans. The Affordable Care Act is law. It was passed into law, then allowed to remain as law by the Supreme Court. It exists, has existed for several years, and will continue to exist. It’s fully funded, even with the government shutdown.
In other words, the Republican Party is demanding the demolition of Yankee Stadium as a negotiating ploy—then blaming the Yankees when the stadium remains standing. They’re not debating (as politicians rightly do) the merit of potential legislation. No, they’re fighting to overturn an established law that is about to be fully implemented. There is absolutely, positively no precedence for this, and certainly no precedence for the GOP’s ludicrous bullshit effort to pin the shutdown on the president. It’s staggering.
I know people are split on ACA. Some love the idea. Some loathe it. Fine. No worries. What I don’t get are those people who believe in what the GOP is doing; who believe a law that’s about the provide millions of uninsured with health coverage should be squashed, pre-exchange. Hell, why not see what happens? Maybe, just maybe, it’s a tremendous success. Maybe we all love it. Or, perhaps, it fails. It sucks. It’s awful.
I guess either result is possible. But we’re here, in the now. Why not at least see the results?
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One more thing. Ted Cruz sucks. I mean, he really sucks. I’m sick of hearing how intelligent and dashing this dolt is. Did anyone see him on Meet the Press the other day? Brutally bad. He actually sorta reminds me of Al Sharpton, in the way he hides his all-about-me-ness behind calls for social action. Cruz keeps talking, talking, talking how the American people are behind him—and it’s not true. It’s just not. Sheesh. Ego—it’s a bitch.
