If Obama Gets All of the Funding He Wants, He Will Listen

I heard the tail end of Obama's speech today.  As usual, I was nauseated by the constant stream of lies, misrepresentations, and the utter disdain for the intelligence of the American citizen.

He posed as a reasonable man by saying that he was open to negotiations with the Republican House as long as he got everything he wanted up front.  Yes, then he would sit down with them and listen to their complaints.  Well, if the Republicans prove stupid enough to give him all the funding he wants, they will find that he will spend a token few minutes listening to their complaints about ObamaCare and some of his other wild and unfunded spending and he will do nothing to fix the huge problems the Republicans have concerns about.  The Republicans will have lost all leverage and will become powerless.

A legitimate government is one of very limited power, as is ours when it abides by the enumerated powers of the Constitution.  Government has not done so in 100 years under the authoritarian influence of the self-proclaimed Progressives.  Our government was designed to distribute power between the two houses of the Congress, the President, and the Federal Courts.  It was purposely designed so that it would be difficult to spend money and enact laws unless there was overwhelming support for those laws and expenditures.  The Progressives have worked hard and consistently to decrease the distribution of power and centralize it in the hands of the President as much as possible.  This is because when they hold the presidency, they can shove through large chunks of their socialist agenda and anchor them in place.

These anchored programs are very hard to repeal as we are finding with the very unpopular and floundering ObamaCare.  The funding for almost all socialist transfer programs is even termed mandatory.  Congress no longer even has effective control over the 80% of government expenditures termed mandatory.  We have a government which finds it much too easy to spend money and to pass mandates.  Obama objects mightily to the Republican House attempt to thwart his will, though the House was explicitly given the lead in funding and taxing legislation by the Constitution.  Good government is only possible if the agenda to grow government and to displace the private sector is thwarted frequently and with principled determination.

Seth Mandel at Commentary made some very good observations on Obama's speech and answers in the Q & A today.