A Presidential Wake Up Call (Newsweek editorial hits the Pres)

Newsweek ^ | March 20 2009 | Eleanor Clift

[lt.america]

Who would have thought 55 days into this administration we would be asking the question, what did he know and when did he know it? Word that a provision in the stimulus bill gave the green light for AIG to hand out bonuses using taxpayer money sent the media bloodhounds hot on the trail of whoever is the culprit. For a time, it looked like Senate Banking chairman Chris Dodd would take the fall, but after 24 hours of twisting in the wind, Dodd said the change that exempted past agreements to pay bonuses was made at the request of the administration.

President Obama likes to remind voters that he inherited a mess, and that's true, but this one is of his own making. And until he comes up with a satisfactory explanation of who did what when, and why, his credibility will suffer. Forty-eight hours ago, I didn't think Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner was in trouble, but if the transaction with Dodd turns out to have Geithner's fingerprints on it, his job could be in jeopardy. The deadly chain of events may have started innocently enough, with Treasury Department lawyers raising questions about the government retroactively curtailing private-sector contracts, but did Dodd, who authored the restrictive language, capitulate to some Treasury flunky, or did someone more senior lean on him?

[lt.america]

My left flank is crumbling, my right is gone and I am buckling in the middle. What should I do; go on Leno and stick my foot in my mouth..Trying to put a military spin on Obama's last week, but I think this early into his administration to have something this big hitting cannot be good going into the 2010 election cycle.

[alrea]

President Obama likes to remind voters that he inherited a mess,

He inherited it alright. From Democrats.

[popdonnelly]

The country should wake up and arrive at the conviction that we are not going to let the Left take over.

[UltraKonservativen]

I love the smell of failure in the morning...

[lt.america]

I think that the fact the Democrats could merely mention “Bush” and the general public would begin spitting and talking in tongues helped them sell the country on the economy being a Republican generated mess/scandal. I think after this week, Democrats may have to start answering the hard questions, which they do not want to do. Note how Barney Frank came out swinging this week. They are hoping the public does not wake up from its malaise.

[Rennes Templar]

If Eleanor Clift is piling on, he in big trouble.

[Drango]

Left eating it’s own. Excellent.

[Unicorn]

Everything was going good until the dems took over in 2006 then downhill all the way.

[ChocChipCookie]

I think what Obama needs right now is a good, old fashioned military crisis. That would unite everyone behind him, put the AIG fiasco and all the other missteps in the past, and his handlers would make sure he looks like he’s got the Right Stuff. Watch for it....

[cricket]

Oh to hear the words ‘hit the wall’ as Rahm responded to this one. . .

[KTM rider]

According to the facts available, the pencilneck in cheif is:

(a.)a Liar with evil intent

(b.)a sub special olympics level retard

(c.) all of the above

choose one

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I like it.

[mainepatsfan]

To use a military analogy Obama is running out of reserves.

[lt.america]

I especially like the fact that a lib magazine is pointing out what most of us were saying when this hit. Next I want to see some adds asking about what the pres knew and when did he know it and look into campaign donations to see if they are linked to this somehow. Guarantee Dodd is filthy with this (Geithner also) and it smells of scandal.

[Salvation]

**The country should wake up and arrive at the conviction that we are not going to let the Left take over.**

Funny you should say this. I was thinking about donating to the Senate Committee.

[Salvation]

**If Eleanor Clift is piling on, he in big trouble.**

Yes, LOL!

[yldstrk]

Like Clinton bombing Bosnia to distract away from Monica...

[shotdog]

This really surprises me. Newsweak [sic] is a shadow of a “news magazine” in that it always falls toward the left. It really is odious; it shows up in my mailbox weekly owing to my support of our local Public Radio (classical music) station. It goes pretty much directly from the mailbox to the out box.

[Tom D.]

From Right Wing News )http://rightwingnews.com/#post14857):

“Some little boys denied taking the cookie; others, caught with their hands in the jar, insisted they were actually putting it back in. And got away with it. When the man from Hope, Arkansas showed us how that was done, we were impressed. The one who sits in our White House right now, though can change the subject around mouthfuls of cookie. You just stand there and think ‘damn, I can’t remember what I wanted to talk to him about, but what he’s talking about sure sounds important...wish I hadn’t bothered him while he was in the middle of eating something.’”

[cricket]

He inherited it alright. From Democrats

Cannot be stated often enough. . .but oddly, we are not often reminded.

That said; this blast from Newsweek may be the best news. Maybe there IS hope. . .

[lt.america]

I think you are right. If they had someone worth a da** who had paid their taxes waiting in the bullpen I think Geithner may have already gotten his pink slip.

[freekitty]

What did they expect? They elected this empty suit.

[mainepatsfan]

Even if they did I don’t think Obama’s ego would permit him from making a switch.

[freekitty]

True.

[Stentor]

My left flank is crumbling, my right is gone and I am buckling in the middle. What should I do

He'll call in the artillery on his own position as soon as he is safely in the rear.

[Allegra]

Wow. Eleanor Clift wrote this?

Am I logged on?

[GreyMountainReagan]

“weekly owing to my support of our local Public Radio (classical music) station”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

You got to be kidding me. Every heard of downloading music, XM, Sirius? Supporting public radio is supporting liberal fascists.

