Mr Americana, Overpasses News Desk
August 19th, 2015
Overpasses For America
VIA SQUIRREL HILL
Every President, every politician, and every human being tells lies and engages in acts of hypocrisy.
But Barack Obama does these things to a far greater degree than anyone else that I have ever known of.
His campaign promises were so much better sounding than anyone else’s – no lobbyists in his administration, waiting five days before signing all non-emergency bills so people would have time to read them, putting health care negotiations on C-SPAN, reading every bill line by line to make sure money isn’t being wasted, prosecution of Wall St. criminals, ending raids against medical marijuana in states where it’s legal, high levels of transparency.
Obama’s promises of these wonderful things sounded inspiring and sincere.
They sounded so much better than the promises of any other President.
So when Obama broke these promises, it felt so much worse than when other Presidents broke their promises.
In the 2008 United States election, I wrote in Ron Paul for President. In the 2012 election, I voted for Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson. Those who are of a more leftist persuasion than myself might want to consider voting for the Green Party in future elections.
Some of the things on this list are major events that should scare the daylights out of any true liberal who cares about civil liberties.
Other things on this list are medium things that some Obama supporters may dislike, but would be willing to overlook in light of the things that Obama has done which they like.
And some of the things on this list may seem trivial, but I still think they are an interesting reflection of the kinds of policies that Obama supports.
Every claim that I make in this list is sourced. Click on the underlined text to see the sources. I have cited a wide variety of sources, from right wing, to left wing, to middle of the road.
I welcome any comments and criticisms that you may have. If you say my list is wrong, please back up your claim by citing specific examples.
And now, on with the list:
1) Carried out military interventionism in Libya without Congressional approval
In June 2011, U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) said that Obama had violated the Constitution when he launched military operations in Libya without Congressional approval.
In April 2014, Ralph Nader said that Obama should be impeached for his actions in Libya.
2) Gave a no-bid contract to Halliburton cronies – just like Bush did
In May 2010, it was reported that the Obama administration had selected KBR, a former subsidiary of Halliburton, for a no-bid contract worth as much as $568 million through 2011, just hours after the Justice Department had said it would pursue a lawsuit accusing the Houston-based company of using kickbacks to get foreign contracts.
Don’t be fooled by the words “former subsidiary.” These are the same Halliburton cronies that Bush gave a no-bid contract to.
3) Has an administration full of lobbyists, after promising he wouldn’t have any
On November 15, 2007, in Las Vegas, Nevada, Obama said that lobbyists
“… will not work in my White House.”
However, by February 2010, he had more than 40 lobbyists working in his administration. A list of them can be seen here.
4) Has close ties to Wall St., but pretends to support Occupy Wall St.
Although Obama claims to support the Occupy Wall St. movement, the truth is that he has raised more money from Wall St. than any other candidate during the last 20 years. In early 2012, Obama held a fundraiser where Wall St. investment bankers and hedge fund managers each paid $35,800 to attend. In October 2011, Obama hired Broderick Johnson, a longtime Wall Street lobbyist, to be his new senior campaign adviser. Johnson had worked as a lobbyist for JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Fannie Mae, Comcast, Microsoft, and the oil industry.
5) Broke his promise to close Guantanamo Bay
Obama broke his promise to close Guantanamo Bay.
6) Supported the $700 billion TARP corporate-welfare bailout just like Bush
While Senator, Obama voted for the $700 billion TARP bank bailout bill. The bailout rewarded irresponsible and illegal behavior. It redirected resources from more productive uses to less productive uses. It punished the hard working taxpayers who had played by the rules and obeyed the law. It created horrible incentives, and sent the wrong message. The bailout was evil because it rewarded the bad people and punished the good people. No society that does this can expect to remain free or prosperous. Instead of bailing out these corrupt corporations, we should have let them cease to exist, like we did with Enron.
7) Waged the biggest war against medical marijuana of any president, which was the opposite of what he had promised
In May 2008, Obama campaign spokesperson Ben LaBolt said that Obama would end DEA raids on medical marijuana in states where it’s legal. Also in 2008, Obama said that he supported the “basic concept of using medical marijuana for the same purposes and with the same controls as other drugs” and that he was “not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws.”
However, in February 2010, DEA agents raided a medical marijuana grower in Highlands Ranch in Colorado, a state where medical marijuana is legal. Also in February 2010, DEA agents raided a medical marijuana dispensary in Culver City in California, a state where medical marijuana is legal. In July 2010, the DEA raided at least four medical marijuana growers in San Diego, California. Also in July 2010, the DEA raided a medical marijuana facility in Covelo, California. Then in September 2010, the DEA conducted raids on at least five medical marijuana dispensaries in Las Vegas, Nevada, where medical marijuana is legal. In 2011, the DEA conducted raids on medical marijuana in Seattle, Washington, West Hollywood, California, and Helena, Montana, all places where it is legal. In April 2012, the DEA carried out several raids on medical marijuana in Oakland, California.
In February 2012, Rolling Stone magazine wrote that Obama’s war against medical marijuana went “far beyond anything undertaken by George W. Bush.” In April 2012, Mother Jones magazine wrote: “The president campaigned on the promise that he’d stop federal raids on medical marijuana operations that were in compliance with state laws, a vow that Attorney General Eric Holder repeated after the election. But then the Obama administration raided more than 100 dispensaries in its first three years and is now poised to outpace the Bush administration’s crackdown record.” In May 2012, the Washington Post wrote: “Obama has become more hostile to medical marijuana patients than any president in U.S. history.” In May 2012, U.S. Congressperson Nancy Pelosi (D-California) said she had “strong concerns” about Obama’s forced closure of five medical marijuana facilities in Pelosi’s congressional district. In April 2012, commenting on Obama’s crackdown on medical marijuana, U.S. Congressman Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) said, “I’m very disappointed… They look more like the Bush administration than the Clinton administration.”
