Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
James Poulos ·
March 12, 2012 at 2:58am
At The Daily Caller, I'm asking whether Obama might be just successful and popular enough to win a second term that falls well short of popularity and success when he serves it out. The latest polls, after all, suggest that at least half of Americans think his health reform is bad and his presidency is a failure. Call it Dubya's revenge.
Some Republicans seem to fear that a loss in 2012 would kick off a crushing rout. But couldn't a second Obama administration instead give the GOP a chance to regroup, recharge, and refine its brand -- without hardwiring another layer of liberal rule into federal governance?
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Oct '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I don't think this is wise. Bush's second term was insane, and immensely damaging to the country. It isn't a model we should seek to replicate. I never, ever want to live through that again, even if we end up on the winning side.
Dec '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I fear that by the time a second Obama administration would be over, more citizens (to use the term loosely) would be financial wards of the state, more trillions would be added to the debt, and the defense of the nation would be crippled. (I'm sure I could go on, but three is a good number.) If that's what it takes for the GOP to fully and wholly adopt a conservative approach...
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Much of the damage being done by Obama is through regulations being implimented administratively. That rot will continue under a second Obama administration and will undoubtedly be intensified. We will see a continuation and intensification of the utter contempt for the rule of law by people such as Holder. There will be continued deterioration in our relations with our allies. Worst of all, there is the likelihood of a couple of catastrophic Supreme Court appointments. If a couple of justices of the Kagan/Sotomayor ilk can swing the court balance there will be no recovering from the consequences.
A second Obama term will be an unmitigated catastrophe and the end of this country as we have known it. There won't be any 'regrouping' in 2016.
Edited on March 12, 2012 at 3:12amApr '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I think it was Rob Long who mentioned in a podcast earlier this year that the idea of us going down in principled, moral defeat a la Goldwater would be a disaster. ( IMHO, This is where I see a Santorum nomination going) The Goldwater defeat is part of the reason we are in the mess we are in thanks to LBJ and the Great Society and it would be inadvisable now since it would leave an incredibly liberal president in office, one whom as Snow Bird mentioned is undermining Congress seemingly every day. Granted, none of the candidates are great now, but as a party and as individuals, we should be focused on defeating Obama and then holding the winner's feet to the fire and trying to get them to enact as many conservative policies as possible. Quoting Otto von Bismarck will probably not score points, but "politics is the art of the possible" and it is possible to beat this president and it is crucial for the future of the country that we do. Hoping that the Republican party will learn its lesson and shape up is dangerous considering Obama. Vote him out then work on the details.
Aug '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Pretty sure that the latest polling averages show either Mitt or Santorum beating Obama. So I see no reason to settle for Mitt, when we could have an actual conservative as our nominee.
I think the popularity of Obama is overstated, and I think he is deeply disliked and distrusted, and whether accurate or not, he will take the blame for the price at the pump. (He deserves it.) "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" Everyone knows the answer is no, and there's no hope anywhere -- for anyone! (Unless you work in Washington DC, the richest city in the nation.)
May '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Snowbird and Michael Kelly have it right.
Maybe if we could muster some added Congressuional power we could stall some bad initiatives, but we need to start unwinding, not run in place. The fiscal liquidity trap isn't far away.
Jan '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I disagree with Rob. I think Goldwater was like the 300 Spartans against the Persians.
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
It seems to me as though the long-term damage to the country is done. Obamacare has passed, and the Obama regulations set a precedent. The most important election was the last one. We lost.
I know that all the Republicans have vowed to repeal Obamacare, but it almost certainly won’t happen. And I know that the Supreme Court might strike down something here or there, but it would be wishful thinking to believe that the end-result will be anything less than a massive expansion in government power.
A second Obama term might cause big short-term problems (domestically): stifled job creation and all the rest. That matters. But it matters in a different way.
In foreign policy, it also seems the damage is done. Iran will go nuclear, the threat to Israel’s existence will be much more serious than it has been in the past. The crucial events seem most likely to occur before the next president takes office. If we wind up in a large scale war during Obama’s second term, it is likely going to be the same war we would have had under a Republican president. Republican ‘regrouping’ sounds pointless to me.
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
A second Obama term will be an unmitigated catastrophe and the end of this country as we have known it. There won't be any 'regrouping' in 2016.
People seem to forget that Supreme Court appointments are for life. If Obama gets those appointments we won't be looking at 4 more years of Obama, we will be looking at Obama and his legacy blighting this country for 20 or 30 years. The idea that we will 'learn our lesson' and somehow recover in 2016 and everything will be all right is utter insanity.
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
SMatthewStolte:
It seems to me as though the long-term damage to the country is done.
Wrong. see above.