It really is.

Make a clean break.

[lt.america]

My thoughts as well. Maybe the press has a conscious after all. I guess we will take this one as a brief glimmer of hope that there still may be some journalistic integrity left out there, or maybe this is a Lewinsky type scandal in the making and can't be overlooked.

[mainepatsfan]

He'll call in the artillery on his own position as soon as he is safely in the rear

He's already done that...just ask Chris Dodd and the AIG execs.

[skeeter]

BO’s a lame duck two months into his first term.

[cricket]

Not only Eleanor. . .did you hear 'Maxine Waters'. Albeit 'something' else in play here; she nonetheles, challenged Obama to the truth of the matter. She had to have taken in more than an earful, from Rahm.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Forty-eight hours ago, I didn't think Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner was in trouble, but if the transaction with Dodd turns out to have Geithner's fingerprints on it, his job could be in jeopardy.

Great, so while the massive credit crisis and toxic debt portfolios go unaddressed, the man Obama appointed to resolve it is bogged down in some silly crisis over executive bonuses created by Obama's own juvenile populist attacks on big business.

Meanwhile, Obama does nothing to reassure the markets, continues to blather about massive increases in social spending that he expects the Chinese to fund, and fills out NCAA tournament brackets.

An image of Nero fiddling while Rome burned comes to mind. The Obama administration is a train-wreck happening before our eyes.

[668 - Neighbor of the Beast]

He’ll probably survive. Look how popular Clinton was, despite the early debacle of Waco.
Clinton torched American citizens...including children. Then there was Elian. Then Monica.
Clinton floated like a hospital turd through it all.
0bama will too.

[what's up]

SO comical that the stimulus is already coming back to bite them in the butt with even Eleanor Clift now piling on.

And there's still about $760 B or so worth of money to blame the Dems for when it goes down a sinkhole aside from the $170 B or so allotted for AIG bonuses.

God bless the House Repubs for standing strong against the stimulus and THANK God the Dems are already getting caught in their own net SO QUICKLY!!

[utahagen]

You can say that again! I never thought I'd say this, but hat's off to Eleanor Clift!

[alrea]

Left eating it’s own

No way. Attorneys, journalists and communuity organizers are probably already getting the faxes about getting back on the message of change and hope.

[org.whodat]

You cannot get the republicans from firing into the wagon train circle long enough to get them to point out, Paulson, pelosi, dodd and Geithner, wrote tarp, and the bogus bonus BS.

[mainepatsfan]

BO’s a lame duck two months into his first term.

He's off to a worse start at his new job than the Broncos' new head coach.

[cricket]

The country should wake up and arrive at the conviction that we are not going to let the Left take over.

Time to disenfranchise ACORN for starters. . .and yes, maybe there are enough Dems who do not like 'sharp left turns'and an America no longer 'secured'.

[abb]

Glad you weren’t advising General Washington during the winter of 1777-78 at Valley Forge.

[jerod]

All this mess and to top it all off... The Supreme Leader of Iran told him to go and ‘pound sand’. Not a good week, but it’s probably only the first of many for this media freak known as Barrack H. Obama.

The media managed to get Jimmy Carter elected and then reality set in... He was a fool and a dud, and apparently history is repeating itself. Hopefully the second part of history will also come through... 4 years of disaster followed by 12 years of Republican control of the Presidency.

The only problem is the damage he may end up doing. The world continues to pay to this very day for Jimmy’s awful screw ups.

[Oldpuppymax]

By Eleanor Clift?? C’mon Eleanor, fess up. Who are you trying to cover for and who are you trying to skewer? Honest, straightforward reporting and you are total strangers.

[668 - Neighbor of the Beast]

I give up, what does General Washington have to do with anything?

[Dick Bachert]

“Trying to put a military spin on Obama’s last week...”

OH, GOD, MAKE IT SO!

[heiss]

Next elections are not for a while. So, it is safe to criticize the Messiah. It also attempts to get them a bit of cred against the bias charges (”see..in 2009 we did criticize the President so we are not biased!”).

Were the elections in a few months, this sort of articles would not be published, of course.

[mainepatsfan]

Obmam was created by the celebrity culture and he cannot survive without it. It’s like a pitcher without a secondary out pitch.

[shotdog]

Ours is a 24-7 classical station with a very welcome 3 hour unelectrofied (music, that is), very cool bluegrass break Sunday night. “News breaks” every two hours. Even their tin cup rattling twice a year is tolerable. Can’t imagine life without ‘em. They support the local symphony and other arts which xm sirious can’t.

[lt.america]

“Meanwhile, Obama does nothing to reassure the markets, continues to blather about massive increases in social spending that he expects the Chinese to fund, and fills out NCAA tournament brackets”

It is sad that our only hope to save this country is to hope for gridlock, but I think that is the best we can do right now because no one in this administration has demonstrated any leadership on the economy thus far

[mainepatsfan]

Glad you weren’t advising General Washington during the winter of 1777-78 at Valley Forge.

Washington didn't have too many "good" winters during that war.

[abb]

I give up, what does General Washington have to do with anything?

About as much as your defeatist attitude toward the country's future.