Who's ready for 2020?

🚨Who's ready for 2020? 🚨 https://t.co/gyUChAjjOx

— The Weekly Standard (@weeklystandard) July 19, 2018

No Obama, 'Sexism' Is Not The Reason Voters Oppose Clinton

My latest @IJRopinion: No Obama, 'Sexism' Is Not The Reason Voters Oppose Clinton. You Of All Ppl Should Know That https://t.co/CDMyABm65M

— Sister Toldjah ツ (@sistertoldjah) November 3, 2016

The President should be doing the job of POTUS, not out campaigning for Crooked Hillary.

The President should be doing the job of POTUS, not out campaigning for Crooked Hillary. https://t.co/XCPkUPPlan

— WND News (@worldnetdaily) September 23, 2016

More than 41,000 people are asking Congress to stop paying President Barack Obama’s salary while he campaigns for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

“We the People demand that Congress withhold President Obama’s salary, pension, travel expenses, etc. for any time he spends actively campaigning for Hillary Clinton between now and the election in November,” the petition on conservative petition site StandUnited says....

Obama currently golfing at Andrews Air Force Base; NationalDebt: $19,188,228,962,810.34 (+)

Obama currently golfing at @AndrewsAirForce

RT @NationalDebt: $19,188,228,962,810.34 (+) #nationaldebt

— WhiteHousePressCorps (@whpresscorps) March 18, 2016

Presidential motorcade back at the WH from golf outing. pic.twitter.com/N31BJbyh6W

— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) March 18, 2016

“People are deeply concerned about inequality..that the system is rigged against ordinary folks." -Obama to donors who paid $33,400 a ticket

“People are deeply concerned about inequality..that the system is rigged against ordinary folks." -Obama to donors who paid $33,400 a ticket

— Razor (@hale_razor) February 11, 2016

Air Force One lands in Los Angeles. Pres Obama tapes appearance on @TheEllenShow and does another 2 Dem fundraisers

Air Force One lands in Los Angeles. Pres Obama tapes appearance on @TheEllenShow and does another 2 Dem fundraisers. pic.twitter.com/04mNJW2Ez3

— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) February 11, 2016

Obama secretly dines with Hollywood donors after pricey fundraiser https://t.co/WOr1l7erMf pic.twitter.com/iXDfzSCcyk

— The Hill (@thehill) February 13, 2016

Top 10 Things Obama Prefers To Do INSTEAD Of Running The Country

Top 10 Things Obama Prefers To Do INSTEAD Of Running The Country http://t.co/sZ74slhWps pic.twitter.com/BIdSICnLdn

— slone (@slone) March 26, 2015

1. Golf: A lot of Americans wish they had the time, let alone the money, to hit the golf links twice a month. The day after the Japan earthquake and tsunami, Obama played his 61st round of golf, fewer than 26 months into his presidency.
2. Foreign travel... 3. Vacations... 4. Dining out...5. Playing basketball... 6. White House concerts... 7. White House theater... 8. Sporting events... 9. Youth sports... 10. NCAA brackets... ◼ Details at the link...

Obama: Republicans are trying to 'bamboozle' ordinary Americans

◼ Since Democrats were roundly defeated in the November midterms, Obama has struck a defiant tone, insisting that a recent uptick in the economy proved his policies were right all along. - Brian Hughes/Washington Examiner @BrianHughesDC

Obama aka Captain Bullsh*t OF ALL PEOPLE accusing the GOP of trying to "bamboozle" Americans. It's almost too much. http://t.co/3SjeL4faqM

— Nice Deb (@NiceDeb) February 20, 2015

BIG MAN ON CAMPUS

◼ Meet Barack Obama, nonstop college campaigner. - Peter Hannaford/American Spectator 1.23.15

Expecting it to be another campaign speech, I sent this to several friends ahead of Tuesday’s State of the Union address:

Recipe for Watching Obama’s State of the Union Speech Tonight:

1—Build and light a fire in the fireplace
2—Put some Mozart on the stereo
3—Pour a highball or a glass of wine
4—Open a good book
5—Enjoy

We spent a pleasant evening and, as it turned out, President Obama ran true to form.

