Obama: A Legacy of Ashes
James Corbett (2017)
Film Review
In his excellent documentary about Obama’s presidency, James Corbett highlights important ways in which Obama systematically reduced civil liberties and democratic oversight of government.
- After promising to end George W Bush’s de facto lawmaking via unconstitutional signing statements, Obama far signing statements than his predecessor.
- He repeatedly inserted text into bills without informing lawmakers before they voted on them.
- After promising to end the role of lobbyists in running government, he allowed Citibank to select his cabinet and the insurance lobby to write The Affordable Care Act.
- While claiming to run the most transparent administration in history, he set a record for denying Freedom of Information Act requests and prosecuting whistleblowers.
- Despite promising to end illegal wiretapping and spying on activists, he greatly increased routine NSA surveillance of ordinary citizens. He also introduced legislation repealing Posse Comitatus* and authorizing indefinite detention of American citizens without trial. And issued an executive order granting himself the power (which he exercised liberally) to arbitrarily assassinate his enemies, including US citizens.
Obama was also the only president in history who was continuously at war during his entire eight years in office.** All but two (which he inherited from Bush) were illegal and unconstitutional wars he launched without government approval.
I was intrigued to learn the Patriot Act (enacted by the Bush administration after 9-11) was originally written by Obama’s vice president Joe Biden in 1995.
*The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act prohibited the US government using federal troops in domestic law enforcement, except in circumstances expressly authorized by the US Constitution.
**In addition to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (which candidate Obama promised to end), he launched illegal wars of aggression in Libya, Syria, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen.
The Most Revolutionary Act 
Don’t even get me started on President “left them hopeless and without any change” Obama. Many of us had such high hopes when he descended to the presidency, but our hopes were quickly dashed. I should have known when he promised to put an end “to dumb wars,” that it was just meaningless rhetoric meant to lull us into thinking that the warmongers would stop ruling our lives as they still do.
And I will also blame him for what we have now sitting up in the Oval Office. Obama and the rest of the Democraps are responsible because they took a ground swell movement and burned it alive. They could have done so much but because they are paid corporate whores, they sold us down the river and yet want our vote. Those of us who would vote their ticket, could no longer stomach doing so and we abstained. Am I happy about that? Of course not! But what choice did I have? Vote for Trump? Wasn’t going to happen.
And what is Obama doing now? Why, cashing in on his presidency. I hear tell that the bastard has signed a deal with Netflix. I would not watch it if someone paid me to. Hasn’t he said enough, done enough damage? Why can’t he just sit the hell down and shut the hell up? He will certainly not go down in history as having been the best president this godforsaken country ever had. That’s for sure.
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he cant sit down. got to fend off impeachment/indictment with some misdirections and head fakes
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Crikey, nomad, I almost forgot the head fakes. A classic tell. I’d love to play poker with Obama – he always gives it away when he’s lying.
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lol. i think he likes basketball metaphors. his favorite move: fake left, go right
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Shelby, I also blame Obama (and Bill Clinton) for abandoning working people and giving us Trump. And for deliberately substituting identity issues – like gay marriage and transgender rights – and refusing to address the growing financial distress of US working people. This was purely Obama’s doing. I think it was really hard for a lot of progressive voters to get their head around the fact Obama was far worse than Bush in many ways.
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True! He took dividing issues and used them to distract people from the fact that he was doing nothing about the ‘financial distress’ that many people were and are going through. I blame him even more than I blame Bush even though Bush started that illegal war in Iraq. Obama beat Bush out even in that because he campaigned on closing Guantanamo and yet, Guantanamo is still open. People were picked up and detained with no counsel and not charged with anything. And now that his filthy ass is no longer president, those whom he whored himself out to are bankrolling his sorry ass!
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Raised cia
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Good point, Goria. I guess we have Wayne Madsen to thank for the excellent research documenting that both grandparents and Obama’s mother had a long history with the CIA – and the CIA-funded Ford Foundation.
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More Army Intelligence and US Aid as USAID operates subject to the guidance of the President, Secretary of State, and the National Security Council. OBAMA like Timothy Geithner schooled in find arts of puppetry did exactly as he was told.
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Good points, gerry. I never heard about Obama’s Army Intelligence connections – or are you referring to his family?
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Family as his Grandfather was in WW2 and most likely made it a career, his wife WW2 at very young age was night supervisor of Boeing plant that built the B29 bombers that carried Atomic bombs to Japan. Obama Schooling shows pathway to promise order, interesting to me that Trubee Davison was in charge of B29 program and architect of long term planing with people in right positions like OBAMA Chicago Mentors.
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