Audacity of Truth
Rahmbo:
"Rahm Emanuel is son of the devil's spawn. He is an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive."
-Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) on Obama's COS, 3/7/10
Velvet Lair- Legends March 18, 2010
- Some things are just not cute March 18, 2010
- The adventures of the lady spider killer continue March 11, 2010
- Intermission February 19, 2010
- People who allow their dogs to poop in other people’s yards February 16, 2010
AP finally gets around to criticizing Obama’s glitzy inaugural festivities
Maybe the AP’s been reading Newsbusters, the blog that was the first to notice the hypocrisy between how the AP treated Bush’s 2005 inauguration and Obama’s. AP writer Matt Apuzzo makes up for lost time in a piece published today with the headline “Obama hosting pricey party in a dicey economy” (via Wizbang):
WASHINGTON – Unemployment is up. The stock market is down. Let’s party.
The price tag for President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration gala is expected to break records, with some estimates reaching as high as $150 million. Despite the bleak economy, however, Democrats who called on President George W. Bush to be frugal four years ago are issuing no such demands now that an inaugural weekend of rock concerts and star-studded parties has begun.
Obama’s inaugural committee has raised more than $41 million to cover events ranging from a Philadelphia-to-Washington train ride to a megastar concert with Beyonce, U2 and Bruce Springsteen to 10 official inaugural balls. Add to that the massive costs of security and transportation — costs absorbed by U.S. taxpayers — and the historic inauguration will produce an equally historic bill.
In 2005, Reps. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., and Jim McDermott, D-Wash., asked Bush to show a little less pomp and be a little more circumspect at his party.
“President Roosevelt held his 1945 inaugural at the White House, making a short speech and serving guests cold chicken salad and plain pound cake,” the two lawmakers wrote in a letter. “During World War I, President Wilson did not have any parties at his 1917 inaugural, saying that such festivities would be undignified.”
The thinking was that, with the nation at war, excessive celebration was inappropriate. Four years later, the nation is still at war. Unemployment has risen sharply. And Obama pressed Congress to release the second half of a $700 billion bailout package in hopes of rescuing a faltering banking industry.
Obama’s inauguration committee says it is mindful of the times and is not worried people will see the four days of festivities as excessive.
“That is probably not the way the country is going to be looking at it,” said committee spokeswoman Linda Douglass. “It is not a celebration of an election. It is a celebration of our common values.”
Douglass said the campaign sought to keep costs down by having the same decorations at each of the 10 balls, eliminating floral arrangements and negotiating prices on food.
What’s hypocrite “Baghdad Jim” McDermott’s camp have to say in response to the news of the price tag for Obama’s days-long inaugural?
“Those at the Obama administration are trying to be reflective of the climate,” McDermott’s spokesman, Mike DeCeasar, said Saturday.
The only thing more pathetic than McDermott’s hypocrisy is the fact that so many Obama worshippers who continue to descend on the Capitol in advance of PEBO’s inauguration are the same types who slammed John McCain as an out-of-touch rich guy living off his wife’s mega-wealth, so out of touch that he couldn’t remember how many houses they owned, and also criticizing Gov. Palin for spending decisions on her’s and her family’s wardrobes that she did not make, while at the same they painted Barack Obama as a humble guy who “gets the common man.” How many of these same people (including those in the mainstream press) would be looking the other way if it had been McCain/Palin holding this big, expensive Lincolnesque inaugural ceremony in the middle of this bleak economy?
The numbers would be in the single digits, I suspect.
So much for that “responsible only to the people” garbage we heard from him all through the campaign, in spite of hard facts that indicated otherwise.
Cross-posted to Right Wing News, where I am helping guestblog for John Hawkins on Sundays.
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Oh he “gets the people” alright, the same way a corrupt televangelist does. He knows that if you market yourself right, you can make many in the dumbmasses believe anything you want, and send you their money. They may be poor and struggling, but there’s no limit to the amount of money they’ll send you to live better than they do, bless their poor gullible hearts.
