Obama's Wrong Way of Doing Things Right

by Mychal Massie (Jan. 2009)

Mr. Massie holds degrees in education, business/real estate, theology, and pastoral counseling.  He began his writing career in 1999 shortly after becoming an editorial board member at a suburban Philadelphia newspaper. http://www.nationalcenter.org/bios/P21Speakers_Massie.html

During his campaign, then-presidential candidate Barack Obama cast then-President George W. Bush as doing everything wrong.  So, what will President Obama do right?

If his first steps are any indication - not much.  A successful presidency does not come from taking classroom theory on failed political systems and saying "I can make it work."

On his second day in office, for example, Obama called for Israel to open its border with Gaza.  He wants a lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians.  A noble idea, albeit Pollyanna.  He seems to believe Hamas will end its rocket fire into Israel after polite negotiation and an Israeli withdraw from Gaza.

Obama's naiveté may warm the hearts of liberal classroom theorists who, like himself, believe we can all get along if we just talk and make nice-nice.  Israelis knows better, having experienced the treachery and deceit of Hamas. 

I don't condemn Obama for wanting to end the conflict, but legitimizing Hamas and undermining Israel's security is not the formula for success.

While expressing this deep concern for loss of life in the Middle East, Obama apparently lacks similar concern about the murder of unborn children.

Abortion is the number-one modern killer of blacks in America.  Thousands of unborn babies of all races are killed daily here.  A demographic-shattering 36.3 percent of aborted babies in 2000 were black.

While it is considered horrific that 3,446 blacks were lynched in the U.S. between 1882 and 1968, it's appalling there is not the same outcry that the same number of unborn blacks are currently put to death every few days.

Obama may deflect his shame on the abortion question by saying he supports a woman's "right to choose," but that denies the sanctity of life.  An early Obama executive order on "family planning" also denies taxpayers the choice of whether their tax dollars will support policies that murder the unborn abroad.

It is inconsistent to advocate for the comfort of committed terrorists while facilitating the genocide of unborn children.  Pursuant to that point, Obama's signing of another executive order to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center implies that he has more compassion for terrorists than for the unborn.

During the campaign, Obama also attacked the ethics and reputations of members of the Bush Administration and the former president for appointing them.  Yet Obama has selected a Treasury Secretary who allegedly forgot to pay his taxes.

He is also hiring a lobbyist, William Lynn, for deputy Defense Secretary even though he swore lobbyists would not influence his administration.  He appointed William V. Corr, the executive director of the anti-cigarette special interest group Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, as deputy secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.   His choice for Secretary of Health and Human Services is former senator Tom Daschle.  Although Daschle is not a registered lobbyist himself, he has worked as an advisor for one of DC's major lobbying firms since 2006.

Despite all of his raw criticism of the Bush Administration for virtually everything - and with his own mantra of change - Obama has already made exceptions to his own hailed ethics policy, presented a simplistic Middle East policy, shown complete disregard for the families of those lost on 9/11 (and, tangentially, for American security) and appears to show disdain for the unborn future of America and elsewhere.

Yes, sir, juxtaposed to Bush's "wrong way," it certainly looks like Obama is doing things right.

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Mychal Massie is the chairman of the black leadership network Project 21. Comments may be sent to Project21@nationalcenter.org.

Published by The National Center for Public Policy Research. Reprints permitted provided source is credited. New Visions Commentaries reflect the views of their author, and not necessarily those of Project 21 or the National Center for Public Policy Research.

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