Rush Limbaugh's Morning Update: Bully!

From Rush Limbaugh: Despite the hard feelings from his political base toward Bill Clinton, President Bush protected Clinton's archives. He shut down attempts to investigate Clinton or his administration. During his two terms, Bush never singled out American citizens or businesses for contempt, or demonized his political opponents. As his term ended, Bush executed a gracious transition, despite being used as an object of derision during Obama's campaign.

Three months into an administration that promised to "change" the way politics was conducted, Obama frequently ridicules and blames Bush. He and his fellow Democrats are intent on launching a witch-hunt of the previous administration. Obama and his team have heaped scorn and derision on private citizens and individual businesses. Organized mobs have appeared at the homes of Obama targets, and their families have been subjected to death threats.

And now -- despite heated denials from the White House -- more than one Chrysler creditor confirms that Obama officials threatened them with public attacks if they didn't surrender their legal claims to Chrysler's assets. These sources, by the way, voted for Obama!

Theodore Roosevelt coined the term "bully pulpit" to describe the power a president has to advocate a position and influence public opinion. But the Obama administration's "bully pulpit" is straight out of the arsenal of Al Capone of Chicago: "My way, or the highway." It's all bully, no pulpit.

Things have changed, in ways, that make you not even recognize your country anymore.

Side Comment from same article: The term "bully pulpit" stems from President Theodore Roosevelt's reference to the White House as a "bully pulpit," meaning a terrific platform from which to persuasively advocate an agenda. Roosevelt often used the word "bully" as an adjective meaning superb/wonderful. The Bully Pulpit features news, reasoned discourse, opinion and some humor. http://therogersinstitute..com/2009/05/rush-limbaughs-morning-update-bully.html

My question: Is this liberty or is it tyranny?

If Bush protected the "evil deeds" of Clinton, does that mean that Obama should follow suit?. Water boarding is torture and I don't know how many of you that support the American govt to hide that heinous crime will survive 5 minutes of it. If Bush's aides ordered torture on terror suspects, let them be uncovered. I believe the resorted to anything because they thought their detainees knows Osama's whereabouts and capturing Osama would have been a big break for W Bush and  the GOP. Osama is still at large after wasting billions searching for him and other weapons of mass destruction and sacrificing the lives of over 20000 youths yet no Osama, no weapon of mass D.

Three months into an administration that promised to "change" the way politics was conducted, Obama frequently ridicules and blames Bush. He and his fellow Democrats are intent on launching a witch-hunt of the previous administration. Obama and his team have heaped scorn and derision on private citizens and individual businesses. Organized mobs have appeared at the homes of Obama targets, and their families have been subjected to death threats.

If you really believe this assertion, then you can believe anything. Rush Limpopo is looking for attention and the likes of you are giving it to him.

@Aloy.Emeka,

If you sympathise with waterboarded convicted terrorists, there are other threads on nairaland where you can fully expres your sympathy. This is not one of them

You must be living on another planet if you are unaware of the way Obama has been heaping scorn and derision on private citizens and businesses since he became president. For starters are you unaware of the many mobs that turned up in the homes of AIG execs? This is a president that apologises for America abroad but condemns and riducules his fellow citizens; people who built America and made it the most properous country on earth. I wonder what contribution he has ever made to America's economy that gives him the right to condemn and destroy the reputation of those who do.

Tayo-D:

@Aloy.Emeka,

If you sympathise with waterboarded convicted terrorists, there are other threads on nairaland where you can fully expres your sympathy. This is not one of them

You must be living on another planet if you are unaware of the way Obama has been heaping scorn and derision on private citizens and businesses since he became president. For starters are you unaware of the many mobs that turned up in the homes of AIG execs? This is a president that apologises for America abroad but condemns and riducules his fellow citizens; people who built America and made it the most properous country on earth. I wonder what contribution he has ever made to America's economy that gives him the right to condemn and destroy the reputation of those who do.

this is pretty stupid. How is that Obama's fault? Was that not the fault of the "we have nothing to do" media fanning the flames of populist outrage . . . the same media that INCLUDED FOX NEWS WHICH KEPT ON USING AIG AS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT WAS WRONG WITH OBAMA'S SPENDING IDEAS?

Obama appologised for america abroad but in the same sentence criticized anti-American sentiments abroad . . . but of course your FAUX news peeps abridged that and fed you the piece they wanted you to hear . . . and as usual you lapped it up without thinking it thru.

When has Obama condemned and ridiculed ordinary american citizens?

sometimes your posts make me sick to my stomach.

@Davidylan,

this is pretty stupid. How is that Obama's fault? Was that not the fault of the "we have nothing to do" media fanning the flames of populist outrage . . . the same media that INCLUDED FOX NEWS WHICH KEPT ON USING AIG AS AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT WAS WRONG WITH OBAMA'S SPENDING IDEAS?

Which media? Who set the media rolling? Who called a press conferrence to deride these AIG execs in the first place? This is the same guy who just 2 weeks ago deroided legitimate investors in Chrysler. He tried to arm twist them during negotiations. Because he could not do that, he came to face the nation and called them unpatriotic speculators who were not ready to make sacrifices. Was that the media also? You need to get off this hero worship and see things clearly.

