Obama defeated by his own bureaucracy

CNN ^ | May 30, 2014 | By Gloria Borger, CNN Chief Political Analyst

[Oldeconomybuyer]

When Barack Obama was a newbie president, there was no shortage of ambition or lack of confidence in the government he was about to lead. Government should be seen as a force for good, not evil. Sure, he told us, it needed to be "smarter and better," but that could—and would—happen under his watch.

Instead, the President is living his own version of "Alice Through the Looking Glass": staring down a rabbit hole of government bureaucracy and inefficiency. The government he has studiously tried to grow, manage and change has become his own personal nemesis. All of which makes you wonder: Does the President himself trust government anymore?

Government is unwieldy and difficult and hard to tame, sure. But if your presidency is based, in large part, on telling Americans that government can work for them--which it can--you need to make it work.

It's not that the President is a hopeless manager. He does very well when he leads a hierarchical organization with a single goal, like a presidential bid. He's top dog, he's not negotiating with anybody, and he's not trying to get people to do things they don't want to do. In a campaign, for instance, they all want to elect the same person: him.

But when you have to negotiate—or lead—people not related to you, or not indebted to you or who don't agree with you, it's a different story. Managing or negotiating with people with mixed motives (Congress, anyone?) is not an Obama strong point.

[353FMG]

>Government should be seen as a force for good, not evil.<

.
Say, huh?

[Ouderkirk]

that’s the Peter Principle

[Still Thinking]

Obama defeated by his own bureaucracy

Guess government is good for something, after all! :)

[hinckley buzzard]

There are thousands of "ghost employees." In the VA they are known as "VA deadwood." But the problem is Civil Service protections even more than unions or politics. Yes, political appointees can be fired, but the average government employee has job security comparable to academic tenure. The government can do a RIF but then seniority and other considerations kick in, and there is no guarantee that it will make matters better rather than worse.

[Still Thinking]

I do not know which Murphy’s Law it is but it says that people rise to the level of their own incompetence.

That would predict The Won would have made only one step past dope-smoking whitey-hatin homo. How did he get to be POTUS? Is IS that now considered the next step above that position?

[Kit cat]

NOTHING IS BULLET PROOF,!!!! UNIONS IN GOVERNMENT JOBS
NEED TO GO!!! A DR. at the VA gets the SAME salary if he or she sees
1 patient a day or 20 patients a day!!!! How in the HELL did UNIONS become a part of PUBLIC SERVICE employees????? THIS BEAST
NEEDS TO BE STOPPED!!!!! What the HELL could happen IF ALL unions
were removed from government employment!!!!!! Regan FIRED ALL air
traffic controllers and the world did NOT come to an end!!!!!!!!!

[Fledermaus]

Easy solution; reverse JFK's executive order allowing federal employees to unionize and start the firings!

Shame these people. List how much they've made over the years. Embarrass them to the world.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

Obama is still the newbie president. Some presidents at this point have 8-9 years of experience. The zero has 1 year of experience 8-9 times.

[vbmoneyspender]

Obama defeated by his own bureaucracy ideology.

Fixed

[Jim Noble]

If only Stalin knew...

[CitizenM]

CNN’s article is just more...Excuses, excuses, excuses...oh, my...it is such a hard job being President when some people don’t agree with you. What the hell? When has any President ever had an eaxy job...when everyone agreed with him? This article is just CNN’s way of deflecting criticism from Obama, while at the same time beating him down...lightly...so they can concentrate on boosting up Hillary now. Out with the loser. No use protecting him too much anymore, but let’s not be too rash. That would be “racist,” doncha know. Time to walk away from Obama and focus on the next candidate for Liar in Chief.

[Newtoidaho]

“It’s not that the President is a hopeless manager. He does very well when he leads a hierarchical organization with a single goal, like a presidential bid. He’s top dog, he’s not negotiating with anybody, and he’s not trying to get people to do things they don’t want to do.”

Gloria “liberal scumbag” Borger, just trying to grease the skids for the next step toward Obozo’s dictatorship.

[omega4412]

It’s the affirmative action version of the Peter Principle, in which someone in a privileged minority group can rise far beyond his or her level of incompetence.

[Beagle8U]

I’m pretty sure ‘Alice’ in the fable was stoned. Yeah, I guess it fits for Owebama too.

[HiTech RedNeck]

So he created a monster and now it will not obey him?

Hmm.

[HiTech RedNeck]

It was an extended dream.

[Jabba the Nutt]

Well, if it can't be fixed, it must be abolished. Logic gives some people headaches.

Obama cares not a whit about the results, he just wants bigger an bigger government until there is nothing outside of government.

[milagro]

"But when you have to negotiate—or lead—people..."

This quote says it all!

[what's up]

Gloria says Obama does best when he’s top dog and doesn’t have to negotiate with anyone. What she doesn’t acknowledge is the obvious fact that this is the role of a dictator not a president.

[blueunicorn6]

Gosh, it’s so hard to be a Democrat politician. You have to be able to read a teleprompter and promise people free stuff. That takes some real talent, there.