Barack Hussein Obama....

Barack Obama was at his best in Ottawa this week, charming and well-rehearsed through a brief and inconsequential visit, and flattering in the joint announcement of such vacuities as the "clean energy dialogue." Stephen Harper, too, escaped any difficulty, with the greater challenge of basking in Obama's golden glow. It is nice that both Caesars have come to bury carbon, not release it into the atmosphere.

The serious "dialogue" may begin when the Obama administration resolves to "bury" carbon through "cap and trade," and put California-dreamin' emission standards on all cars, with the Canadian government following loyally behind, like a prisoner tied to a jeep by a cord. There is the little matter of our failing auto industry; but the larger one of what happens to our cash cow, Alberta, if and when Obama and Congressional Democrats put Americans' money where his mouth was during the election campaign.

That he may well be as good as his word, on the "green" issues among others, is an appalling thought, given the present economic fragility.

The series of gestures on moral issues with which he has begun his presidency (executive orders made or impending on taxpayer funding to promote abortions, and on stem cells that require the destruction of human embryos), and the recklessness with which the "stimulus bill" was rammed through Congress (loaded with funding for various Left-Democrat causes despite Republican outrage), should help us to realize that only his promise of bipartisanship was misleading.

But while I might argue there is no moral justification for the new directions, there is certainly a democratic justification: for Obama, as he has been at pains to remind his political adversaries, won the election.

Indeed, he was fortunate to benefit when the American public was suddenly distracted by a financial crisis, from what was turning (via the Sarah Palin candidacy, and Catholic rebukes of Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi) into an interesting discussion of life issues. My reader may recall that that discussion corresponded to the moment when Obama slipped behind in the polls.

Likewise, foreign affairs were suddenly thrust into the back trunk. I argued last year that it was hard to take seriously a foreign policy that seemed to consist of punishing America's friends, and encouraging her enemies; that offered, for example, threats to Pakistan but dialogue with Iran.

I did not at the time expect that it would ever come into play, however, for I assumed that even if Obama won the election, more sober influences within the Democratic Party would prevail, and in the end he would find himself with something that secretly resembled the Bush doctrines.

I have lost that confidence since watching the new White House destructively criticize Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai, congratulate Venezuelans on constitutional changes that will enable Hugo Chavez to be president-for-life, deliver an entirely gratuitous apology for American behaviour towards the Islamic world, and send George Mitchell off to the Middle East to strike a more "balanced" posture between Israel and Hamas. This, after decisions on Guantanamo that signal a new "catch and release" approach to the world's most dangerous terrorists.

While I doubt Americans intentionally voted for any of that, they did sign a blank cheque for unspecified "hope" and "change," and they did endorse a candidate whose popularity was not only greater abroad than at home, but especially high among anti-Americans. They now have a President who is taking lectures from such as Desmond Tutu. He warns that Obama will squander the world's goodwill if he does not immediately apologize to the Iraqi people for the "unmitigated disaster" in which George Bush freed them from Saddam Hussein.

The western world has a new captain who must deal with such problems as the one presented to NATO forces in Afghanistan, by the Kyrgyzstan government's decision to evict the U.S. from a major forward air base, at a time when supply routes through Pakistan are increasingly endangered. We have some idea how such a problem would have been dealt with by previous administrations, behind the scenes. We have no idea how the Obama administration will deal with such things.

And we will see. Meanwhile, my most sanguine impression, in a sweeping view of the economic, social, and foreign prospects of the new American executive -- which embraces also the chaos we have seen in cabinet appointments and the like -- is that we have already returned to the Carter era. I hope it won't be worse than that.

The freedom we spoke of earlier is the freedom, it's the ambition, it's the desire, the wherewithal, the passions that people have that gave us the great entrepreneurial advances, the great inventions, the greatest food production, the human lifestyle advances in this country, why shouldn't that be rewarded? Why is that now the focus of punishment? Why is that now the focus of blame? Why doesn't -- Mayor Bloomberg the other day, ladies and gentlemen, resisting his Governor's call for an increased tax on the rich in New York had some astounding numbers. Eight million people live in New York. 40,000 of those eight million pay roughly 60 to 70% of New York's operating budget. He was afraid that if he raised taxes on those people some of them might leave. Mayor, one already has, by the way. [Applause] Stop and think of this, though. Stop and think of this. 40,000 people out of eight million. He's right, if 10,000 of them leave, or 5,000, they've got a huge problem. Because New York has its own welfare state inside the one the federal government's created. They've got a dependency class that has grown up and been educated their entitlement is to be fed and taken care of by these evil mean people who have more than they do. If New York City, New York State or Washington, DC were a business, these 40,000 people would be taken on golf tournament trips to Los Angeles, and they would be wined and dined and they would be thanked and they would be encouraged to keep it up. They wouldn't be told they're the problem. They wouldn't be told, except there's -- I pride my accuracy rating. There is one other business where the customer is always wrong and that's the media. Sorry about that. [Applause]