After six years we know that the only thing he enjoys doing and at which he is good is making campaign speeches. When he gets restless dealing with issues that require statesmanship, he goes on a campaign swing, getting friendly audiences to smile and laugh at his jibes at Republicans, whom he despises.

This time he was off the next morning for Idaho and a speech to college students; then on to Kansas for another college audience. One would think he was running for student body president on both campuses. He was relaxed, enjoying self-congratulation and taunting Republicans to “bring me their ideas” so that he presumably he can “work” with them. His idea of negotiation and compromise meant, as usual, the other side adopting his position.

All this on-campus verve was going on while terrorism threats increased, Yemen was in turmoil, Iran continued to stall and ISIS was no closer to defeat than five months ago.

In his SOTU campaign speech he said he would not be on the ballot again and got a hand for it. His riposte was, “and I won twice.” True, but over the course of his six years in office, his party has lost both houses of Congress, governorships, and state legislatures.

He moved from that to the centerpiece of his agenda, which amounted to the dawn of an old era: income and wealth redistribution. This plays to the belief of the left wing of the Democratic Party that economics is always a zero-sum game. That is, if one person does well, someone else must do poorly. His answer: more taxes on success, coupled with more government spending. This was accompanied by his new pet, free tuition to community colleges.

His purpose in hammering away on these was not that he expects them to be passed, but to embarrass the Republican Congress ahead of the 2016 election. Apparently, he is convinced his agenda will be popular with the public. Shortly after the election he demonstrated his new-found gift of mind-reading when he said he’d “heard” the approximately 60 percent of Americans who didn’t go to the polls in November. From this mind-reading he has conjured his current agenda.

The American public, however, does not agree, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll. It gave respondents a list of issues and asked “whether you think it should be an absolute priority for the Obama administration and THIS year’s Congress; or is something that can be delayed until next year; or something you think the Obama administration and Congress should not pursue.”

A strong majority said the “now” priority issues are creating jobs, defeating ISIS, cutting the federal deficit, securing the southern border and dealing with Iran’s nuclear threat.

About “reducing income inequality,” a majority said it should be put off or not pursued. The same was true of “increasing the minimum wage” and passing legislation to create “a pathway to citizenship” for illegal aliens.

When it comes to climate change, nearly twice as many said it should be delayed or not pursued as those who gave it high priority.

Of the fifth issue, closing the Guantanamo Bay prison, 72 percent said to delay or not pursue it. Only 24 percent thought it should be a priority.

Elections have consequences. Like King Canute in days of yore, Barack Obama cannot command the waves to go backward and expect them to follow his command. He should stick to entertaining college students.
__________________
Peter Hannaford was closely associated with the late President Reagan for a number of years. He is a member of the board of the Committee on the Present Danger. His latest book is ◼ “Presidential Retreats.”

Back on the Campaign Trail

Vacation Over: Obama Plans Travel Blitz Before State of the Union...

Obama to highlight economic policies in aggressive push toward State of the Union http://t.co/lJJb00h3pz

— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 3, 2015

◼ After 15 days in a carefree island paradise, it's back to reality for President Obama. - ABC

Obama returns from vacation to a chilly Washington on Sunday, staring down a long legislative agenda and simmering foreign crises, and with a desire to seal his legacy over the next two years.

He also faces a Congress in full Republican control for the first time during his term.

The president isn't sticking around long, however. Obama plans to hit the road Wednesday for a three-day travel blitz that officials describe as a sort of preemptive State of the Union.

The president "will highlight the progress we have made in the economy and he will announce policies that he will highlight in the State of the Union address to push us forward," White House spokesman Eric Schultz said.

◼ WaPo Reporter Sorry He Couldn’t Get Photo Of Obama Under A Rainbow - Betsy Rothstein/Daily Caller

Washington Post White House reporter David Nakamura is in Hawaii covering President Obama‘s family vacation. In one of the more inane — and there are many — White House pool reports about the trip, the reporter talks about how he regrets not snapping a photograph of the commander-in-chief under a rainbow.