In July 2012, federal prosecutors filed civil forfeiture actions against Harborside Health Center, a medical marijuana dispensary in Oakland, CA, which claims to be the world’s largest, and which claims to serve more than 100,000 medical marijuana patients. In April 2012, federal agents raided Oaksterdam University, an educational institution in Oakland, CA, which teaches people about medical marijuana. In April 2012, federal agents raided a medical marijuana facility which had been serving 1,500 patients near Lake Elsinore, CA. In June 2012, the Obama administration filed asset-forfeiture lawsuits against two landlords who rented their buildings to medical marijuana stores in Santa Fe Springs, CA. The Obama administration also sent warning letters which threatened similar legal action to dozens of other, nearby landlords. During the first seven months of 2012, the DEA shut down 40 medical marijuana dispensaries in Colorado, all of which had been operating in compliance with state and local law.
In April 2013, the DEA raided four medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles, California. Also in April 2013, the DEA raided a medical marijuana dispensary in San Diego, California. In July 2013, the DEA conducted multiple medical marijuana raids in Washington state, including the cities of Olympia, Tacoma, and Seattle. In August 2013, the DEA raided People’s Choice Alternative Medicine, a medical marijuana facility in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In October 2013, the DEA raided 28 medical marijuana facilities in Michigan. In November 2013, the DEA raided 12 medical marijuana facilities in Denver, Colorado.
In April 2014, the DEA raided four medical marijuana dispensaries in Denver, Colorado. In June 2014, DEA agents visited the homes and offices of doctors in Massachusetts who had written prescriptions for medical marijuana, and threatened to confiscate their federal licenses to prescribe certain medications if they did not stop writing prescriptions for medical marijuana. In October 2014, the DEA raided two medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles, California.
In May 2012, ABC News reported that during Obama’s youth, he often smoked large quantities of recreational marijuana. Obama’s marijuana smoking wasn’t even medical – it was recreational. And yet now, he is taking large scale, widespread action to prevent people with AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, and other illnesses, who have prescriptions from their doctors, from using their prescription medicine – how cold hearted can a person be?
8) Nominated a six-time tax cheater to head the government agency that enforces the tax laws
Obama nominated Timothy Geithner, a repeat tax cheater, to head the government agency that enforces the tax laws.
Prior to his nomination, Geithner had:
1) Illegally failed to pay more than $34,000 in social security and medicare taxes
2) Illegally declared the cost of his children’s summer camp as a form of day care.
3) Illegally failed to pay the early withdrawal penalty when he took money out of his retirement plan
4) Illegally declared non-eligible items as a charitable deduction
5) Illegally declared something which was ineligible as a small business deduction
6) Illegally declared utility expenses which had actually been for his personal use
9) Gave tax dollars to AIG executives, then pretended to be outraged about it
Obama signed a “stimulus” bill that spent money on bonuses for AIG executives. Prior to signing this bill, Obama had said, “when I’m president, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely.” However, after reading “line by line” and signing the “stimulus” bill that protected the AIG bonuses, Obama pretended to be shocked and outraged at the bonuses, and said, “Under these circumstances, it’s hard to understand how derivative traders at A.I.G. warranted any bonuses at all, much less $165 million in extra pay… How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?” and also said that he would “pursue every single legal avenue to block these bonuses.”
10) Expanded Bush’s unconstitutional government faith based programs
Obama expanded the federal government’s faith based programs which had been started by President George W. Bush.
11) Supported Bush’s unconstitutional Patriot Act
In May 2011, Obama signed a renewal of the Patriot Act.
12) Increased the national debt more in one term than Bush did in two
The national debt increased more during Obama’s first three years and two months than it did during all eight years of George W. Bush’s presidency.
13) Agrees with Bush’s support of unconstitutional, indefinite detention of U.S. citizens without filing any charges
In December 2011, ACLU executive director Anthony D. Romero criticized Obama for signing a bill that gave the U.S. government the power to indefinitely detain U.S. citizens without any charges being filed or any trial taking place.
14) Agrees with Bush’s support of unconstitutional, warrantless wiretapping
President Obama has defended warrantless wiretapping.
15) Avoided prosecution of Wall. St criminals
Although Obama had promised to prosecute Wall St. criminals, during his entire first term, his administration did not file any criminal charges against any of the top financial executives.
16) Had four U.S. citizens killed without judicial process
Obama had four U.S. citizens killed without judicial process.
The ACLU accused Obama of violating the U.S. Constitution for doing this.
U.S. Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) said that Obama’s actions might be an impeachable offense.
Ralph Nader wrote that Obama
“has extended the Bush doctrine by declaring his unilateral right, as secret prosecutor, judge, jury, and executioner, to destroy anybody, anywhere in the world, including American citizens, suspected to be engaged in alleged terrorist activities, all this vaguely and loosely defined as anti-U.S. security.”
17) Ordered private company to fire 1,000 employees
In 2011, after Boeing had hired 1,000 new employees to work at its new factory in South Carolina, the Obama administration ordered Boeing to shut down the factory, because the factory was non-union.
18) Stole money from retired teachers and police officers
During the Chrysler bankruptcy, Obama violated the Fifth Amendment and more than 150 years of bankruptcy law by illegally treating secured creditors worse than unsecured creditors. Some of these secured creditors were retired teachers and police officers from Indiana.
Richard A. Epstein, a law professor at New York University School of Law, wrote of this:
“Upsetting this fixed hierarchy among creditors is just an illegal taking of property from one group of creditors for the benefit of another, which should be struck down on both statutory and constitutional grounds.”
Todd Zywicki, Professor of Law at George Mason University School of Law, wrote that Obama’s treatment of secured creditors was
“dangerous to the rule of law.”
The Economist wrote that Obama’s actions could
“establish a terrible precedent. Bankruptcy exists to sort legal claims on assets. If it becomes a tool of social policy, who will then lend to struggling firms in which the government has a political interest?”
