Watching President Obamas inaugural I was confused. It looked like a new king was being crowned. Thousands cheered like subjects worshipping nobility. At a time when America faces unsustainable debt and terrible economic troubles why such pomp?
Maybe its because so many people tell themselves presidents can solve any problem like fairy-tale kings -- or gods.
Before Americas first inauguration John Adams suggested George Washington be called His Most Benign Highness. Fortunately Congress insisted on the more modest title President.
At his inaugural President Obama himself said The patriots of 1776 did not fight to replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few.
But then Obama went on to say that his privileged few should force the rest of us to do a zillion things.
He said We must do these things together. But what together means to big-government folks is that they have a vision -- and all of us together must go deeper into debt to pay for their vision even if we disagree.
We can afford this as the president apparently told John Boehner because America does not have a spending problem.
But of course we do have a spending problem and a debt problem and the president knows this.
Just a few years ago when George W. Bush was president the Congressional Record shows that Senator Obama said this: I rise today to talk about Americas debt problem. The fact that we are here to debate raising Americas debt limit is a sign of leadership failure and our governments reckless fiscal policies.
Right!
Sen. Obama went on: Over the past five years our federal debt has increased from $3.5 trillion to $8.6 trillion -- and yes I said trillion with a T!
Again he was right to worry about the debt and right to call it a hidden domestic enemy ... robbing our families and our children and seniors of the retirement and health security theyve counted on. ... It took 42 presidents 224 years to run up only $1 trillion of foreign-held debt. This administration did more than that in just five years.
Its hard to believe that Obama chose those words just seven years ago because now his administration has racked up another $6 trillion in debt.
Its also a shock that Barack Obama believed this: America has a debt problem. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase Americas debt limit.
Yet this year he demanded Congress raise the debt limit without conditions.
I want the old Barack Obama back. He made sense. The new guy he scares the heck out of me. Like a king he assumes that the realm will be better if he can spend as he pleases.
He also issues executive orders when Congress doesnt immediately do what he wants. To be fair he isnt the first president to do that. Or the worst.
That was Teddy Roosevelt. He issued 1000 executive orders including one that demanded phonetic spelling. On all government documents kissed should be K-I-S-T and enough E-N-U-F. At least Congress mustered the two-thirds vote needed to override that one.
I might not mind presidents behaving like kings -- if they at least made the tough decisions that the government needs to make like balancing the budget. But no president has tried to use an executive order to eliminate whole programs or cut spending. They almost always act only to increase their own power.
Yet they pretend they make bold choices -- even when refusing to make choices. Obama said We reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the elderly and investing in the next generation.
Thats Washington-speak for We will spend government money on young and old alike and refuse to think about when this will bankrupt America.
But it sounds exciting when he says it. Hes not just a king -- hes Santa Claus too. Except that Santa spends his own money. The president spends yours.
Kings dont like to be constrained. But all government should be.
John Stossel is host of Stossel on the Fox Business Network. Hes the author of No They Cant: Why Government Fails but Individuals Succeed. To find out more about John Stossel visit his site at >johnstossel.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. ©Creators Syndicate
Watching President Obamas inaugural I was confused. It looked like a new king was being crowned. Thousands cheered like subjects worshipping nobility. At a time when America faces unsustainable debt and terrible economic troubles why such pomp?
Maybe its because so many people tell themselves presidents can solve any problem like fairy-tale kings -- or gods.
Before Americas first inauguration John Adams suggested George Washington be called His Most Benign Highness. Fortunately Congress insisted on the more modest title President.
At his inaugural President Obama himself said The patriots of 1776 did not fight to replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few.
But then Obama went on to say that his privileged few should force the rest of us to do a zillion things.
He said We must do these things together. But what together means to big-government folks is that they have a vision -- and all of us together must go deeper into debt to pay for their vision even if we disagree.
We can afford this as the president apparently told John Boehner because America does not have a spending problem.
But of course we do have a spending problem and a debt problem and the president knows this.
Just a few years ago when George W. Bush was president the Congressional Record shows that Senator Obama said this: I rise today to talk about Americas debt problem. The fact that we are here to debate raising Americas debt limit is a sign of leadership failure and our governments reckless fiscal policies.
Right!
Sen. Obama went on: Over the past five years our federal debt has increased from $3.5 trillion to $8.6 trillion -- and yes I said trillion with a T!
Again he was right to worry about the debt and right to call it a hidden domestic enemy ... robbing our families and our children and seniors of the retirement and health security theyve counted on. ... It took 42 presidents 224 years to run up only $1 trillion of foreign-held debt. This administration did more than that in just five years.
Its hard to believe that Obama chose those words just seven years ago because now his administration has racked up another $6 trillion in debt.
Its also a shock that Barack Obama believed this: America has a debt problem. I therefore intend to oppose the effort to increase Americas debt limit.
Yet this year he demanded Congress raise the debt limit without conditions.
I want the old Barack Obama back. He made sense. The new guy he scares the heck out of me. Like a king he assumes that the realm will be better if he can spend as he pleases.
He also issues executive orders when Congress doesnt immediately do what he wants. To be fair he isnt the first president to do that. Or the worst.
That was Teddy Roosevelt. He issued 1000 executive orders including one that demanded phonetic spelling. On all government documents kissed should be K-I-S-T and enough E-N-U-F. At least Congress mustered the two-thirds vote needed to override that one.
I might not mind presidents behaving like kings -- if they at least made the tough decisions that the government needs to make like balancing the budget. But no president has tried to use an executive order to eliminate whole programs or cut spending. They almost always act only to increase their own power.
Yet they pretend they make bold choices -- even when refusing to make choices. Obama said We reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the elderly and investing in the next generation.
Thats Washington-speak for We will spend government money on young and old alike and refuse to think about when this will bankrupt America.
But it sounds exciting when he says it. Hes not just a king -- hes Santa Claus too. Except that Santa spends his own money. The president spends yours.
Kings dont like to be constrained. But all government should be.
John Stossel is host of Stossel on the Fox Business Network. Hes the author of No They Cant: Why Government Fails but Individuals Succeed. To find out more about John Stossel visit his site at >johnstossel.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. ©Creators Syndicate