Have you ever called to complain about whatever they do? They say, yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full. They hang up and say you're too stupid to know how they're doing what they're doing. You can't get it. You're not sophisticated enough. So that's another business where the customer is always wrong. But, seriously, the people who have achieved great things, most of it is not inherited. Most wealth in this country is the result of entrepreneurial, just plain old hard work. There's no reason to punish it. There's no reason to raise taxes on these people. Barack Obama, the Democrat Party, have one responsibility, and that's to respect the oath they gave to protect, defend and follow the US Constitution.

They don't have the right to take money that's not theirs and none of it is from the back pockets of producers and give it to groups like ACORN which are going to advance the Democrat Party. If anybody but government were doing this, it would be a crime. And many of us think it's bordering on that as it exists now.

President Obama is so busy trying to foment and create anger in a created atmosphere of crisis. He is so busy fueling the emotions of class envy that he's forgotten it's not his money that he's spending. [Applause] In fact, the money he's spending is not ours. He's spending wealth that has yet to be created. And that is not sustainable. It will not work. This has been tried around the world. And every time it's been tried it's a failed disaster.

On President Obama’s secret letter to Russian president, Dmitri Medvedev proposing a deal on missile defense:

This is smart diplomacy? This is a debacle. The Russians dismissed it contemptuously.



Look, if we could get the Iranian nuclear program stopped with Russian's helping us in return for selling out the Poles and the Czechs on missile defense, I'm enough of a cynic and a realist to say we would do it the same way that Kissinger agreed to delegitimize and de-recognize Taiwan in return for a large strategic opening with China.



But Kissinger had it done. He had it wired. What happened here is it was leaked. The Russians have dismissed it. We end up being humiliated. We look weak in front of the Iranians, and we have left the Poles and Czechs out to dry in return for nothing.



The Czechs and the Poles went out on a limb, exposed themselves to Russian pressure, and we have shown that Eastern Europe is not as sovereign as it appears if the Russian influence is there, and we will acquiesce in what they consider their own sphere of influence.



This administration has prided itself, flattered itself on deploying smart diplomacy. "Smart diplomacy" is a meaningless idea, but if it has any meaning at all, it is not ever doing something as humiliating, amateurish, and stupid as this.



On the president’s proposed cap-and-trade plan:



It is an ill disguised tax on the production of carbon. It will be a blow to American industry, particularly in the heartland, to the American economy. Particularly in our economic distress, it makes no sense at all.



The only purpose is the reduction of global warming, which in and of itself is speculative. And even if it were not, the fact that India and China are not in on this means that any of our savings on that, which are going to add a huge expense to our economy, will be swallowed up entirely by increased pollution by India and China.



India this week has said it will not cooperate on a regime of enforced carbon reduction. We will get nowhere on this except really injuring our economy.

Who will cover this gaffe? In a story headlined "Tongue-Tied Clinton Gets Warm E.U. Welcome," Reuters reported that Hillary Clinton mispronounced several names and claimed American democracy’s been "around a lot longer than European democracy." Reporter David Brunnstrom tried to make excuses – she’s not gaffe-prone, just tuckered out:

Tiredness appeared to show Friday when she answered questions in front of 500 young Europeans at the European Parliament, where she was the highest-ranking U.S. visitor since the late U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1985.

A veteran politician, Clinton compared the complex European political environment to that of the two-party U.S. system, before adding:

"I have never understood multiparty democracy. It is hard enough with two parties to come to any resolution, and I say this very respectfully, because I feel the same way about our own democracy, which has been around a lot longer than European democracy."

The remark provoked much headshaking in the parliament of a bloc that likes to trace back its democratic tradition thousands of years to the days of classical Greece.

One working lunch later with EU leaders, Clinton raised more eyebrows when she referred to EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who stood beside her, as "High Representative Solano."

She also dubbed European Commission External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner as "Benito."

Will Katie Couric and everyone else who tried to suggest Sarah Palin wasn't bright enough for the big jobs notice Hillary bumbling around and confessing (like a Couric) that "I have never understood parliamentary democracy"?

she’s not gaffe-prone, just tuckered out:

I urge you to immediately sign our PETITION TO BARACK
OBAMA.
I'll give you the link in a moment, but first I want to explain why it's vital you respond today.
From tax increases to new regulations on job providers, there are many "changes" Barack Obama hopes to impose early in his Presidency. But at the very top of his list are measures to vastly increase the money and forced-dues power of the hard left Big Labor Bosses.

