The Bystander-In-Chief

No, this is not Watergate or Iran-Contra. Nor is it like the sex scandal that got Bill Clinton impeached.

The AP, IRS and Benghazi matters represent a scandal not of presidential wrongdoing, but of presidential indolence, indifference and incompetence in discharging the duties of chief executive.

The Barack Obama revealed to us in recent days is something rare in our history: a spectator president, clueless about what is going on in his own household, who reacts to revelations like some stunned bystander.

Consider. Because of a grave national security leak, President Obama’s Department of Justice seized two months of records from 20 telephones used by The Associated Press. An unprecedented seizure.

Yet the president was left completely in the dark. And though he rushed to defend the seizure, he claims he was uninvolved.

While the AP issue does not appear to have legs—we know what was done and why—it has badly damaged this president. For his own Justice Department treated the press, which has an exalted opinion of itself and its role, with the same contempt as the IRS treated the Tea Party.

The episode has damaged a crucial presidential asset. For this Washington press corps had provided this president with a protective coverage of his follies and failings unseen since the White House press of half a century ago covered up the prowlings of JFK.

The Benghazi issue is of far greater gravity. Still, Obama’s sins here as well seem to be those of omission, not commission.

The president was apparently completely in the dark about the urgent requests from Benghazi for more security. Obama was also apparently completely out of the loop during the seven-hour crisis of Sept. 11-12, when Ambassador Stevens was assassinated, calls for help from Benghazi were denied and two heroic ex-Navy SEALs died fighting to defend U.S. personnel from the roof of that CIA installation.

No one seems to know where Obama was that night.

MORE . . . .

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• White House Troubles (lewrockwell.com)
• The Bystander President (theamericanconservative.com)
• The Spectator President (takimag.com)
• The Spectator President (buchanan.org)
• Half of America wants Obama impeached (wnd.com)
• It’s Bigger Than Obama — We’re Witnessing What Happens When Liberalism Rules (rushlimbaugh.com)

Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., questions ousted IRS Chief Steve Miller and J. Russell George, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, as they testify during a hearing at the House Ways and Means Committee on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) practice of targeting applicants for tax-exempt status based on political leanings on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Friday, May 17, 2013. Credit: AP

via TheBlaze.com

The gallery at the House Ways and Means Committee Friday had to be called to order after it burst into applause and some gave a standing ovation following an impassioned diatribe against the IRS by Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly.

Kelly took his time during the hearing on the IRS’s targeting of conservatives to lambaste outgoing head Steven Miller, reminding Miller that while the IRS would like to chalk the organization’s recent actions up to a mistake, regular Americans do not get that luxury when dealing with the IRS.

“If you think it’s uncomfortable sitting over there you ought to be a private individual when the IRS is across from you asking you questions,” Kelly began, and that set the tone for the subsequent four minutes.

Some of the highlights:

• “I have a grandson who’s afraid to get out of bed at night because he thinks there’s someone under the bed that’s going to grab him. And I think most Americans feel that way about the IRS.”
• “This kind of reconfirms that, you know what, they [the IRS] can do almost anything they want to anybody they want, anytime they want. This is very chilling for the American people.”
• “This is a Pandora’s Box that has been opened and I don’t think we can get the lid back on it.”
• “I don’t believe the White House just found out about this in a news report.”
• “I got to tell you, where you’re sitting, you should be outraged — and you’re not. The American people should be outraged, and they are.”
• “This reconfirms everything the American public believes! This is a huge blow to the faith and trust the American people have in their government!”
• “Is there any limit to the scope of where you folks can go?”
• “It’s sure as hell intimidating. And I don’t’ know that I got any answers from you today.”
• “I am more concerned today than I was before. The fact that you all can do just about anything you want to anybody. You know, you can put anybody out of business that you want anytime you want.”
• “And when the IRS comes in, you’re not allowed to be shoddy, you’re not allowed to be run horribly, you’re not allowed to make mistakes, you’re not allowed to do one damn thing that doesn’t come in compliance. If you do, you’re held responsible right then.”
• “This is absolutely an overreach and this is an outrage for all America!”

you can watch the impassioned speech below and watch the gallery erupt:

