On The Subject Of Distraction

Despite the rhetoric and fawning reports to the contrary, Obama's popularity is slipping.  He's already bitten off a whole lot of controversy, spending the next couple of generations' worth of taxes before those generations even become adults, releasing terrorists, furthering the culture of death, pandering uselessly to our enemies, and violating all sorts of campaign promises.  Thought Americans seem generally disposed to giving him a loose leash for a while, that will only allow further erosion of the American way of life.

Most recently, the Obama administration targeted Rush Limbaugh personally.  While it is unprecedented for the full force of the federal government to put pressure on a private citizen (before 2008), this is standard practice for Obama.  Remember Joe the Plumber?  How about Barbara West?  Rush is just the latest...but he has the resources and the platform to fight back.  Still, it looks like the attacks on Rush may serve another purpose, too: distraction.

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today released the following statement on attempts by the Obama Administration to divert attention away from the economy and its massive spending spree:

 

"Political operatives in the White House are trying to divert attention away from the challenges facing our economy, the sinking stock market, and the irresponsible spending binge they are presiding over.  This diversionary tactic will not  create a single job or help a single family struggling in today's economic crisis.  That's where our focus should be.  President Obama has said we must change the way Washington operates in order to address the challenges we are facing.  In the midst of a deepening recession, White House staff should have higher priorities than this cynical strategy."

RNC Chair Michael Steele -- someone who is also caught up in a mess with Rush Limbaugh -- calls out the Democrats on it:

"I just want to make one thing very clear. Folks need to understand what's happening here, Sean. You've already talked about it. This is a systematic effort, I think, very well planned out to distract. They're saying, "Oh, yeah, prices are going up for everything you have to pay for. Oh, let's talk about Rush... Your 401K just dropped. Let's talk about Rush... The stock market it tanking. Let's talk about Rush..." We get it. We've figured it out now what the game plan is."

One particular issue on which Obama likely wishes to avoid attention is his mortgage bailout:

The Obama administration kicked off a new program Wednesday that's designed to help up to 9 million borrowers stay in their homes through refinanced mortgages or loans that are modified to lower monthly payments.

The Treasury Department released detailed guidelines designed to let the lending industry know how to enroll borrowers in the program announced last month.

"It is imperative that we continue to move with speed to help make housing more affordable and help arrest the damaging spiral in our housing markets," Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said in a statement.

The administration, launching what it calls the "Making Home Affordable" initiative, said that borrowers will have to provide their most recent tax return and two pay stubs, as well as an "affidavit of financial hardship" to qualify for the $75 billion loan modification program, which runs through 2012.

They want the exposure to this to stay relatively low because most Americans -- by almost two to one -- think it's a load of crap.

Even worse, we now see a previously unnoticed provision that means taxpayers will be on the hook for people's equity second mortgages, too.  That's right, those HELOCs that so many people use to draw on their home equity to buy cars, vacations, home improvements, pay off credit cards, and spend on who knows what else.  Well isn't that speeeeecial?!

Another very good reason to play the distraction card is the utter failure of Obama's push for unity.  Obviously, he gave up the idea of unity with the GOP from moment one (the non-bipartisan "I won" remark), but now he's in danger of losing Democrats, too.  Several Democrats in the House voted against his Theft/Pork bill, some Democrats are wavering on his promised card check union payback, some big name Dems are getting a big frustrated that Obama isn't honoring his pledge to fight earmarks, and he's getting some significant pushback from Dems on his proposal to cap charitable deductions.  Is something happening to that legendary Democrat lock-step?  Maybe, maybe not.  Either way, it's not exactly a vote of confidence for the Great Uniter he promised he would be.

While Obama bludgeons this country into a hard swerve to the radical Left, many Americans are still being generous (or are oblivious) at this point.  But, enacting program after program that suffers from two to one opposition by the American people will eventually snowball to the point where Obama and the Democrats pay a severe price at the polls.  I just hope that happens sooner rather than later.  The country can't afford much more Leftist distraction and destruction from its own President.

There's my two cents.