Very prominent ping-back from Michelle Malkin, Sistah! Congrats!
I, personally, am “girding my loins” for the amplified hypocrisy of the left. Girding my loins for VEEP Biden’s anticipated crisis is a foregone conclusion.
See ya at those other sites.
I would like to take a moment to note, and to shout out to our current VP Dick Chenney. 8 years ago they all wondered if he would be able to “survive” being Veep, with his bad heart, don’t cha know. Interestingly enough I don’t hear a single comment about Joe Biden being able to survive his time as Veep. Especially since Joe and Dick are only a year apart in age. Sooo Kudos Mr. Cheney, you proved all the idiots wrong. – Lorica
Biden has a had a couple of brain aneurysms which u can’t predict and actually can have deleterious effects on brain function . At least with hear attacks u can monitor and prevent damage to the heart. He is in a more serious health situation than Cheney ever was. Funny after his behavior in the campaign and his medical history no one ever questioned his fitness. However they looked at Palin’s med record which showed a very healthy person.
This whole thing baffles me…even before the election started, the first time I heard him speak, I thought this guy can’t really be running for office. The stuttering drove me crazy! I just don’t get the appeal. I have done my homework, but I’m trying to put myself in all those people’s shoe’s and I just don’t get it. He never really say’s anything. When they say he’s so calm and never flinches that scares me, it doesn’t make me feel better. The facts are out there and it’s like it doesn’t matter, these people are oblivious. I live in CA and have to deal with the illegal’s as my neighbor’s, and it’s not a good thing our state is broke! My kid’s can’t get a part time job or a decent education, and I have to know how to speak Spanish not the other way around. The world seems upside down folks, and I know I’m not alone out here but it sure feels like it sometimes…4 years of this seems like a punishment not hope.
$150 million and counting. Unemployment skyrocketing. The market are way down. People are hurting. Obama has the most expensive coronation in history – by a factor of four. Much like the million dollar dinner with the stars he hosted the day the markets crashed. American seems destined to get what it voted for – an egomaniac with no experience and some very scary ideas.
Doesn’t the hypocrisy of this expensive inauguration compare to Nero fiddling while Rome burned? You can bet that if we’re going to start off with a President with a Messiah complex ( or is it a Lincoln complex?), we’re going to have a very bumpy ride, once he stirs the collective pot in world affairs. I wish USA Obamaland very good luck.
I’ve already started to look for jobs outside the US and have “never been less proud of the country” for electing a President who has no idea of how to run this country or keep it out of the ditch. That’s what we get when what happened on American Idol is the number one concern of American people, instead of doing due diligence investigating a candidate before pulling the lever at the polls, just believing the liberal media, or their favorite celebrity’s endorsement.
I marched for civil rights in the sixties, so it’s not a race thing, just a mindful obeservation of the President Elect’s choice of policies, friends and advisors.The next four years will be like watching a train wreck in slow motion…fasten your seat belts!
Where is the sacrifice we all have to make. $150 million dollars for a political party. We could have made 150 people millionaires or 600 people 1/4 millionaires. Where is the relief for the people, not another $500 per person, how do you divide $1,000,000,000,0000 among 300,000,000 people, its easy give us each $33,333 to spend. This will revive the economy in a heartbeat. Pay off mortgages, credit cards, shopping sprees, new cars, new homes, you name it, with $33k per person in the country, the toddlers will be buying new strollers at babys R us. The adults will go crazy with $33,000 per person.
But, we will probably just give it to the the bankers and wall street power player to line their pockets with millions and millions the the mainstreet folks will never see, but pay for every week in their payroll taxes. Thanks a lot.
This from a leader who has had alot more experience than Obama: “I am deeply convinced that the biggest disappointments are born out of big expectations”, Vladimir Putin on our next President. Russians can see through the hollywood haze, and know Obama for the novice that he is.