Obama appologised for america abroad but in the same sentence criticized anti-American sentiments abroad . . . but of course your FAUX news peeps abridged that and fed you the piece they wanted you to hear . . . and as usual you lapped it up without thinking it thru.

He condemned America and criticized anti-american sentiments in one sentence. how does that work? I expect the President to bing to their atention, what good America has brought to the world. How many of those leaders apologised for their country?

Its funny how you keep talking about Fox News. You probably spend most of your time watching the station. I have not watched the station for almost two years now. So find another excuse.

When has Obama condemned and ridiculed ordinary american citizens?

So the AIG execs aren't ordinary citizens but aliens? The Chrysler bond holders arenn't ordinary citizens but aliens?

sometimes your posts make me sick to my stomach.

What should sick you to your stomach is your inability to reason for yourself, especially when the issue is Obama. The guy is a bully plain and simple, and he has used his ofice to pit segments of the population against others. He has been a divider, not a uniter.

Tayo-D:

@Davidylan,
Which media? Who set the media rolling? Who called a press conferrence to deride these AIG execs in the first place? This is the same guy who just 2 weeks ago deroided legitimate investors in Chrysler. He tried to arm twist them during negotiations. Because he could not do that, he came to face the nation and called them unpatriotic speculators who were not ready to make sacrifices. Was that the media also? You need to get off this hero worship and see things clearly.
He condemned America and criticized anti-american sentiments in one sentence. how does that work? I expect the President to bing to their atention, what good America has brought to the world. How many of those leaders apologised for their country?

Its funny how you keep talking about Fox News. You probably spend most of your time watching the station. I have not watched the station for almost two years now. So find another excuse.
So the AIG execs aren't ordinary citizens but aliens? The Chrysler bond holders arenn't ordinary citizens but aliens?
What should sick you to your stomach is your inability to reason for yourself, especially when the issue is Obama. The guy is a bully plain and simple, and he has used his ofice to pit segments of the population against others. He has been a divider, not a uniter.

Taq a chill pill abeg.U guys lost and woefully too,ur party is in disarray;go put ur house in order & see if u can come bak to the white house in 2016.Bunch of conservative hypocrites.

Tayo-D:

@Davidylan,
Which media? Who set the media rolling? Who called a press conferrence to deride these AIG execs in the first place? This is the same guy who just 2 weeks ago deroided legitimate investors in Chrysler. He tried to arm twist them during negotiations. Because he could not do that, he came to face the nation and called them unpatriotic speculators who were not ready to make sacrifices. Was that the media also? You need to get off this hero worship and see things clearly.

what a load of revisionist republican bull. He tried to armtwist investors in Chrysler? What shld he have done? Given them more bailout money?

I think YOU need to start seeing things beyond "Obama is bad".

Tayo-D:

He condemned America and criticized anti-american sentiments in one sentence. how does that work? I expect the President to bing to their atention, what good America has brought to the world. How many of those leaders apologised for their country?

Pretty silly Hannity-esque ignorant BS.

Obama's exact words - [size=14pt]"there have been times where America's shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive toward Europe."

"In Europe, there is an anti-Americanism that is at once casual but can also be insidious. Instead of recognizing the good that America so often does in the world, there have been times where Europeans chose to blame America for much of what's bad,"[/size]

Did you even read the words he said? where did he "condemn America"? Is it not true that America chose to unilaterally go to war in Iraq AGAINST the strong rebuke of most of her European allies?

Reasoning with you people is like trying to soak a rock.

Tayo-D:

Its funny how you keep talking about Fox News. You probably spend most of your time watching the station. I have not watched the station for almost two years now. So find another excuse.

Oh sorry, i forgot you fish in bigger waters. Worshipping at the throne of Rush Limbaugh.

Tayo-D:

So the AIG execs aren't ordinary citizens but aliens? The Chrysler bond holders arenn't ordinary citizens but aliens?

What has this got to do with anything? If not for the media would anyone be talking of AIG execs? I asked earlier, what shld Obama have done to Chrysler? Simply thrown more money at them so you goons can come crying about "spending"?

Tayo-D:

What should sick you to your stomach is your inability to reason for yourself, especially when the issue is Obama. The guy is a bully plain and simple, and he has used his ofice to pit segments of the population against others. He has been a divider, not a uniter.

lol considering you started this topic with Rush Limbaugh as the your prime source i wonder if you see the irony in your own words.

How has Obama been a bully? Because the uneducated Rush said so?

Obama has been a divider? Sure . . . we cant pretend that 100% of those republican whinners are not doing so because they cant imagine a black guy sitting in the white house.

@cold,

cold:

Taq a chill pill abeg.U guys lost and woefully too,ur party is in disarray;go put ur house in order & see if u can come bak to the white house in 2016.Bunch of conservative hypocrites.