Francis Cianfrocca, the CEO of Bayshore Networks, wrote that Obama’s actions were
“an astonishingly reckless abrogation of contract law that will introduce a new level of uncertainty into business transactions at all levels, and make wealth generation more difficult going forward… An extraordinary uncertainty has been created when the most powerful man in the world can rewrite contracts and choose winners and losers in private negotiations as he sees fit. Since this is an unquantifiable uncertainty, and not a quantifiable risk, its effect on business and investor confidence will be large and unpredictable. As in the 1930s, a time when government also cavalierly rewrote private contracts, the prudent approach for business will be to invest minimally and wait for another administration.”
19) Supported release of convicted mass murderer
In 2010, Obama supported releasing Lockerbie bomber Abdel Baset al-Megrahi (who had been convicted of murdering 270 people) from prison.
20) Illegally put thousands of guns into hands of criminals
In Operation Fast and Furious, the Obama administration ordered gun storeowners to illegally sell thousands of guns to criminals.
U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry was murdered with one of these guns.
The murderer was sentenced to 30 years in prison, but his accomplices, Eric Holder and Barack Obama, haven’t even been arrested or charged.
21) Fired Inspector General for discovering that Obama’s friend had embezzled government funds
In June 2009, Obama fired Inspector General Gerald Walpin, after Walpin accused Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, an Obama supporter, of misuse of AmeriCorps funding to pay for school-board political activities. In a letter to Congress, the White House said that Walpin was fired because he was “confused, disoriented, unable to answer questions and exhibited other behavior that led the Board to question his capacity to serve.” A bipartisan group of 145 current and former public officials, attorneys, and legal scholars signed a letter that was sent to the White House, which defended Walpin, said the criticisms of him were not true, and said that his firing was politically motivated. The letter can be read here.
22) Lied about putting health care negotiations on C-SPAN
Although Obama had made a campaign promise to have all of the health care reform negotiations broadcast on C-SPAN, he broke that promise after he was elected.
The secrecy of these negotiations was so strong that U.S. Congresswoman and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) said, “We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it.”
23) Lied about letting people keep their health insurance
Before Obamacare was passed, Obama said:
“No matter how we reform health care, we will keep this promise to the American people… If you like your health care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health care plan, period. No one will take it away, no matter what.”
Also before Obamacare was passed, Obama said:
“Here is a guarantee that I’ve made. If you have insurance that you like, then you will be able to keep that insurance.”
However, after Obamacare was passed, the Congressional Budget Office said that the law would cause seven million people to lose their employer provided insurance.
After Obamacare was passed, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East announced that it would drop health insurance for the children of more than 30,000 low-wage home attendants. Mitra Behroozi, executive director of benefit and pension funds for 1199SEIU stated
“… new federal health-care reform legislation requires plans with dependent coverage to expand that coverage up to age 26… meeting this new requirement would be financially impossible.”
Also, after Obamacare was passed, the Franciscan University of Steubenville dropped its coverage in response to the law.
Universal Orlando dropped its coverage for part time employees in response to Obamacare.
In addition, after Obamacare was passed, Forbes reported
“The House Ways and Means Committee has released a new report that sheds light onto how Obamacare incentivizes companies to dump their workers onto the new law’s subsidized exchanges.”
Also after Obamacare was passed, MSN reported
“The Affordable Care Act mandate most commonly known as Obamacare has some tight stipulations that, CNN says, are forcing health care companies to rip up most of their current plans and draft new ones that comply. According to a University of Chicago study, just about half of the individual health care plans currently on the market won’t cut it once key provisions of the Affordable Care Act kick in next year.”
Furthermore, it was reported that Obamacare would cause 58,000 Aetna and UnitedHealth Group customers in California to lose their insurance.
In response to Obamacare, some employers have dropped coverage for their employees’ spouses. In August 2013, it was reported that UPS had announced that it would be dropping 15,000 spouses of its employees from its health insurance, and that it had cited Obamacare as the reason it was doing this.
The chain of Wegmans supermarkets cancelled the policies of its part time employees in response to Obamacare.
In July 2013, leaders of the Teamsters, UFCW, and UNITE-HERE sent a letter to Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi which said that Obamacare
“will shatter not only our hard-earned health benefits… these restrictions will make non-profit plans like ours unsustainable… we can no longer stand silent in the face of elements of the Affordable Care Act that will destroy the very health and wellbeing of our members along with millions of other hardworking Americans”
In August 2013, it was reported that 106,000 New Jersey citizens would lose their health insurance because of Obamacare.
In September 2013, IBM announced that it would be switching 110,000 of its retirees from their current IBM-provided health insurance to the Obamacare exchanges.
In September 2013, Trader Joe’s announced that, in response to Obamacare, it would stop providing insurance to its part time employees.
In October 2013, it was reported that at least 146,000 people in Michigan would be losing their insurance because of Obamacare.
In October 2013, it was reported that Florida Blue would be dropping 300,000 customers because of Obamacare.
In October 2013, it was reported that 491,977 individual insurance plans in California would be canceled because of Obamacare.
In October 2013, it was reported that, in response to Obamacare, Home Depot would stop providing insurance to its part time employees.
In October 2013, it was reported that Obamacare was forcing CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield to cancel the insurance of 76,000 people in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., because their policies did not meet the minimum requirements of Obamacare.
In October 2013, it was reported that hundreds of thousands of people in Washington state would be losing their insurance because of Obamacare.
In November 2013, it was reported that nearly nearly 250,000 people in Colorado would lose their insurance because of Obamacare.
In January 2014, it was reported that, in response to Obamacare, Target was planning to stop offering insurance to its part time employees.
24) Lied about the cost of Obamacare
Before Obamacare was passed, Obama promised
“I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits – either now or in the future. I will not sign it if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period. And to prove that I’m serious, there will be a provision in this plan that requires us to come forward with more spending cuts if the savings we promised don’t materialize.”
However, after Obama signed it, the Washington Post reported that it would add more than $340 billion to the budget deficit over the next decade.
In March 2012, the Congressional Budget Office said that over the next decade, Obamacare would cost twice as much as what Obama had promised.
In May 2013, it was reported that Obamacare’s program for high risk patients was more expensive than what Obama had promised.