Mike Kelly IRS

►

Audience members applaud after Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., not pictured, questioned ousted IRS Chief Steve Miller as he testified on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Friday, May 17, 2013, before the House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) practice of targeting applicants for tax-exempt status based on political leanings. Credit: AP

Members of the audience stand and applaud after Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., criticized Steven Miller, the ousted chief of the Internal Revenue Service, as the House Ways and Means Committee focused on the extra scrutiny the IRS gave Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, May 17, 2013. Tea Party Patriots co-founder Jenny Beth Martin sits at front left. Credit: AP

Related articles

• The Scathing Speech That Just Got a Standing Ovation During the IRS Hearing (theblaze.com)
• The Scathing Speech That Just Got a Standing Ovation During the IRS Hearing (usapartisan.com)
• Congressman gets standing O for nailing IRS chief (wnd.com)
• Congressman Goes On Berating Rant At Ousted IRS Commissioner And Gets A Standing Ovation (businessinsider.com)
• Independents, Republicans believe IRS, Benghazi scandals deserve further investigation (theblaze.com)
• AWESOME! Rep Mike Kelly Receives Standing Ovation After Epic Rant at IRS Hearing (Video) (thegatewaypundit.com)

Please read the rules before playing. This distraction may dull the nausea.

Rules for Bullshit Bingo:

1. before barrack obama’s next televised speech, print your “bullshit bingo”
2. check off the appropriate block when you hear one of those words/phrases.
3. when you get five blocks horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, stand up and shout “bullshit!”

Related articles

• Barack Obama Bingo Game (thesource.typepad.com)

(CBS News) “Everybody in the mission” in Benghazi, Libya, thought the attack on a U.S. consulate there last Sept. 11 was an act of terror “from the get-go,” according to excerpts of an interview investigators conducted with the No. 2 official in Libya at the time, obtained by CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

“I think everybody in the mission thought it was a terrorist attack from the beginning,” Greg Hicks, a 22-year foreign service diplomat who was the highest-ranking U.S. official in Libya after the strike, told investigators under authority of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Hicks, the former U.S. Embassy Tripoli deputy chief of mission, was not in Benghazi at the time of the attack, which killed Chris Stevens – then the U.S. ambassador to Libya – and three other Americans.

When he appears this week before the committee, chaired by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., Hicks is expected to offer testimony at odds with what some American officials were saying in public – and on “Face the Nation” – just five days after the attack. Benghazi whistleblowers have rallied attention to discrepancies among the administration’s reaction to the attack, which The Weekly Standard suggests was frayed by ever-evolving talking points that sought to remove references to al Qaeda.

On Sept. 16, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice hit the media circuit, appearing on all five Sunday talk shows to dispel the notion that the strike was a premeditated terrorist act and to perpetuate the case that it began “spontaneously” out of protests in Egypt. Rice’s spot on “Face the Nation” that day was preceded by the new President of Libya Mohammed al-Magariaf, who said his government had “no doubt that this was preplanned, predetermined.”

MORE . . . .

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• Official: We Knew Benghazi as a Terrorist Attack “From The Get-go” (tarpon.wordpress.com)
• Prepare For Bombshells From The Benghazi Whistle Blower Hearings On Wednesday (warnewsupdates.blogspot.com)
• Official: We knew terrorists attacked Benghazi “from the get-go” (cbsnews.com)
• Diplomat to testify that Benghazi “was a terrorist attack from the beginning” (hotair.com)
• Administration Knew Benghazi Was a Terrorist Attack ‘From the Get-Go’ (pjmedia.com)
• Rice’s Lies Hurt FBI’s Investigation Of Benghazi (sweetness-light.com)
• Official: We knew Benghazi was a terrorist attack “from the get-go” – CBS News (askmarion.wordpress.com)
• Darrell Issa says there was ‘clearly a political decision’ regarding Benghazi talking points (twitchy.com)
• Top Diplomat in Benghazi to Testify, “Everybody in the Mission” Thought 9/11 Attack Perpetrated by Terrorists “From the Get-Go” (nationalreview.com)
• U.S. Official Contradicts Initial White House Claims On Benghazi (huffingtonpost.com)

However, yesterday on Facebook, my worldview was radically altered and I can only lay the responsibility for that at her feet.  Well, hers and Mel Gibson’s.

