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The beginning of the end for Barack Obama
[WASHINGTONTIMES] Twenty hours after Mr. Obama's depressing presser, 39 Democrats joined Republicans to support the "Keep Your Health Plan Act of 2013." And just like that, No. 44 became a lame duck, eviscerated and emasculated. The shutdown? Ancient history. The fractured Republican Party? Gone with the wind.Instead, the headlines are suddenly focused on dissension in the Democratic Party, in Mr. Obama's Cabinet, and in Congress, where lawmakers are running for cover over Obamacare, abandoning the party's standard-bearer to save their own political skins. In the blink of an eye, Mr. Obama's approval rating plunged to 39 percent -- exactly where George W. Bush found himself after weeks of dire Katrina coverage. "When you take a look at history, when presidents in their second terms drop on credibility, trust and approval, they never come back from that," former Bush campaign strategist Matthew Dowd said last week. "When we look back three years from now at the end of his presidency, we're going to all say this was the tipping point of his relevancy." And the president knows it. In his funereal news conference, he sought to once again sow division and dissension -- his go-to M.O. In a desperate gambit, he suggested that insurers re-offer the plans they have been canceling because of Obamacare. The intent: If Americans pay more for health care under his program now, it's not his fault -- it's those heartless insurance companies! He hopes the discord will help in 2014. But deep down, he knows it won't. And by Sunday, the president was back on the golf course, in a thick fog, on a cold and drizzly day. This time, though, the outing didn't have the aura of a powerful man taking a break from his powerful post. Instead, it felt more like a newly retired guy just looking to get out of the house for a bit. Posted by: Fred 2013-11-19 |
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