SMatthewStolte:
In foreign policy, it also seems the damage is done. Iran will go nuclear, the threat to Israel’s existence will be much more serious than it has been in the past. The crucial events seem most likely to occur before the next president takes office. If we wind up in a large scale war during Obama’s second term, it is likely going to be the same war we would have had under a Republican president. Republican ‘regrouping’ sounds pointless to me.
Whatever happens in the Middle East, Obama will find a way to make it worse. Given another four years, he will compound that failure. We are stuck with whatever he does in the next year. We can't afford to go down that all but suicidal path for another five.
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Let me ask you this. Supposing a second Obama term is ‘suicide’ for the country. Will you be making the same case in 2016, or will you admit that the life is gone, whatever we were trying to protect is dead?
Feb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
The answer to the second part is yes if he gets the court.
As to the first part, if Obama is reelected, I will not be making the same case in 2016. I will have better things to do with what little remains of my life than partake in discussions with the inhabitants of a nation that has proven itself to be a community of idiots.
Edited on March 12, 2012 at 5:46amMar '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Err, no - this is the same mistake that Mr Delingpole makes.
The problem is that the extra layers of liberal rule are already hardwired in - Obamacare, baseline budgeting and the likelyhood of a liberal majority on the Supreme Court.
Other than that, the argument is flawless.
Edited on March 12, 2012 at 4:18amNov '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I haven't gone quite that far in my thinking, but I am thinking about the potential damage that could be done by a Romney presidency that just shuffles the type of strong-arm intervention in the private sphere, sort of a third variation on the Bush/Obama theme. I'm not anti-Romney, it's just that there are more than enough signs in his words, actions and record to seriously consider this eventuality.
I suspect that would do as much harm as a second, but seriously weakened, Obama term. What you don't want is a disastrous or RINO republican term for the next 4 years. You do want control of both houses.
Possibly you could use a Gingrich-style tactic to control the economic outcomes, if you had the Senate and House and were willing to litigate on constitutional grounds when a second-term pres BHO tries to take over economically. Without control of the budget he could only do reduced harm, and a house/senate majority could roll back Obamacare and pass laws constraining some of the Czars. What you would need are some very serious white hats to kill corruption at all levels.
Jul '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
If Civil War and the death of America is acceptable then by all means let's try the definition of stupidity and repeat the worst human to hold the office. The corrupt and simplistic GOP is beyond help or regrouping.
May '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
I'm with Doc Jay. The Radical Progressives have proved that they don't want to work with us, they want to crush us. Obama redux will mean an administration with nothing to lose and a complete radicalization of the courts.
Amicable separation may become an open consideration.
Dec '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Sure, everything would be just peachy.
My kids would owe the $27 Trillion, and they wouldn't be able to get medical attention.
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Obviously little, if anything, would be just peachy. And I'm not advocating a 'retreat to principle'. I'm suggesting that Republicans not hurl themselves into the abyss if the best shot this year isn't enough to beat Obama -- because the Obama that wins might well be mostly hamstrung and spent. (Supreme Court appointments are an important exception.) Admittedly, the economy may be hamstrung and spent, too, and it's hard to watch those years drift past. But the political decision about how to proceed will still need to be made.
May '10
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
Sowell mentioned the appointment of Supreme Court justices as well, and it's one of the rare times I disagree with him. Our fiscal woes will destroy America long before SCOTUS could if voters don't choose to put on a leash on government. Steyn is right: it's now or never (if even now).
Every other Western nation is intent on suicide as well. To survive, America must not only be willing to painfully correct our own course but also be able to withstand the epic stupidity of others. Our economy depends on other economies which are set to crumble. Our national defense depends on allies who are about to disappear.
Edited on March 12, 2012 at 6:44amFeb '11
Re: Is a Second Obama Administration No Big Deal?
James Poulos:
... because the Obama that wins might well be mostly hamstrung and spent.
This underestimates the impact of the administrative state and it's regulatory bureaucracy. Those countless obscure drudges will shoulder ahead regardless. Their natural instinct to endlessly reaffirm and justify their existence is entirely complimentary to the leftist agenda. Obama and his department heads will encourage and facilitate those endeavors in every way possible. Congress will not have the backbone to bring them to heel. Unfortunately, I doubt they would do it even with a conservative President. Suppose, for instance, they decided to abolish the Department of Homeland Security. It is certain that functions determined to be 'critical' would merely be transferred to other departments (plenty of precedent for that). I would bet my last dollar that very little of the DHS would actually be abolished.
It may not be much, but a Republican administration might at least try to apply a brake. An Obama administration is guaranteed to push ahead full throttle. It is a mistake to underestimate the latter's potential for mischief.
Edited on March 12, 2012 at 6:44am