◼ Or in his unicorn costume.... - Join the Discussion at Lucianne

Jason Riley, a Wall Street Journal columnist, criticized Obama and his “overt racial appeals” at a Maryland event

◼ Watch: This Guy Just Asked The One Question About Obama That Could Destroy The Democrats - WJ

MUST BE A SLOW NEWS DAY: Obama Just Left for a Coast-to-Coast Fundraising Trip

◼ link - Doug Ross

Ted Cruz says Obama is more interested in seeing wealthy trial lawyers than ‘suffering’ immigrant children

◼ On Wednesday, the president defended his decision to not visit the border by noting that the current immigration issue is “not theater” and that he is more interested in “solving a problem” than in “photo ops.” - Red Alert Politics

Texas Senator Ted Cruz quickly took the president to task for his “theater” comment. In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday night, Cruz remarked, “You know, apparently, the theater he’s interested in is seeing the home movie theater of wealthy Texas trial lawyers, and he’s interested in getting checks from wealthy Texas trial lawyers, but he’s not interested in seeing the poor immigrant children who are suffering,”

◼ Obama really STEPPED IN IT this time! He just put his foot in his mouth with latest excuse for not visiting the border. - CNS

Obama: 'This Isn't Theater...I'm Not Interested in Photo Ops' ... Obama claims the border crisis isn't a Photo-Op just days after Photo-Op session at Denver bar.

◼ 20 Reasons Obama’s Line About Not Being ‘Interested in Photo-Ops’ is Knee-Slapper of the Century - IJ Review

◼ DEATH TRAIN: Mexican train derails, stranding 1,300 migrants headed toward U.S. - Reuters ◼ Via Drudge

'Death Train' Derails in Mexico...
Stranding 1,300 Migrants Headed Toward USA...
◼ PHOTOS: Obama Laughs His Way Through Border Meeting - PJMedia
◼ Perry: 'I Don't Know' if he heard me - Breitbart
Houston black woman goes on EPIC rant about illegals...
VIDEO: African Americans Confront Immigrant Supporters...
MAG: Amnesty disaster for black workers...
Muslim prayer rug found on AZ border...
Volunteers work to identify bodies of dead children...
PROTESTS SPREAD: MI RESIDENTS FIGHT PLANS TO HOUSE ILLEGALS...
Shipment to San Diego halted...
Administration turns to churches to avoid clashes...
Feds begin dumping at SoCal diocese...
CNN Anchor Unleashes Tirade Over Protesters Blocking Buses...
Planeloads continue to land in El Paso...
MILITIA SETS UP COMMAND CENTER...

OBAMA CHOOSES GAME OF POOL OVER BORDER VISIT

◼ Dem. Congressman: ‘Floored Me’ to See Obama Shoot Pool Rather than Visit Border - Andrew Johnson/National Review

At least one Democratic congressman is “very very upset” with the idea that President Obama was shooting in Denver with Colorado governor John Hickenlooper today rather than visiting the southwestern border.

“When I saw that, it just really floored me,” said Representative Henry Cuellar of Texas, who has been quite vocal in his criticism of the administration’s handling of the issue. “If he’s saying he’s too busy to go down to the border, but you have time to drink a beer, play pool, the optics and the appearance just mean he’s not paying attention to this humanitarian crisis.”

◼ Dem. Rep. Rips Obama: 'Aloof,' 'Bizarre,' and 'Detached' - Daniel Halper/Weekly Standard

"He's so close to the border. And let me say this: when I saw, and I hate to use the word bizarre, but under the circumstances, when he is shown playing pool in Colorado, drinking a beer, and he can't even go 242 miles to the Texas border, and plus, if he doesn't want to go down to the border, there's the Air Force Base where HHS is holding some of the young kids from the border. He could at least make that trip to San Antonio, but again, border community leaders wants to see him down there on the border, and I think the optics and the substance of it is that he should show up at the border," said Cuellar.