25) Gave tax dollars to campaign contributors and lobbyists, and falsely claimed the money was for “green energy”
In 2009 the Obama administration gave $535 million to Solyndra, claiming that it would create 4,000 new jobs. However, instead of creating those 4,000 new jobs, the company went bankrupt. It was later revealed that the company’s shareholders and executives had made substantial donations to Obama’s campaign, that the company had spent a large sum of money on lobbying, and that Solyndra executives had had many meetings with White House officials.
It was also revealed that the Obama administration had already been aware of Solyndra’s financial troubles. For example, according to the company’s security filings in 2009, the company had been selling its product for less than the cost of production. In 2010, Obama visited the Solyndra factory and cited it as a role model for his “stimulus” program, saying “It’s here that companies like Solyndra are leading the way toward a brighter and more prosperous future.” The Washington Post wrote of this, “Administration officials and outside advisers warned that President Obama should consider dropping plans to visit a solar startup company in 2010 because its mounting financial problems might ultimately embarrass the White House.” Solyndra was a private company, but had been planning to use its government loans as a means of going public – so when Obama knowingly overstated the company’s condition in order to help his friends at Solyndra, he broke the same law that Martha Stewart had been sent to prison for breaking.
In September 2011, federal agents visited the homes of Brian Harrison, the company’s CEO, and Chris Gronet, the company’s founder, to examine computer files and documents. Also in September 2011, the U.S. Treasury Department launched an investigation.
On September 13, 2011, the Washington Post reported on emails which showed that the Obama administration had tried to rush federal reviewers to approve the loan so Vice President Joe Biden could announce it at a September 2009 groundbreaking for the company’s factory. The company was a hallmark of President Obama’s plan to support clean energy technologies.
The New York Times reported that government auditors and industry analysts had faulted the Obama administration for failing to properly evaluate the company’s business proposals, as well as for failing to take note of troubling signs which were already evident. In addition, Frank Rusco, a program director at the Government Accountability Office, had found that the preliminary loan approval had been granted before officials had completed the legally mandated evaluations of the company.
The New York Times quoted Shyam Mehta, a senior analyst at GTM Research, as saying “There was just too much misplaced zeal at the Department of Energy for this company.” Among 143 companies that had expressed an interest in getting a loan guarantee, Solyndra was the first one to get approval. During the period when Solyndra’s loan guarantee was under review, the company had spent nearly $1.8 million on lobbying. Tim Harris, the CEO of Solopower, a different solar panel company which had obtained a $197 million loan guarantee, told the New York Times that his company had never considered spending any money on lobbying, and that “It was made clear to us early in the process that that was clearly verboten… We were told that it was not only not helpful but it was not acceptable.”
The Washington Post reported that Solyndra had used some of the loan money to purchase new equipment which it never used, and then sold that new equipment, still in its plastic wrap, for pennies on the dollar. Former Solyndra engineer Lindsey Eastburn told the Washington Post, “After we got the loan guarantee, they were just spending money left and right… Because we were doing well, nobody cared. Because of that infusion of money, it made people sloppy.”
On September 29, 2011, the Washington Post reported that the Obama administration had continued to allow Solyndra to receive taxpayer money even after it had defaulted on its $535 million loan.
On October 7, 2011, The Washington Post reported that newly revealed emails showed that Energy Department officials had been warned that their plan to help Solyndra by restructuring the loan might be illegal, and should be cleared with the Justice Department first. However, Energy Department officials moved ahead with the restructuring anyway, with a new deal that would repay company investors before taxpayers if the company were to default. The emails showed concerns within the Obama administration about the legality of the Energy Department’s actions. In addition, an Energy Department “stimulus” adviser, Steve Spinner, had pushed for the loan, despite having recused himself because his wife’s law firm had done work for the company.
In January 2012, CBS News reported that Solyndra had thrown millions of dollars worth of brand new glass tubes into garbage dumpsters, where they ended up being shattered. Solyndra told CBS that it had conducted an exhaustive search for buyers of the glass tubes, and that no one had wanted them. However, CBS discovered that Solyndra had not offered the glass tubes for sale at either one of its two asset auctions that took place in 2011. In addition, David Lucky, a buyer and seller of such equipment, told CBS that he would have bought the tubes if he had had a chance to do so. Greg Smestad, a solar scientist who had consulted for the Department of Energy, also agreed that the tubes had value, and had asked Solyndra to donate any unwanted tubes to Santa Clara University. Smestad stated, “That really makes me sad… Those tubes represent intellectual investment. These could have had a better value to do public good. I think they owed the U.S. taxpayer that.”
Solyndra was not the only “green energy” company involved in this type of fraud. After Obama gave Raser Technologies $33 million to build a power plant, the company declared bankruptcy, and owed $1.5 million in back taxes. After Obama gave Abound Solar, Inc. a $400 million loan guarantee to build photovoltaic panel factories, the company halted production and laid off 180 employees. After Obama gave Beacon Power a $43 million loan guarantee to build green energy storage, the company filed for bankruptcy. After Obama approved $2.1 billion in loan guarantees for Solar Trust of America so it could build solar power plants, the company filed for bankruptcy.
In April 2012, CBS News reported that Solyndra had left a substantial amount of toxic waste at its abandoned facility in Milpitas, California. In May 2014, it was reported that the building in Longmont, Colorado that had been abandoned by Abound Solar in 2012 was still contaminated with cadmium, a toxic metal which can cause cancer.
Although Obama stated that all of the “green energy” companies that received taxpayer money were chosen “based solely on their merits,” the truth is that 71% of these grants and loans went to Obama donors and fundraisers, who raised $457,834 for his campaign, and were later approved for grants and loans totaling more than $11 billion. By November 2011, the Energy Department’s inspector general had begun more than 100 criminal investigations related to Obama’s “stimulus.” Although an “independent” review said that Obama had not done anything wrong, it was later reported that Herbert M. Allison Jr., the person who had conducted this “independent” review, donated $52,500 to Obama’s campaign.