She had apparently just watched Snow White and the Huntsman for the first time, and was (unsurprisingly) appalled by Kristen Stewart’s attempts at acting (and an English accent) and also by Chris Hemsworth’s stab at a Scottish accent.  I’ve seen the film, and I was significantly less than impressed with Hemsworth’s accent myself.  I honestly thought Kristen Stewart managed a better English accent than Hemsworth’s Scottish one.

Regardless, my actual Scottish friend/acquaintance made a comment about what a poor attempt Hemsworth had made and went on to say that it was, “definitely rivaling that numpty Mel Gibson for horrendous Scottish accent-ness.”

OH GOD WHAT IS HAPPENING I CAN’T FEEL MY FACE.

In that instant, my entire perception of the world and what knowledge I may or may not have of accents different from my own was relentlessly shattered into a million pieces.  The universe seemed to inhale and collapse in on itself.  The heavens shook, the earth trembled – I felt faint.

Because, I always thought Mel Gibson did a pretty bitchin’ Scottish accent in Braveheart.

What kind of world is this?  Has everything been a lie?  Now, I begin to question my perception of other actors using accents that don’t belong to them.  Is Johnny Depp’s English accent not as spot on as I always thought?  Was Claire Dane’s English accent in Stardust not as passable as I had assumed?

What is truth, anymore?

This left me feeling exposed and with an irrational need to defend Mel Gibson by pointing out something ridiculous, like the fact that Gerard Butler’s American accent is absolutely terrible.  So there.  And Claire Forlani’s American accent is equally terrible (even though she’s English, but whatever) and why is she always being cast as an American when her accent is so bad?

Seriously, this is stretching the limits of my sanity.  Mel Gibson is just… well, he’s Mel Gibson, isn’t he?  (By the way, I just mistyped his name as Mel Bison – that is how unsettled I am.)  Braveheart was a seriously wonderful film.  And I’m just… I mean, he sounds Scottish, to me.  There are other actors in that movie who actually are Scottish, and he sounds like them.  Doesn’t he?  I mean, he may not be the best fake Scot ever, but I always thought he was good.

But, apparently I know nothing!  Now, I don’t know what to do.  Everything is different.  The stars aren’t as bright in the night sky.  The days seem chillier than before.  Why, Mel Bison?  Why did you fool me with your supposed Scottish brogue?  How can I go on, now, knowing that everything was a lie?

He’s still a card carrying bad ass in that film, though.  No one has to give a shit about your accent for you to crack skulls or murder someone in their bed with your fucking horse.

However, yesterday on Facebook, my worldview was radically altered and I can only lay the responsibility for that at her feet.  Well, her’s and Mel Gibson’s.

She had apparently just viewed Snow White and the Huntsman for the first time, and was (unsurprisingly) appalled by Kristen Stewart’s attempts at acting (and an English accent) and also by Chris Hemsworth’s stab at a Scottish accent.  I’ve seen the film, and I was significantly less than impressed with Hemsworth’s accent myself.  I honestly thought Kristen Stewart managed a better English accent than Hemsworth’s Scottish one.

Regardless, my actual Scottish friend/acquaintance made a comment about what a poor attempt Hemsworth had made and went on to say that it was, “definitely rivaling that numpty Mel Gibson for horrendous Scottish accent-ness.”

OH GOD WHAT IS HAPPENING I CAN’T FEEL MY FACE.

In that instant, my entire perception of the world and what knowledge I may or may not have of accents different from my own was relentlessly shattered into a million pieces.  The universe seemed to inhale and collapse in on itself.  The heavens shook, the earth trembled – I felt faint.

Because, I always thought Mel Gibson did a pretty bitchin’ Scottish accent in Braveheart.

What kind of world is this?  Has everything been a lie?  Now, I begin to question my perception of other actors using accents that don’t belong to them.  Is Johnny Depp’s English accent not as spot on as I always thought?  Was Claire ane’s English accent in Stardust not as passable as I had assumed?

What is truth, anymore?

This always left me feeling exposed and with an irrational need to defend Mel Gibson by pointing out something ridiculous, like the fact that Gerard Butler’s American accent is absolutely terrible.  So there.  And Claire Forlani’s American accent is equally terrible (even though she’s English, but whatever) and why is she always being cast as an American when her accent is so bad?