◼ MSNBC: Why Was Obama Shooting Pool and Drinking Beer? - Washington Free Beacon
◼ Andrea Mitchell’s crisis of confidence in Obama - HotAir

In a display of contempt for the press, his party, and anyone else demanding Obama observe good “optics” by visiting the border, the president allowed himself to be filmed last night enjoying a beer and playing billiards with Colorado’s Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper....

Minutes later, Mitchell invited Cecilia Muñoz, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, on her program to defend the president. It was brutal.

“With all due respect, the reality on the ground is that the administration did not stay ahead of this,” Mitchell observed. “The impression – the reality is – that the White House has been slow to react.” She noted that “optics” is a stand-in phrase synonymous with leadership, and implied that Obama had declined to display any.

“Leadership does involve showing the concern,” Mitchell later added after playing a portion of Cuellar’s veritable denunciation of Obama.

“So far, the politics aren’t working and the substance isn’t working,” she concluded. “Somebody’s got to revisit this.”

◼ White House warns: Stop criticizing... - National Review
◼ Feds using tax dollars to buy Monopoly games, toys for illegals... - Washington Times
◼ PHOTOS: Crossers Wearing 'Obama Shoes'... - Daily Caller
◼ Flying migrants back home 'would be 99.5% cheaper'... - Ernest Istook/Washington Times

We taxpayers are expected to house, feed, clothe and care for almost 30,000 illegal aliens for a full year, according to the White House’s official request. That’s a small city.
Instead, we could fly all of them home for one-half of 1 percent of the $3.8 billion that President Obama proposes we spend. That’s a savings of 99.5 percent!

...Most of his proposal is to pay living expenses. At the unofficial reported cost of $250 per person per day, President Barack Obama is proposing we spend $1.8 billion “to provide appropriate care for unaccompanied children.” That works out to 19,726 minors for a year. (The official term for them, written into federal statute, is “undocumented alien children.” Not undocumented immigrants, migrants or refugees. Those other terms are efforts at propaganda.)
In addition, Obama wants another $879 million “for detention and removal of apprehended undocumented adults traveling with children,” and “alternatives to detention programs” for these adults. He blends “removal” with “detention” to make it impossible to determine how many removals are planned.
If the money is all for detention, then the $250 per person reveals the plan is to house 9,632 adults for a year at taxpayers’ expense.

◼ Ted Cruz Sends Map With Directions From Fundraisers To Border Towns... - CBS Houston

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has joined Texas Gov. Rick Perry in calling on President Barack Obama to visit the Mexican border personally, with Cruz sending Obama actual directions to the border from the president’s planned fundraiser stops in Austin and Dallas.

Cruz took to Twitter to invite Obama to take a look at the border itself amid a growing immigration crisis along the southern border with Mexico.

“If President Obama wants to have a real border meeting with @GovernorPerry, here are a couple suggested detours,” Cruz tweeted on Tuesday....

The maps show driving routes from Austin to the border town of Laredo (235 miles, 3 hours) and Dallas to border town McAllen (506 miles, 7 hours and 29 minutes).

Perry also took to Twitter last week to invite President Obama to the border.

“@BarackObama: While in TX next week, I invite you to tour the border with me to see firsthand what is happening there. CC: @WhiteHouse,” tweeted Perry.

Sen. Graham: Cut Off Aid to Countries That Don't Keep Their Illegal Kids Out of the US

◼ Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” proposed Sunday that the U.S. cut off aid to countries whose unaccompanied illegal minors enter the U.S. if those countries “don’t keep them and take care of them.” - Melanie Hunter/CNS

“About a third of the little girls are raped in the process of getting here. It's a humanitarian problem, but it's apart from immigration reform. This is a specific problem created by an impression that if you get to America, you can stay. We have got to turn that impression around, send these children back to their homeland and tell countries in question if you don't keep them and take care of them, we're going to cut all aid off,” Graham said.