Why? Because Obama knows that pushing his far left agenda will be far easier with the money and manpower of Big Labor on his side. And because, quite frankly, as he himself said in his political memoir, "The Audacity of Hope,"
"I owe those unions... When their leaders call, I do my best to call them back right away. I don't mind feeling obligated."

Well, Barack Obama may indeed owe the Big Labor Bosses. But his election did not give him a "mandate" to dramatically expand their forced unionism power...
... and your PETITION sends that message loud and clear to our new President!
As a member of Congress, I can tell you that we now face OVERWHELMING challenges in stopping these forced unionism power grabs. Generating massive grassroots pressure is our only hope.

Your PETITION reminds Barack Obama that he was not in any way elected to push through policies that will:
1) DENY workers the right to a secret ballot when voting on whether or not they want to be part of a union (this is at top of the agenda for Big Labor, because it would enable union organizers to forcibly unionize millions more workers into dues-paying union ranks);
2) BAN companies in effect from running their companies during a strike -- a right they have held for roughly 70 years;
3) ATTACK all 22 state Right to Work laws, which make union membership and union dues voluntary;
4) INSTALL hundreds of Big Labor cronies on the federal courts, throughout the Department of Labor, the National Labor Relations Board, and other federal agencies;
5) EXPAND the definition of "employee" and narrow the definition of management, thereby placing more employees under union boss control; and
6) FORCE state and local governments under the monopoly control of union bosses as the monopoly bargaining agents for police, firefighters, and other first responders.
Each of these steps will dramatically increase the political influence, money, and power of the far left Big Labor Bosses.
Each will enhance Big Labor's ability to help President Barack Obama and the anti-free enterprise majority in Congress impose a crippling forced unionism agenda on America.

Each will ensure Big Labor's ability to help re-elect even more union stooge politicians in the future...
... and each of these draconian forced unionism power grabs is on the table right here and now in Washington!
That's why we haven't a moment to lose.
And why I need your signed PETITION TO BARACK OBAMA without delay. Please, we plan on swamping Barack Obama in a sea of PETITIONS just as he settles into the Oval Office. Sign the petition to Barack Obama now by clicking here.

http://www.righttoworkfoundation.org/petition.aspx?PID=41

Because it is vital that he understands HE HAS NO MANDATE to give his Big Labor patrons new powers to enslave millions of additional workers in unions and steal their income through confiscatory dues...

... and your PETITION will do just that!
But time is short. And we need to strike hard and fast.
So please, act now. Today.
Together, we will prevent Barack Obama from handing over the keys to American workplaces to the Big Labor Kingpins.

And make no mistake: We fail at our nation's peril!
I hope you agree. And that you'll join me and the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation (NRTWLDF) in this fight today.
The National Right to Work Foundation is one of my favorite groups because it is so effective. Its attorneys have gone toe to toe with union lawyers at the U.S. Supreme Court 14 times, to say nothing of literally thousands of other cases

And no one has a better track record on taking on the Big Labor Bosses and their agenda -- and winning -- than the Foundation's legal team.
For example, it was the National Right to Work Foundation that won a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of CWA Union v. Beck, forbidding union bosses from spending workers' forced dues on politics and lobbying.

Of course, the Big Labor Bosses have all but ignored that ruling.
And the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation continues to slam them with lawsuits to remind them that the Beck decision is all too real -- and that they must follow the law!
But facts are facts.
And the union bosses' vision for "change" in Washington is going to make our job harder than ever before. But we have been through tough times before and prevailed.

We can and will prevail again in the coming age of Obama.
And we will do so with the help of the Foundation's team of tough, brilliant, and freedom-loving attorneys who will be working from day one to:
1) Keep Barack Obama from advancing the power and reach of the corrupt labor union kingpins -- fighting his illegal forced unionism policies in the courts.
2) Prosecute union activists who illegally seize and spend forced-dues money to lobby Congress and state legislatures for bigger government, higher taxes, or more forced unionism.
3) Protect popular state Right to Work laws from attempts to limit or abolish the legal rights that workers in 22 states enjoy under those laws. Union Bosses are mounting end runs around these laws and may now mount a full frontal assault.
4) Expose Big Labor's misdeeds. Every time Foundation attorneys file charges against union bosses for breaking the law, misappropriating union dues, or instigating violence against independent workers, the Foundation hammers the union bosses in the press for their ugly abuses.
This program could not be more needed as we enter the radical Obama era. And none of the Foundation's planned precedent-setting legal battles for 2009 will be more crucial than its Supreme Court legal program.