Seriously, this is stretching the limits of my sanity.  Mel Gibson is just… well, he’s Mel Gibson, isn’t he?  (By the way, I just mistyped his name as Mel Bison – that is how unsettled I am.)  Braveheart was a seriously wonderful film.  And I’m just… I mean, he sounds Scottish, to me.  There are other actors in that movie who actually are Scottish, and he sounds like them.  Doesn’t he?  I mean, he may not be the best fake Scottish ever, but I though it was decent.

But, apparently I know nothing!  Now, I don’t know what to do.  Everything is different.  The stars aren’t as bright in the night sky.  The days seem chillier than before.  Why, Mel Bison?  Why did you fool me with your supposed Scottish brogue?  How can I go on, now, knowing that everything was a lie?

He’s still a card carrying bad ass in that film, though.  You don’t have to use an accent to crack skulls or murder someone in their bed with your fucking horse.

It is a size TWO. I have never been a size two, nor do I believe this is actually a size two. Today’s vanity sizing has my innards feeling all conflicted.

On the one hand, I’m all, “Hooray! I fit into a size two!” But on the other, I feel like everything in this world is just a giant lie and that there’s no longer a decent measuring stick for sizing.

For the record, I’m 5’7″, 140 pounds of pure candy, and a 32B. I’m not fat, but I’m also not “skinny.” I’m thin and athletic and most definitely NOT a Size two. LIES.

*This humble-brag brought to you by The Gap.

Buy a Shotgun Joe Biden Lying AR-15 – YouTube.

via Telegraph

King Obama to the poor

Once, only nobles were granted an audience with the King.

In America, we’ve prided ourselves on abandoning those privileges of class some 237 years ago, following that little uprising in the 13 colonies.

And we again congratulated ourselves at 12:01 pm Eastern Time on January 20, 2009, just moments after Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States and as he committed to making his administration the most transparent and open in history.

But more than four years later it is time to ask questions. The most transparent administration ever? The most transparently political, yes. The most open government? If you have the money to buy access, yes.

Since last weekend, Mr and Mrs Regular Citizen have been denied the access people used to be granted to tour the White House, purportedly because of the clampdown on federal spending since the “sequester” that imposed cuts across the board.

These tours, most recently guided by volunteers though monitored by paid Secret Service staff, have been an American tradition since John and Abigail Adams, the first White House residents, personally hosted receptions for the public.

And their cancellation is an austerity measure that saves a pittance, while more frivolous taxpayer funding for items like the White House dog walker continues.

Meanwhile, noble Americans can buy time with the president for a suggested donation of $500,000 to his new campaign group, Organising for Action.

Yes, the announcement offering access to the president for cold, hard cash was made openly and with total transparency. But it was also made without shame.

MORE . . . .

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• People’s House? Fox & Friends Rips White House Access To Donors: ‘Closed To The Poor, Open To The Rich’ (mediaite.com)
• Judge Jeanine Pirro: Barack Obama’s Lies (foxnewsinsider.com)
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Disinfo Wars – YouTube.

via Doubtful News

Even though this was cleared up, the damage was done.

MSNBC Airs Sandy Hook Father’s Unedited Testimony After Critics Complain (Video) – The Hollywood Reporter.

After finding itself embroiled in another controversy about edited video, NBC News has re-aired a clip its critics say was selectively edited.

On Monday, MSNBC’s Martin Bashir aired a video that seemed to show grief-stricken Neil Heslin being heckled by pro-gun lobbyists as he talked about his 6-year-old son, who was killed in Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. While making a plea for gun control at a legislative hearing, Heslin at one point he turned to the audience and said: “I ask if there’s anybody in this room that can give me one reason or challenge this question: why anybody in this room needs to have one of these assault-style weapons or military weapons or high-capacity clips.”

When the audience remains silent, Heslin adds, “Not one person can answer that question.” And that’s when a few people recited the Second Amendment in response.

The video that host Martin Bashir aired, though, clipped out Heslin’s question and pause in the audience’s direction. The resulting edit made it look like boisterous audience members interrupted Heslin’s testimony.

Here is the video:

MORE . . .

