Obama is all talk

Writing about politics and taking a serious interest in what citizen media has to say, I'm disappointed to see so many dimwits like the Hip Suburban White Guy who are still seemingly impressed with the fact that brown people can be articulate yet don't have any real insight into what the pretty words mean.

I'll do my best to help.

In a nutshell . . .

PRESIDENT OBAMA IS CARRYING FORWARD THE POLICIES OF THE G.W. BUSH ADMINISTRATION IN THE WAR OF TERROR DESPITE HIS PREVIOUS OBJECTIONS TO THESE VERY SAME TACTICS!!!

In his big, flowery speech last night the President renewed his commitment to closing Terrorist Prisoner Camps in Gitmo. What he didn't mention is that "Obama's Guantanamo" is now in Afghanistan and it's much bigger than the operation put together by former President Bush. And that's not the worst of it.

When it comes to the legalese of waging the War of Terror, President Obama has done a 180 degree turnaround from his campaign promises and is now running with the "State Secrets Privilege" right out of the G.W. Bush playbook.

What was abusive and dangerous about the Bush administration's version of the States Secret privilege -- just as the Obama/Biden campaign pointed out -- was that it was used not (as originally intended) to argue that specific pieces of evidence or documents were secret and therefore shouldn't be allowed in a court case, but instead, to compel dismissal of entire lawsuits in advance based on the claim that any judicial adjudication of even the most illegal secret government programs would harm national security. That is the theory that caused the bulk of the controversy when used by the Bush DOJ -- because it shields entire government programs from any judicial scrutiny -- and it is that exact version of the privilege that the Obama DOJ yesterday expressly advocated (and, by implication, sought to preserve for all Presidents, including Obama).

Put simply, all of Obama's complaining about prisoner abuse and what it reflected on the image of The United States throughout the world was nothing more than cheap campaign rhetoric that didn't even last two months into his Administration.

Here's a bit more proof for your edification, just in case your curiosity carries you further than cute TV soundbytes and into the actual G.W. Bush policy that Obama is sticking with . . . Check it:

New York Times: Obama's War on Terror May Resemble Bush’s in Some Areas

Wired: In Spy Case, Obama's Justice Department Holds Fast to State Secrets Privilege

Salon: Charlie Savage on Obama's embrace of Bush/Cheney "terrorism policies"

So, despite the warm feelings in the hearts of people who watch way too much TV . . . In reality, Obama has done nothing but reaffirm the policies of G.W. Bush within his first weeks in office . . . And then there's the whole messy business of the President doubling down, taking the same gamble as the former Soviet Union and condemning even more Americans to spend time in the "Graveyard of Empires" otherwise known as Afghanistan.

So, people hoping for change got nothing more than a slightly different skin color with, so far, very little evidence that the current president is really interested in anything but admitting defeat in Iraq, giving away a ridiculous amount of money just like his predecessor and continuing with his campaign speeches that rely far more on devotion to his celebrity status than any sort of real leadership.



Links courtesy of one of the most well-informed bloggers in the world - Daniel Radosh