26) Had “off the record” meetings with lobbyists
In June 2010, the New York Times reported that Obama administration officials had held hundreds of meetings with lobbyists at coffee houses near the White House, in order to avoid the disclosure requirements for White House visitors, and that these meetings “reveal a disconnect between the Obama administration’s public rhetoric — with Mr. Obama himself frequently thrashing big industries’ ‘battalions’ of lobbyists as enemies of reform — and the administration’s continuing, private dealings with them.”
27) Falsely claimed to believe in public education
Although Obama said, “We need to uphold the ideal of public education,” he expressed his true opinion of America’s public education system by sending his own children to private schools while living in Chicago and Washington D.C.
28) Falsely promised that Obamacare would give people “the same kind of insurance that Senator McCain and I enjoy”
In 2008, Obama said:
“If you don’t have health insurance, you’re going to be able to buy the same kind of insurance that Senator McCain and I enjoy as federal employees.”
However, the New York Times reported:
“No patient gets closer medical attention than the president of the United States. Wherever he goes, a doctor, nurse or paramedic trails a few footsteps behind, ready for any medical need. It is the ultimate in concierge medicine.”
29) Shut down Amish farm
In February 2012, Obama shut down an Amish farm for selling unpasteurized milk across state lines, even though the customers were happy with what they were buying.
30) Rewarded his fundraisers by giving them federal jobs
Although Obama had promised to have “the most sweeping ethics reform in history,” and had often criticized the role of money in politics, the truth is that after he was elected, he gave administration jobs to more than half of his 47 biggest fundraisers.
31) Ignored constitutional requirements for appointees
In February 2009, U.S. Senator Robert Byrd (D-West Virginia) expressed concern that Obama’s dozens of czars might violate the U.S. Constitution, because they were not approved by the U.S. Senate. U.S. Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wisconsin) expressed a similar concern in September 2009.
32) Gave tax dollars to corrupt private contractors to build 504 units of mice infested, slum housing, with backed up sewage
While Obama was a state Senator in Illinois, he used tax dollars to build 504 units of slum housing, which had mice and backed up sewage. Federal inspectors graded the condition of the housing so bad that the buildings faced demolition.
33) Used tax dollars to glorify communist murderers Che Guevara and Fidel Castro
In January 2012, it was reported that the Obama administration had spent $1.6 million of taxpayers’ money to restore graffiti that glorified communist murderers Che Guevara and Fidel Castro.
34) Falsely claimed that the U.S. Supreme Court had never overturned any laws that had been passed by Congress
Despite having taught constitutional law at one of the most prestigious law schools in the country, in April 2012 Obama falsely claimed that the U.S. Supreme Court had never overturned any laws that had been passed by Congress.
35) Supported new bailouts for speculators who caused housing bubble
In March 2012, Obama announced a new set of bailouts for speculators who had caused the housing bubble.
36) Spent $205,075 on a shrubbery which nurseries sell for $16
During one of Obama’s “stimulus” projects, $205,075 of combined federal and local government funding was spent to relocate and care for a single specimen of Arctostaphylos franciscana, a shrubbery which nurseries sell for $16.
37) Spent taxpayer money to see if using cocaine helped rats to enjoy the music of Miles Davis
Obama’s administration funded a study to see whether or not rats’ enjoyment of the music of Miles Davis was increased when the rats were high on cocaine.
38) Tried to outlaw family farms
In April 2012, the Obama administration proposed new regulations which would prohibit farm children under 18 from working at grain elevators, silos, feed lots, stockyards, and livestock auctions, as well as from storing, marketing and transporting farm product raw materials. Critics claimed that this would prevent children from the common practice of working on their friends’ and relatives’ farms, and that farm children did not need “help” from a community organizer in Washington.
39) Auctioned off ambassadorship to the Netherlands
In April 2012, Obama nominated Timothy Broas, who had “bundled” more than $500,000 for Obama’s 2012 campaign, to be U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands.
40) Claimed that written tests are a form of “racial discrimination”
The Obama administration accused fire and police departments in Jacksonville, Florida, New York City, and Dayton, Ohio of “racial discrimination” because they required potential firefighters and police officers to take a written test. Ten real examples of these “racist” questions from the New York test can be read here.
41) Made the TSA even more abusive and ridiculous than it had been under Bush
The Obama administration gave a very invasive patdown to a three-year-old boy in a wheelchair, which caused the boy to tremble in fear. The Obama administration gave an aggressive patdown to a seven-year-old girl with cerebral palsy. The Obama administration said that a four-year-old girl was a “high security threat.” The Obama administration placed an 18-month-old girl on its no fly list. The Obama administration gave a patdown to Henry Kissinger. The Obama administration forced a 95-year-old cancer patient to remove her adult diaper and fly without it. The Obama administration ripped open the urostomy bag of a 61-year-old bladder cancer survivor, and forced him to fly covered in his own urine. The Obama administration harassed a sick 3-year-old boy, and caused him to miss his flight.
42) Illegally demanded monetary payment for Freedom of Information Act request
The Obama administration demanded that the Goldwater Institute pay $78,935.80 before it would share public records which it had requested under the Freedom of Information Act.
43) Fined public school $15,000 for selling soda
The Obama administration fined a high school $15,000 for selling soda to students during lunch.
44) Conducted dangerous and illegal scientific experiments on sick people without always informing them of the risks
In 2010 and 2011, the Obama administration conducted illegal scientific experiments which exposed people to dangerous levels of toxins. Some of these people had asthma and heart problems, and were exposed to levels of pollutants as high as 50 times what the EPA considers to be safe . The government did not always tell them about the risks of cancer and death.
45) Closed the Vietnam Memorial for seven hours on Memorial Day so he could have his picture taken
On Memorial Day 2012, Obama prevented Vietnam veterans and their friends and families from visiting the Vietnam Memorial for seven hours so he could have his picture taken.
46) Had the government take 60.8% ownership of General Motors
In July 2009, Obama had the government take 60.8% ownership of General Motors, and fired the CEO.
