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More than six years ago, about three (3) months after his inauguration, I expressed serious doubts that President Obama loves his country, in a posting I made. I will make that post available by PM on request so no one can say I'm a Monday morning quarterback. Unfortunately, events have borne me out. He does not seem to believe that his country is much greater than the tinpot despotisms that infest the world. In fact, he seems to be doing everything in his power to hobble his own country.
Apparently, former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani agrees with me (link to article), excerpts below:
“I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America,” Giuliani said Wednesday during a private group dinner in Manhattan, Politico reports. “He doesn’t love you. And he doesn’t love me. He wasn’t brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country.”
Later he qualified his remarks:
Well, first of all, I’m not questioning his patriotism. He’s a patriot, I’m sure,” Giuliani said. “What I’m saying is, in his rhetoric I very rarely hear the things that I used to hear Ronald Reagan say, the things that I used to hear Bill Clinton say about how much he loves America. ... I do hear him criticize America much more often than other American presidents. And when it’s not in the context of an overwhelming number of statements about the exceptionalism of America, it sounds like he’s more of a critic than he is a supporter.”
Many right-wingers (of which I am not one) are sidetracked on "birther" arguments, that Obama is not a natural born American. I fully accept that he was born here and is constitutionally qualified to sit as President. What I have, over the last few years, had my doubts about is whether he is primarily an advocate for the United States, as his oath of office implicitly requires, or if his sees himself as a "world leader". Unfortunately, I think the latter. Obama was primarily raised in Indonesia and Kenya and did not learn in his formative years an American perspective.
I think the U.S.'s greatness is measured by the level of opportunity it affords to those that have little but brains. I think it is a great country based upon the fact that whenever there's a natural disaster anywhere, the U.S. is there.
Such a moment of startling honesty came recently when Obama delivered what the mainstream media laughingly described as a "response" to Rep. Paul Ryan's common sense budget. What the speech really amounted to, of course, was simply a tired partisan kick-off of his 2012 re-election campaign. In it, Obama again stated his contempt for the nation that has given him so much. Consider this excerpt:
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Obama's first duty is to be an advocate for and promoter of the U.S. He is neither. He is, at best, a citizen of the world. At worst, he adheres to the U.S.'s enemies, giving them comfort, it not aid.
I don't think Guiliani is wrong. Where I differ is that I don't care.
If Obama hold the view that America is not the greatest and should be criticized, Obama and I are on the same page. American exceptionalism is delusional. We haven't done anything remarkable in the last 20 years. We've barley done anything remarkable in the last 50.
I think the notion that Obama isn't doing what he views as best for the country is idiotic. If he hated this country, there would be no doubt that he did. He's got about 2 years of his presidency left; he's got quite a bit of work to do if he wants to ruin this nation, and frankly, if we can actually be crippled beyond repair in that short time, we deserve it.
America is not the greatest nation in the world anymore, if it ever was. Obama knows this, intelligent people know this. Everyone would like it to be. Obama likely included. He's cynical about what we are now and think he's got a better idea for America's future.
That's all this is. I don't think it's a bad thing to have a president who only ever sees America as being star-spangled ****ing awesome all the time. Reasonable cynicism is necessary if we ever want to be the best. If we continue to assume we are, we will never be.
That said, I look forward to someone other than Obama being the president. I like his character, and I think he's got some reasonably ideas, but he's not what's best for the country right now.
Giuliani's right and everyone but the cd obaggers know it.
Not really. Giuliani is reducing his stature to that of about Donald Trump with these redneck hillbilly comments. No one is going to take him seriously anymore.
Just because you don't agree with someone's policies doesn't give you the right to conclude that he or she doesn't "love this country." Adults recognize this; petulant, tantrum-prone children don't. It's a very childish claim to make, and it makes the claimant look stupid.
By the way, blind devotion to patriotism and "American Exceptionalism" is stupid and leads to horrible, arrogant, and naive policy. It is not a good measure of a political leader but rather quite the opposite.
OP is not a right-winger, but he thinks Social Security is a ponzi scheme and Medicare is a shell game? What, are you an anarcho-syndicalist or something?
Not really. Giuliani is reducing his stature to that of about Donald Trump with these redneck hillbilly comments. No one is going to take him seriously anymore.
Just because you don't agree with someone's policies doesn't give you the right to conclude that he or she doesn't "love this country." Adults recognize this; petulant, tantrum-prone children don't. It's a very childish claim to make, and it makes the claimant look stupid.
By the way, blind devotion to patriotism and "American Exceptionalism" is stupid and leads to horrible, arrogant, and naive policy. It is not a good measure of a political leader but rather quite the opposite.
The Democrats like Obama, Biden, Pelosi, Reid, etc. have said way worse things and I don't see liberals saying "nobody is going to take them seriously anymore." (although maybe they already don't.)
The Democrats like Obama, Biden, Pelosi, Reid, etc. have said way worse things and I don't see liberals saying "nobody is going to take them seriously anymore." (although maybe they already don't.)
Alright, show me the quotes where Obama said "<fill in conservative/Republican's name here> does not love America."
That's a patently conservative calling card...the story from Day One from them has always been: Obama's not a real American...he doesn't represent America... he's a Muslim... he's a Kenyan... he doesn't have a real birth certificate... he's a terrorist sympathizer... he hates America...blah blah
Well Obama's wife DID say "For the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country."
That should have raised red flags immediately.
In which direction. That can either mean she doesn't like this country or this country has done nothing impressive in the 51 years the first lady has been alive. From an unbiased perspective, neither is more likely to be true than the other. I can say for certain in the last 20, America hasn't done one thing that's genuinely innovative or important. Don't get me wrong, bringing the Middle East to a state of complete dependency in less than 20 years it pretty impressive, but it's disgusting that we think we're allowed to occupy other nations for our own special interests.
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