◼ Bill O’Reilly: Obama Administration Said for Years the Border Was Secure – ‘The Public Was Sold a Lie’ (Video) - Jim Hoft/Gateway Pundit

◼ Texas Gov. Rick Perry Rebuffs Handshake with Obama on His Fundraising Visit, Has a Much Better Offer - IJ Review

Texas Governor and potential presidential aspirant Rick Perry (R) has said “thanks, but no thanks” to an offer to meet President Obama when he arrives at the Austin airport on Wednesday.
It is common practice for a state’s governor to meet the U.S. president at the airport, as a welcoming gesture. But Perry said in a letter to the White House that a brief greeting on the tarmac wasn’t going to be good enough, according to a report by the Austin American-Statesman.

I appreciate the offer to greet you at Austin-Bergstrom Airport, but a quick handshake on the tarmac will not allow for a thoughtful discussion regarding the humanitarian and national security crises enveloping the Rio Grande Valley in South Texas.

I would instead offer to meet with you at any time during your visit to Texas for a substantive meeting to discuss this critical issue. With the appropriate notice, I am willing to change my schedule to facilitate this request.

Obama has taken heat for his planned trip to Texas, during which he has fundraisers planned, but no scheduled visits to the border, according to Politico. The White House has downplayed the criticism, saying that the President is not concerned with the “optics” of the visit.

CBS'S GARRETT CRITICIZES WH OPTICS OF OBAMA GOING TO FUNDRAISERS, NOT BORDER

◼ "With this on going humanitarian crisis and significant policy issue that is alarming people not only in Texas but obviously now places where you are trying to take these unaccompanied kids are you comfortable with the optics of the president going to fundraisers only and not taking an eyeball look himself at whats going on at the border?" Garrett asked. - Breitbart

DRUDGE:
TOWN BRACES FOR MIGRANT DUMPING BACKLASH...
'Repatriate the aliens!'
Protesters urn back busloads of illegals...
Government Stonewalls...
FEDS SUE COMPANY FOR ENGLISH REQUIREMENT...
HHS BARS CONGRESSMAN FROM SEEING ILLEGALS...
CDC Activates 'Emergency Operation Center'...
Dozens quarantined as diseases spread...
RON PAUL: Hospitals under siege...
SHERIFF JOE: 'CALCULATED' CRISIS...
'I Want Explanation Why 3,800 In My Jails Are Here Illegally'...
DMV Clogged by Applicants for Alien Drivers' Licenses...
Krauthammer: 'If Fences Don't Work, Why Is One Around White House?'
Smugglers threaten ranchers: 'Look other way or face consequences'...
Previously Deported Mexican Felon Captured 80 Miles into Texas...
PERRY INVITES PRESIDENT TO BORDER...
GOP Lawmaker: 'No problem' for path to legal status...
Feds launch ad campaign to discourage dumping of children at border...

Obama: Don’t pay attention to the “phony scandals” in the news, “it’s not on the level”

◼ Obama did his best impersonation of a president who cares today, telling people that he’s working for them everyday. - The Right Scoop

But he also warned them not to pay attention to the phony scandals in the news, because that stuff is just fabricated to gin up the base for the next election. It’s not real news and “it’s not on the level”.

◼ Bad news for Obama: Most Americans don’t agree when he characterizes his scandals as "phony.” - T. Becket Adams/Washington Examiner

Indeed, according to separate polls, a majority of Americans support Congress' attempts to investigate three major issues that have been dogging the Obama presidency: The IRS' targeting of conservative groups, the deadly 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, and widespread mismanagement at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

First, an overwhelming 74 percent of respondents in a Fox News survey say Congress should keep investigating the IRS until “someone is held responsible.” This is a seven-point increase from April, likely spurred by the federal agency “mistakenly losing” subpoenaed emails.

Second, approximately 51 percent of respondents in a Washington Post-ABC News survey say they approve of Congress' decision to form a select committee to investigate the deadly attacks on U.S. facilities in Benghazi.

Fifty-eight percent of respondents in the same survey say they believe the Obama administration covered up the details of the attacks and has been dishonest with the American people.

Lastly, 63 percent of survey respondents in a recent a Gallup poll say they're dissatisfied with Obama's handling of the VA's many problems, while only 29 percent say they approve.