47) Forced banks to give mortgages to people who could not afford to pay them back, and collected $23,000 in legal fees for himself for doing so
While working as a “community organizer,” Obama filed lawsuits which forced banks to give mortgages to people with bad credit and low incomes. As a result, many of these people ended up defaulting on their mortgages. As their attorney, Obama collected $23,000 in legal fees for himself.
Then in April 2013, during Obama’s second term as President, the Washington Post reported that President Obama was still pressuring banks “to make home loans to people with weaker credit.”
48) Stole money from retired Delphi employees
In 2009, Obama eliminated the pensions of 20,000 retired Delphi employees.
49) Used taxpayer money to buy soda for $3.40 per can
During Obama’s presidency, the federal government repeatedly purchased soda for a cost of $3.40 per can. Obama did not express any desire to switch to a cheaper seller, such as Costco, amazon.com, or Wal-Mart – or to an even still cheaper seller such as a wholesaler. Instead, Obama repeatedly forced taxpayers to pay these outrageous prices for soda.
50) Paid $7 million per household to connect people to the internet
Obama’s “stimulus” paid to connect some households in Montana to the internet, at a cost of $7 million per household.
51) Had a double standard for Bain Capital
Although Obama criticized Mitt Romney for his involvement with Bain Capital, Obama hired Jeff Zients, a former consultant at Bain (and who had an estimated personal wealth of $200 million) to be his budget director.
52) Broke promise to teen campaign volunteers
Obama had promised to his teen campaign volunteers that if they each spent nine hours going door to door on Obama’s behalf, he would invite them to attend his speech of September 6, 2012. However, after the teens did the volunteer work, Obama broke his promise. One of these volunteers, Madeline Frank, age 16, of Charlotte, North Carolina, said of this “I’ve been looking forward to this for a really long time. I am just feeling really let down and like bummed. It was kind of my dream to see him speak, so definitely really sad.”
53) Falsely claimed to know more about Judaism than any other President
Obama falsely claimed to know more about Judaism than any other President.
54) Exempted wind farms from the penalties that other companies get for killing birds
In May 2013, it was reported that Obama had fined oil and electric companies for illegally killing endangered birds, but that he had never fined wind power companies even though they had broken the exact same laws.
55) Falsely claimed that he had never belonged to the New Party
Obama falsely claimed that he had never belonged to the New Party, which is a third political party.
56) Supported punishing students based on their race instead of on their behavior
Obama expressed support for a proposal which would punish students based on their race instead of on their behavior.
57) Used “off the books” funding for military interventionism
In April 2009, antiwar activists who helped elect Obama accused him of using the same “off the books” funding as his predecessor George W. Bush when Obama requested an additional $83.4 billion from Congress for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – a provision which Obama had voted against when he was a Senator.
58) Tried to silence criticism of auto-bailouts
The Obama administration pressured Ford Motor Company to stop airing a TV ad that criticized Obama’s bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler.
59) Dismissed charges of voter intimidation, despite video evidence
In May 2009, the Obama administration dismissed charges that had been filed by the Bush administration against members of the New Black Panther Party who had been videotaped intimidating voters and brandishing a police-style baton at a Philadelphia polling station during the November 2008 election. In August 2009, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights demanded that the Justice Department explain why it dismissed the charges. In July 2010, J. Christian Adams, a former lawyer for the Justice Department, testified before the Commission on Civil Rights that the case was dropped because the Justice Department did not want to protect the civil rights of white people.
60) Falsely claimed to support the second amendment
Although Obama stated, “I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms,” the National Rifle Association gave Obama a rating of ‘F’ based on his voting record.
61) Nominated a communist who said 9-11 was an inside job
In September 2009, Obama’s green czar Van Jones resigned after it was reported that he was a self described “communist” and had blamed George W. Bush for the September 11 attacks.
62) Falsely said he would not raise taxes on the poor and middle class
On September 12, 2008, Obama promised:
“I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes.”
However, less than three months into his Presidency, he broke that promise when he raised the cigarette tax. Studies show that poor people are more likely to smoke than rich people.
63) Falsely said he wanted to simplify the tax code, when he actually wanted to make it more complex
Although Obama said that he wanted to simplify the tax code, his proposals would actually add thousands of pages to the tax code.
64) Oversaw some of the world’s worst increases in corruption
In December 2010, Transparency International reported that corruption was increasing faster in the U.S. than anywhere else except Cuba, Dominica, and Burkina Faso.
65) Falsely said “This is the most transparent administration in history”
In February 2013, Obama said, “This is the most transparent administration in history.”
However, that same month, ABC News White House reporter Ann Compton, who covered Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, both Bushes, and Obama, said “The president’s day-to-day policy development… is almost totally opaque to the reporters trying to do a responsible job of covering it. There are no readouts from big meetings he has with people from the outside, and many of them aren’t even on his schedule. This is different from every president I covered. This White House goes to extreme lengths to keep the press away.”
In July 2009, White House reporter Helen Thomas criticized the Obama administration for its lack of transparency.
In October 2013, ABC News correspondent Ann Compton said that Obama was the “least transparent of the seven presidents I’ve covered in terms of how he does his daily business.”
Also, this list contains a huge number of things that Obama has done which contradict his statement.
66) Falsely claimed he would wait five days before signing bills
Although Obama had promised to wait five days before signing all non-emergency bills, he broke that promise at least 10 times during his first three months in office.
67) Falsely claimed “stimulus” spending would be transparent
Although Obama had promised that the website recovery.gov would list all “stimulus” spending in detail, a 400 page report issued by the Government Accountability Office stated that only 25% of the projects listed on the website provided clear and complete information regarding their cost, schedule, purpose, location and status.
68) Announced plans to send military to Australia
In November 2011, Obama announced that he would send 2,500 Marines to Australia.
69) Falsely promised to accept public campaign financing and spending limits
During the 2008 campaign, Obama broke his promise to accept public campaign financing and the spending limits that came with it.
70) Tried to silence video on YouTube
In June 2011, Obama asked a Jewish singing group to remove its video from the internet.