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• MSNBC pummeled for Sandy Hook video editing controversy (doubtfulnews.com)
• MSNBC Will Not Apologize for Deceptive Editing of Sandy Hook Parent ‘Heckling’ (breitbart.com)
• Did The Media Blatantly Mischaracterize Video Of Newtown Father Being ‘Heckled’ By ‘Gun Nuts’? (mediaite.com)
• After Twitchy’s report, MSNBC is reportedly ‘reviewing’ video of Newtown dad’s testimony (twitchy.com)
• Outrageous: How the left-wing media lied about Newtown ‘hecklers’ (twitchy.com)

Fear and Oath-ing in D.C. – YouTube.

“Is terror going to raise a white flag?” Exactly. Somebody in our government must define victory in this (undeclared) war on an ideology. What does victory look like? How will we know when we are victorious? Without a definition of victory, this (undeclared) war will continue ad infinitum – an ongoing, never ending justification to infringe on more and more of our rights. Something is seriously wrong.

MIB

• 9 – There Were Thirteen Original Colonies In America

It’s easy to understand why people believe this lie, but it is a lie nonetheless. The American flag has thirteen stripes representing the original thirteen colonies—but really there were only twelve.

That’s because Delaware was never a separate colony. After the British invaded the region and stole it from the Dutch in the 1660s, the Delaware territory was juggled between Maryland and Pennsylvania. Eventually it ended up under the ownership of William Penn—the guy who also owned Pennsylvania—and it remained a part of Pennsylvania until the Revolutionary War. In fact, it wasn’t even called Delaware—it was just known as “The Three Lower Counties.”

• 7 – Europeans Invaded Africa and Kidnapped the Slaves

This isn’t meant to trivialize slavery, or pardon any of the people who took part in it, or condone it in any way. But let’s face it: most Americans are under the impression that colonial-era slavery got its start with white people sailing over to Africa, kidnapping hundreds of thousands of people, and bringing them back to Europe and America in chains.

Parts of that are true. There were a lot of chains, and many Africans were certainly kidnapped. But despite the picture painted by many history textbooks, the majority of those slaves were actually sold to Europeans by other African slave traders—slave traders who had been operating on the continent for thousands of years. Slavery is nothing new to the world; it was actually pretty normal around that time. In fact, Egyptians were using Caucasian slaves in their armies during the thirteenth century. Heck, even the Bible endorsed the practice!

As far as the Atlantic Slave Trade was concerned, in-country African slaves were typically members of a defeated tribe. But as soon as slave traders realized that Europeans would pay for their slaves, they actively began kidnapping people just to sell them on the Nigerian coast.

And speaking of lies about slavery…

• 6 – Abraham Lincoln Was Strongly Opposed to Slavery

Abraham Lincoln is often put on a pedestal as one of the greatest opponents of slavery for freeing the slaves with his Emancipation Proclamation in 1862. In fact, he struggled with conflicting and ambiguous views on slavery—not to mention sexuality—during his entire Presidential career. He wasn’t a stalwart supporter of abolition; he only wanted to do what would make the Union stronger (remember, this was a time when the Confederate states had split from the Union and were at war).

In his own words: “If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union.” This is called talking out of both sides of your mouth.

The Emancipation Proclamation didn’t really touch on racial equality or human rights. It was a wartime decision: “as a fit and necessary military measure. . . . All persons held as slaves in the Confederate states will thenceforward . . . be free.” In other words: only the enemy’s slaves were freed. Hooray to the great emancipator!

Let’s face it—if Honest Abe really wanted equality, Martin Luther King probably wouldn’t have a holiday named after him.

• 4 – The Founding Fathers Were All Christian

One of the prevailing myths taught in history classes is that the Founding Fathers of America were all Christian. The Declaration of Independence talks about God; the pledge of allegiance (which, incidentally, wasn’t even created until more than a century later) uses the words “under God”; and it all sort of jumbles together into the idea that Washington and crew were Bible-thumping Christian men.

Well, they weren’t. For starters, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin were both believed to be deists, who don’t follow the Bible explicitly but assume there’s a “god” because nature is so great. George Washington most likely followed pantheism, which is the belief that nature is god. John Adams was a Unitarian, an offshoot of Christianity that believes Jesus was a great guy, but not God’s Son. Alexander Hamilton was a typical Christian—but only later in life, after his son was killed.

MORE LIES . . .