For example, not long ago, Foundation attorneys scored another major victory at the United States Supreme Court in the case of Davenport v. Washington Education Association (WEA).
This pivotal case appealed a Washington State Supreme Court ruling granting union bosses the right to spend on politics the confiscated dues of nonmembers without obtaining their consent.
The lower court's decision even threatened Right to Work laws banning forced union dues in all 22 states where they now apply.

And, if it had been upheld, it would have been a disaster for hard-working Americans everywhere -- and a major, historic boost for the union bosses.
But the Foundation fought it. And won.
And this is just one example of why the Foundation's Supreme Court litigation program is crucial. But, regardless of which way the Foundation's Supreme Court cases go (including one pending right now)...

... winning in the court of public opinion is going to be just as important as winning in a court of law.
It's also vital that we keep the heat on politicians to ensure they do not trample the constitutional rights of America's workforce.
And with the recent election of the most extreme President and Congress this nation has seen in a generation...
... the Foundation's mission has never been more needed!

But -- while the Foundation is expert at taking on the Big Labor Bosses and their forced unionism, leftist agenda in both the court of law and the court of public opinion -- it cannot succeed on its own.
It urgently needs both the grassroots AND financial support of like-minded, freedom-loving Americans like you.
Which is why, in addition to your signed PETITION TO BARACK OBAMA...

Your PETITION will serve as an official "welcome" to Barack Obama and official notification that, while the national news media may cover for him whenever they can...
... when it comes to his appeasing the leftist Big Labor Bosses and their pathological lust for power,
... the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation will be fighting him every step of the way!

But to ensure that this "welcome" (and warning) is a big and continuous one, the Foundation wants to distribute as many as 10 million additional Petitions over Obama's first several months in office...
... which is why it also needs your tax-deductible donation of $20, $25, $35, $50, $75, $100, or more.
Your much-needed generous gift will help fund the substantial amount this grassroots Petition campaign may require when all is said and done.

Your special tax-deductible gift will also help our ongoing operating and legal costs which are -- believe me -- significant.
The bottom line is, it costs a lot of money to keep attorneys available to help workers fight back, carry out legal research, hire security to guard workers who are threatened, conduct depositions, and pay for court costs.
But that's what is needed to mount strong cases and see them through to victory.

To raise these funds, the Foundation relies entirely on voluntary donations from patriots like you.
And believe me, it has a long history of using these resources for maximum benefit.
I hope you understand -- and that you will respond without delay.
So again, please, sign the PETITION TO BARACK OBAMA by clicking here.
Then please make a most generous and much-needed donation of $20, $25, $35, $50, $75, $100, or more to the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is fighting to give rank-and-file workers a choice.

And nothing would cripple Big Labor's agenda faster than ending forced union dues for politics.
But with Barack Obama and the most pro-forced-unionism Congress in at least a generation now in charge in Washington, this mission has never been more difficult -- or more urgent.

Steve King (R-IA)
United States Congressman
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The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, is assisting thousands of employees in more than 200 cases nationwide. Its web address is http://www.nrtw.org.

Why did the Obama administration bungle the protocol for the state visit of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown? The Sunday Telegraph is suggesting an explanation that is bone chilling in its implications.

"Barack Obama's offhand approach to Gordon Brown's Washington visit last week came about because the president was facing exhaustion over America's economic crisis and is unable to focus on foreign
Barack Obama "Overwhelmed" by Economic Crisis
affairs...

"Sources close to the White House say Mr. Obama and his staff have been "overwhelmed" by the economic meltdown and have voiced concerns that the new president is not getting enough rest."

Translated, this suggests that President Barack Obama and his White House staff are incompetent and are incapable of doing their jobs. The implications of this revelation, so early in the Obama administration, should give pause. While the Obama administration is foundering in its so far unsuccessful attempts to deal with the economic crisis, it is neglecting foreign policy and national security to the extent that it cannot even properly handle the proper protocols for a visiting head of government from one of America's oldest allies.

America's enemies cannot help but notice this situation. One can only imagine what is going through the heads of such people as Osama bin Laden and Ahmadinejad of Iran as they plot their next moves against the United States. The combination of a President in over his head and enemies eager to do the United States harm is invariably lethal. One can only look back to the Carter administration and the Iran hostage crisis or the Clinton administration and the Somalia fiasco to imagine what is in store for the United States under Barack Obama.

How this situation came about is also suggested in the Sunday Telegraph article.

"The Sunday Telegraph understands that one of Mr. Obama's most prominent African American backers, whose endorsement he spent two years cultivating, has told friends that he detects a weakness in Mr. Obama's character.