71) Rejected international help to clean up BP oil spill
After the BP oil spill, Obama rejected offers of cleanup help from Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United Nations.
72) Falsely said he opposed government waste, when he actually loves it
On September 22, 2008, Obama said, “I am not a Democrat who believes that we can or should defend every government program just because it’s there… We will fire government managers who aren’t getting results, we will cut funding for programs that are wasting your money and we will use technology and lessons from the private sector to improve efficiency across every level of government… The only way we can do all this without leaving our children with an even larger debt is if Washington starts taking responsibility for every dime that it spends.” However, Citizens Against Government Waste gave Obama a 2007 rating of only 10%, and a lifetime rating of only 18%.
73) Nominated past frequent user of illegal drugs to keep illegal drugs out of schools
In September 2009, it was reported that Kevin Jennings, Obama’s Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, had written about Jenning’s own past frequent illegal drug use in his 2007 autobiography.
74) Avoids firing aides who owe back taxes
In January 2012, it was reported that 36 Obama aides owed a combined total of $833,000 in back taxes.
75) Used Abbott and Costello style economics as a basis for national policy
In 2010, Obama gave $16.3 million to First Solar, a company that manufactures solar panels, so the company could sell solar panels to itself.
76) Sent U.S. troops to Africa
Obama sent U.S. troops to Uganda, Congo, South Sudan and the Central African Republic.
77) Made secret plans for his second term
In March 2012, when Obama was talking to Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and did not know that the microphone was turned on, Obama stated, “On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved but it’s important for him to give me space… This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility.”
78) Holds double standard for people who use crude and vulgar language toward women
Concerned Women for America accused Obama of hypocrisy after Obama criticized Rush Limbaugh for using crude and vulgar language to describe Sandra Fluke, but Obama did not criticize Bill Maher (who had donated one million dollars to an Obama PAC) for using the same kind of crude and vulgar language to describe Sarah Palin.
79) Illegally gave Obamacare exemptions to unions that supported the passage of Obamacare
Obama gave some organizations an exemption from some of the requirements of Obamacare. Many of these organizations were unions that had supported the passage of Obamacare, but now wanted exemptions from the very same law that they wanted to force everyone else to obey. This reveals an extreme level of hypocrisy among many of the supporters of Obamacare.
In addition, these exemptions are illegal, because the Constitution requires the law to treat everyone the same.
The Washington Times wrote of this:
“Selective enforcement of the law is the first sign of tyranny. A government empowered to determine arbitrarily who may operate outside the rule of law invariably embraces favoritism as friends, allies and those with the best-funded lobbyists are rewarded. Favoritism inevitably leads to corruption, and corruption invites extortion. Ultimately, the rule of law ceases to exist in any recognizable form, and what is left is tyranny.”
“The now-familiar monthly trickling down of new waivers is, at best, a tacit admission that Obamacare is a failure. So far, seven entire states and 1,372 businesses, unions and other institutions have received waivers from the law. The list includes the administration’s friends and allies and, of course, those who have the best lobbyists.”
“More than 50 percent of the Obamacare waiver beneficiaries are union members, which is striking because union members account for less than 12 percent of the American work force. The same unions that provided more than $120 million to Democrats in the last two elections and, in many cases, openly campaigned in favor of the government takeover of your health care, now celebrate that Obamacare is not their problem.”
80) Defended Bush administration’s unconstitutional, unwarranted use of GPS device
In January 2012, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Bush administration for having put a GPS tracking device on someone’s car without having a warrant, the Obama administration opposed the court ruling
81) Opposes newspapers reporting the news
Obama spokesman Jay Carney criticized the Los Angeles Times for publishing photographs of U.S. soldiers posing with corpses in Afghanistan.
82) Supported Bush administration for fining CBS for showing Janet Jackson’s breast
Obama came out in favor of the FCC’s fining of the CBS TV network $550,000 for showing Janet Jackson’s breast during the 2004 Super Bowl.
83) Allowed campaign contributors to bring lobbyists into White House
In April 2012, the New York Times reported, “Although Mr. Obama has made a point of not accepting contributions from registered lobbyists, a review of campaign donations and White House visitor logs shows that special interests have had little trouble making themselves heard. Many of the president’s biggest donors, while not lobbyists, took lobbyists with them to the White House…”
84) Falsely said that criminal background checks constituted “racial discrimination”
In 2012, the Obama administration accused Pepsico of “race discrimination” because it used criminal background checks to screen out job applicants.
85) Was cited by nine states for committing 21 illegal acts
Attorneys General from nine states issued a report, titled “A Report on Obama Administration Violations of Law,” which cited 21 illegal acts which had been committed by the Obama administration.
86) Tried to seize hotel because some of its customers had used illegal drugs
The Obama administration tried to seize a mom-and-pop bed-and-breakfast because some if its guests had used illegal drugs.
87) Falsely said his campaign was not funded by large donors
Although Obama has received many large campaign donations from corporate executives and Hollywood celebrities, his spokesperson said that his campaign was funded “not from huge donors at all.”
88) Holds double standard for subsidizing solar power companies
Although Obama gave taxpayer money to numerous American solar power companies, he placed a 30% tariff on solar panels imported from China, because he was against the Chinese government giving subsidies to its own companies.
89) Tried to create an administration full of tax cheaters
Obama nominated tax cheater Tom Daschle to be Secretary of Health and Human Services. After Daschle said he didn’t want the job, Obama then nominated tax cheater Kathleen Sebelius for the same position. Obama nominated tax cheater Nancy Killefer to be his administration’s Chief Performance Officer. Obama nominated tax cheater Hilda Solis to be the Secretary of Labor. Obama nominated tax cheater Ron Kirk be the White House Chief Trade Representative.
90) Hired a Communications Director who admires a mass murderer
Anita Dunn, Obama’s White House Communications Director, said that one of her favorite political philosophers was Mao Tse-tung, the Chinese dictator who murdered tens of millions of innocent civilians.
