Obama Loses Round One

The four-year term to serve as a US president resembles a four-round boxing match. There is even an annual state of a union message that substitutes for a bell. Obama's first year in power demonstrated he is no Joe Lewis – he cannot throw a punch or take one. He has boobs in his corner as trainers and clumsy cut men; he bleeds every time he is hit and it does not stop. Just check his downwards spiral in the polls; his blood continues to flow.

Obama can score against his opponent if he stopped fighting wars on the enemies' terms and strictly curbed access by lobbyists to his administration. He could fire his kibbutz of hopeless economic advisors and officials whose actions were a major factor in the collapse of the US economy – these guys are at best flat examples of the Groucho Marx Show or if you prefer, unintentionally, the Three Stooges: Geithner, Bernanke and Sommers.

Obama's national security policy so far is not change, but continuity. He continues to keep SecDef Gates who is an I love GWB Republican. Gates was to be kept on as a transition figure for a limited time; however, last week we learned he is to stay on; talk of departure has ended.

Gates has not only eroded any hopes of fighting wars intelligently, with economy of force concepts, but actually enhanced massive deployments to Afghanistan. Gates is fiercely passing out contracts to mercenary firms. He also made Obama look foolish when he prevailed selecting William J. Lynn III as Deputy Secretary Defense; this is a man who is a gold-plated lobbyist. His selection opened the door for more lobbyists to flood his administration and was contrary to his campaign promises.

Packs of lobbyists managed to turn the Health Care bill into a lucrative incentive package for Big Pharma and Big Insurance. Just check their soaring stock prices since Obamacare became a possible reality. Even the progressives are gnashing their teeth over the foul bill.

There is now evidence that defense contractors spent millions lobbying and promoting the expansion of the self-destructive Afghan war. Is it true that what is good for the military/industrial congressional complex is good for the country? It remains a mystery why Obama did not stand his ground.

We have learned that our Vatican-sized embassy in Baghdad is to have its population doubled so our mercenaries can train Iraqi policemen. You mean to tell me the Iraqis cannot train their own police? Do you really need a Miranda act in Iraq? Despite optimistic promises of incipient democracy in Iraq, it is still the law of the club and fang in that country... SAVEUS PETRAEUS!

Racial relations with a black president should provide new approaches. There are proportionately more blacks in high places, but Obama's relationship with the black caucus is rocky, mainly due to failure to be sufficiently liberal from its standpoint. The president tried to over compensate by support of the black professor Gates over the Boston Irish cop Crowley; this was certainly a factor in the loss of the Democratic senate seat in Massachusetts.

His latest effort to rebuild Haiti will fall flat, as the US has its own economic priorities. Some argue racial tensions are worse as Tea Baggers openly attack Obama along racial lines. Personal threats on Obama are at the highest for a US president. None of this stuff is pretty and it tears the country apart.

At best the administration’s policies in the Palestine/Israel fracas, Iran, and North Korea are churning without progress. The Chinese continue to thumb their nose at the US gobbling up international raw material with cheap dollars. Latin America gets more leftist and pro Russia and China. With our Bosnian sniper heroine Hillary, keep your foreign policy expectations low.

When Obama staffed his administration with Clinton retreads and members from the Kibbutz, he was expected to bob and weave; he even missed that lesson as he was hit hard on all fronts. Let us hope we get fresh leadership in round two instead moon dancing with the ghosts of the past. Colonel Robert E Bartos USA Ret.