The Gallup poll also found that 69 percent of respondents say they are following the situation "very" or "somewhat closely” and that that interest in the scandal has grown since Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned earlier this year in disgrace.

In short, there appears to be widespread support for more government accountability as more Americans are demanding answers.

Nevertheless, it appears that the president is determined to write off his many scandals as “phony,” either because he is willfully ignorant of the mood in the country or because he enjoys openly taunting his opponents.

“The president is actually spending more time fundraising in Texas than honoring those who were murdered at Fort Hood at the memorial ceremony”

◼ Mark Levin: Obama ‘disgrace’ for jetting from Fort Hood memorial to DNC fundraiser - Cheryl K. Chumley/Washington Times

“I want to tell you something that I’m ashamed and disgusted about,” he said, on his recent radio show. “This is so appalling.”

The president’s schedule is this: Leave White House at 9:05 a.m. Wednesday. Arrive in Killeen, Texas, about 11:30 a.m. local time. Attend the Fort Hood memorial service — and then head out at 5 p.m. Central Time to the Democratic National Committee fundraiser to raise money for House and Senate races.

Mr. Obama and his wife are supposed to be joined at the glitzy event — where tickets cost upwards of $16,200 per person and $64,800 per couple — by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, The Associated Press reported. Mr. Obama will later give remarks at a Democratic Party dinner that same evening.

Attempting to reverse sagging approval ratings, President Obama plans to continue his pointed pitch to members of Congress in his annual State of the Union speech Tuesday night -- that he will use his executive power to take action on his own to help reduce income inequality in the country.

◼ After Tuesday speech, Obama to take 'year of action' theme on the road - Susan Crabtree

...Dan Pfeiffer, White House communications director, sent out an email Saturday to supporters saying Obama's message Tuesday night can be summed up in three words: “opportunity, action and optimism.”

He also promised that the president would lay out a set of “real, concrete, practical proposals to grow the economy, strengthen the middle class and empower all who hope to join it.” In the days after the speech, Obama plans to hammer the message home with travel to Maryland, Pittsburgh, Pa., Milwaukee, Wis., and Nashville, Tenn.

◼ OBAMA SHIFTS FROM 'INCOME INEQUALITY' TO 'LADDERS OF OPPORTUNITY' - Warner Todd Huston/Breitbart´s Big Government

In an apparent effort to blunt criticism over his intent to engage in full-blown class warfare during his second term, Obama is softening the harsher term with a new label.

The Associated Press reports that Obama has shifted his rhetoric from "complaining" about income inequality toward language that creates an appearance that he is offering support for the middle class.

Since his December 4 economic speech where he used the word "inequality" 26 times, the word is nonexistent in subsequent posts on his website, his press releases, and his speeches.

Obama's new tact is to sound like he is "lifting people up," as Paul Begala recently said.

OBAMA 'HIJACKS' NSA MEETING TICKS OFF TECHIES WITH HEALTHCARE PITCH

◼ Obama 'hijacks' tech executive meeting to make 'PR pitch' on Obamacare website fix instead of dealing with NSA surveillance - Daily Mail

During a White House meeting called to brief America's largest tech companies today about government overreach in electronic surveillance, President Barack Obama changed the subject – angering some meeting participants by shifting gears to address the failed launch of healthcare.gov....

One executive said that meeting participants were dead-set against straying from the principal focus of the meeting – the uncomfortable and legally untenable position they are in when the National Security Agency demands access to their digital records....

'He basically hijacked the meeting,' the executive said. 'We all told the White House that we were only there to talk about what the NSA was up to and how it affects us.'

The 15 companies, including Google, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Netflix, Twitter, Apple and Etsy, issued a one-line joint statement after the 150-minute marathon meeting in the White House's Roosevelt Room, saying that they 'appreciated the opportunity to share directly with the president our principles on government surveillance that we released last week and we urge him to move aggressively on reform.'

◼ "We really didn't care for a PR pitch about how the administration is trying to salvage its internal health care tech nightmare." - Althouse