91) Tried to replace science with political correctness
In July 2010, Charles Bolden, the administrator of NASA, said that Obama had told him that the primary purpose of NASA was “to reach out to the Muslim world.”
Although I can’t prove that Obama actually said this, I can’t think of any reason why Bolden would lie about it. Given Obama’s behavior in so many other instances, I am inclined to think that Bolden was probably telling the truth.
92) Illegally made recess appointments when Congress was not in recess
In January 2012, Obama violated the Constitution by making four recess appointments when Congress was not in recess. Recess appointments themselves are constitutional, but only if they are made when Congress is actually in recess.
In January 2013, a federal appeals court ruled that Obama’s appointments had violated the Constitution.
In May 2013, a second federal appeals court also ruled that Obama’s appointments had violated the Constitution.
In July 2013, a third federal appeals court also ruled that Obama’s appointments had violated the Constitution.
In June 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 9-0 that Obama’s appointments had violated the Constitution.
93) Said the health insurance mandate was not a tax, but later told the Supreme Court that it was
Before Obama’s health care reform was passed, he said that the mandate was not a tax. However, after it was passed, the Obama administration argued in front of the Supreme Court that the mandate really was a tax.
94 ) Lied about being his “brother’s keeper”
Although Barack Obama likes to cite the Bible phrase “We are our brother’s keeper,” when his real life poverty stricken brother George Obama needed $1,000 for health care bills, Barack Obama refused to pay it, so conservative author Dinesh D’Souza paid it.
95) Punishes hospitals for saving the lives of patients with heart disease
Obama’s health care reform contains a provision that reduces Medicare payments to hospitals with high 30-day readmission rates. Sunil Kripalani, MD, a professor with Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said of this, “Among patients with heart failure, hospitals that have higher readmission rates actually have lower mortality rates. So, which would we rather have — a hospital readmission or a death?”
96) Supports guns for himself and his wife, but opposes them for everyone else
On January 10, 2013, President Obama signed a bill that provides armed guards to himself and his wife for the rest of the lives.
However, in 2004, when Obama was an Illinois state Senator, he voted against allowing people in their own homes to use guns to protect themselves and their families from rapists and murderers.
97) Falsely claimed that he “cut spending by over a trillion dollars in 2011”
On “Meet the Press” on December 30, 2012, Obama said:
“I cut spending by over a trillion dollars in 2011″
In reality, spending during that time period was not cut at all, and was actually increased by $147 billion.
98) Practices environmental hypocrisy
In May 2008, Obama said, “We can’t drive our SUVs and eat as much as we want and keep our homes on 72 degrees at all times … and then just expect that other countries are going to say OK.”
However, just one week later, Obama was photographed exiting an SUV.
In addition, Obama keeps the White House thermostat turned up so high that David Axelrod, Obama’s senior adviser, said, “He likes it warm. You could grow orchids in there.”
Environmentalists criticized Obama for eating Wagyu beef, which was called “the Hummer of beef.”
Obama had a chef fly round trip from St. Louis to Washington D.C. so he could make Obama’s favorite pizza.
99) Pressured public schools to replace Catcher in the Rye with a book on window insulation
The Huffington Post reported that Obama’s education policies
“are increasingly worrying English-lovers and English teachers, who feel they must replace literary greats like The Great Gatsby and Catcher in the Rye with Common Core-suggested ‘exemplars,’ like the Environmental Protection Agency’s Recommended Levels of Insulation.”
100) Approved giving 20 F-16 fighter jets to a Sharia dictatorship
Obama approved giving 20 F-16 fighter jets to Egypt, which is a Sharia dictatorship.
101) Falsely claimed that his “Cash for Clunkers” program would help the environment
Although Obama claimed that his “Cash for Clunkers” program would help the environment, it actually caused net harm to the environment. Because the program required cars to be shredded instead of recycled, it wasted 24 million barrels of oil. Many of the cars that were destroyed were in perfectly good condition. Because the program’s minimum requirement for so-called “fuel efficiency” was only 22 mpg, the reduction in pollution was negligible.
102) Violated the very same campaign finance laws that he claims to support
In January 2013, it was reported that Obama’s campaign had been fined $375,000 by the Federal Election Commission for violating campaign finance laws.
103) Lied about how he had answered a questionnaire on gun control
In 1996, when Obama was answering a questionnaire on his political views, one of the questions was “Do you support state legislation to: ban the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns?”
Obama’s answer to the question was “Yes.”
However, in 2008, Obama said “My writing wasn’t on that particular questionnaire.”
However, ABC News later reported that the questionnaire “appears to have Obama’s handwriting.”
104) Falsely claimed that his 2013 inauguration was not funded by lobbyists
Although Obama claimed that his 2013 inauguration was not funded by lobbyists, its sponsors had actually spent $160 million on lobbying during Obama’s first presidential term.
105) Encouraged medical device manufacturers to lay off employees
In November 2012, it was reported that in response to the medical device tax that is part of Obamacare, some medical device manufacturers had announced plans to layoff employees, including Welch Allyn (275 planned layoffs), Stryker (1,170 planned layoffs), and Medtronic (1,000 planned layoffs).
In December 2012, Al Franken, Elizabeth Warren, John Kerry, and 15 other Democrats who supported the passage of Obamacare wrote a letter to Harry Reid, asking him to delay the tax on medical devices, claiming that the tax would hurt job creation in their districts.
In February 2014, it was reported that Obamacare’s medical device tax had destroyed 14,000 jobs, and prevented an additional 19,000 new jobs from being created.
106) Encouraged employers to switch their employees from full time to part time
The New York Times reported that Obamacare
“sharply penalizes full-time employment in favor of part-time employment.”
In response to the employer mandate of Obamacare, some restaurants have announced plans to switch some of their employees from full time to part time, including some franchises of Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Wendy’s, Taco Bell, White Castle, and Fatburger.
Community College of Allegheny County switched 200 professors and 200 other employees from full time to part time in response to Obamacare. Clint Benjamin, an English professor at Community College of Allegheny County, said that this would reduce his own monthly pay by $600.
Also in response to the employer