The Dem’s Toyota Legislation

Washington DC—Health care reform is again on the congressional docket. The president is on the HCR campaign trail. But this is not how it was supposed to happen.

Recently, radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh postulated that after HCR is passed in the House and signed by Obama, the issue will be left alone as a stop-loss for the coming November election. Interesting point, but I believe Mr. Limbaugh has not taken the theory far enough.

Think back to Mr. Obama’s first act as president; he signed an order to close GITMO. That was it. Nothing more was really said about it. After which, the stimulus bill was passed, making key parts of the private sector dependent on the government. Next was the Iraq drawdown and new Afghanistan strategy. The latter played in the media as a front-page above-the-fold issue for months; meanwhile, HCR was being fashioned along with cap and trade. And now, there is news the administration is considering immigration reform and the take-over of Sallie Mae. Neither issue is getting much attention, but they are quietly being moved.

And here is where Mr. Limbaugh’s theory can be taken a step further. I submit the democrat majority and the White House embarked on a strategy since the inauguration. I would venture to call it Toyota legislation, that is, incremental legislation that is passed without much hullabaloo under the democrat majority, designed to accelerate wildly out of control of future congresses.

All of the above mentioned initiatives are part of the groundwork to put in place the transformation of America into a western European socialist democracy. And that is why HCR was supposed to pass last summer. Once the legislation is passed, like a Toyota accelerating without warning, the congress and administration could go full speed ahead and no one could stop them.


-- Owen E. Richason IV
Chief Editor, Killswitch Politick


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Too smart by half

Too smart by half

The President ran on a platform of hope and change, problem is, now he has to deliver. His camp set the bar high on reform and post partisanship but nine months into his presidency, the American people are loudly rejecting his centerpiece reform of health care and by all indications of his policy leanings, he is decidedly to the far left in a center-right country.

Mr. Obama’s present troubles largely come from what he promised during his campaign. The now infamous Fred Armisen/Saturday Night Live spoof hits the nail directly on the head – Candidate Obama over-promised for 20+ months but President Obama has not delivered though he has a democrat majority in both the House and Senate:

• Candidate Obama promised to close Gitmo; President Obama did so yet it remains open
• Candidate Obama promised to withdraw from Iraq; President Obama has not order a withdrawal
• Candidate Obama promised to focus on the war in Afghanistan; President Obama is waffling on his commitment
• Candidate Obama promised transparency; President Obama has largely been stealthy
• Candidate Obama promised to reduce the deficit and reign in spending; President Obama signed a budget busting “stimulus”
• Candidate Obama promised to bring back jobs; President Obama presides over 9.8% unemployment figure that continues to rise
• Candidate Obama promised to go through the federal budget line-by-line and make cuts; President Obama doesn’t have line-item veto power

In my last post I outlined what the President should be doing. Instead of pushing health care reform, he ought to be engaged on three fronts: the economy and jobs, the war in Afghanistan and Iran. Should he take decisive action on these issues, the poll numbers would swing his way.

The problem for the President is he can’t do any of those things without alienating his base: giving corporations tax breaks and other incentives to up productivity and begin hiring won’t go over well with democrats and most independents. Taking a tough stance on Iran will make the left apoplectic and sending more troops to Afghanistan will cause the anti-war crowd to go insane. By contrast, republicans and center-right independents would support such policies, but at the cost of his base.

Candidate Obama ran on a slogan of change we can believe in and his supporters believed him. With such lofty promises, Candidate Obama has made President Obama’s job near impossible.