I'm trying t figure out which one irks you the most. Is it the fact that you can't fault or prove my allegations wrong, or the fact that the RNC is not dead as you wish.

But seriously. I believe in failure. It provides the opportunity for reflection and for determining through experience what works and what doesn't. The RNC missed its way these past 8 years and the result was the DNC winning both Houses and the White House. It is now up to them to determine how to proceed from here. Either find your conservative roots or remain irrelevant for as long as they want to remain a wanna-be Democratic Party.

phew . . . . . tayo . . .

first of all, anybody listening to boss limbaugh is an idiot. if anyone is a bully, it is that fat brainless, alcoholic and imbecillic drone called limbaugh, who recently bullied the so called new america bla bla bla . . . (jeb bush, eric cantor, mitt romney etc) who went out on a ''listening tour'' and after the ''boss'' bullied them to stop the listening tour b/c republicans dont listen but tell people what to do/believe, cantor did a u-turn and said on ''morning joe'' that it is not a listening tour. well, i can see tayo wants us to listen to that bomboclaat god of his.

2. the issue of torture is not about obama vs bush administration. infact, i'm disappointed in obama who promised ''change we can believe'' but is now shielding those criminals of torture from full prosecution, conviction and possible execution. anyway, there's always another election.

3. obama has never ridiculed bush. he criticised bush's policies. he never ridiculed bush b/c he didnt need to. that brainless natural disaster is an auto-ridiculing machine.

4. the mob outside AIG were not sent by obama. and if i were in the US at that time i would have been a part of that mob. better attack and wound/maim some of those fat cats who caused mayhem on a globalised economy and also the rumsfield mob that caused mayhem in the middle-east which lead to the loss of over I00,000 lives and still counting. obama has been playing it cool with those corrupt maniacs (probably to maintain his so called coolness- - - he is loosing the support of the base that sent him to change these things)


5. if only i can lay my hands on the chrysler executive that still has mouth to talk. these people should be behind bars. but the law should be followed. so may be boss limbaugh can forward the names of those who acted outside the law, so we may investigate and believe (note that tayo doesnt need to investigate and believe, he beleives everything his god tells him, and that is understandable. there's freedom of religion in the US)

6. Let me educate tayo and his god about ''my way or the highway'' free of charge . _{another benefit of nairaland} . that statement did not originate with al capone but as far back as the lincoln assasination. his wife wanted lincoln buried at the cemetry of her choice, but the officials of the day wanted him buried in another location in springfield, so she sent them a message to either bury him in the cemetry she wanted or he will be buried in chicago (hence refered to as the highway b/c lincoln's corpse was to pass thru many US cities including chicago which was in the highway of lincoln's body's itinerary from DC to springfield) she said, my way or the highway.


7. tayo, as much as i dislike what obama is doing now with regards to his kid gloves approach to the issue of torture, i still accept, and indeed admire the fact that for now we have someone in washington called . . . . . . . .  

PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

pres-elect . . . you're trying to reason with Limbaugh's houseboy?

i still have some respect for tayo. i only wish he removed the name lumbaugh from that senseless post he made, then it would have been debated even though it is senseless, at least for the sake of tayo.

pres-elect:

i still have some respect for tayo. i only wish he removed the name lumbaugh from that senseless post he made, then it would have been debated even though it is senseless, at least for the sake of tayo.

Me too . . . they guy is a brain but how i wish he'd listen to someone else besides Limbaugh . . .

@Davidylan,

what a load of revisionist republican bull. He tried to armtwist investors in Chrysler? What shld he have done? Given them more bailout money?

No. If you bother to know your facts before letting your adrenalin drive your responses, you will know I have never been in favour of the bailout. What then is the purpose of US bankruptcy laws? It is not the govt's role to determine losers and winners in the market place. Its funny that the investors who gave Chrysler the money it used to sustain its operations all these while have been given the short end of the stick.  You ever wondered how come the UAW now owns 55% of Chrysler?  Ask yourself wat percentage is now owned by the people who loaned it money? The same UAW that is hugely responsible for the debts of the company is now given majority shares at the expense of those who loan it money contractually.

Do contracts mean anything anymore? This is lawlessness at the highest level of govt. America is no longer a nation that honors conracts? The govt can now arm-twist you out of your contractual obligations and benefits? Is thjat how this nation was built?

I think YOU need to start seeing things beyond "Obama is bad".

I never said so. Can say the same for his policies though.

Did you even read the words he said? where did he "condemn America"? Is it not true that America chose to unilaterally go to war in Iraq AGAINST the strong rebuke of most of her European allies? Reasoning with you people is like trying to soak a rock.

Listen to yourself.  Obama should apologise to Europe for disregarding them in invading Iraq. Who the heck are they? If they had done their job right through the UN instead of collecting bribes, perhaps that war wouldn't have taken place. We see how principled these allies are don't we? We see how enthusiastic they are to stand by the US in Afghanistan. Give it up to the holy Europeans.

Come to think about it, maybe we owe them an apology afterall.  Perhaps we owe the world an apology for sticking our nose in their businesses.  We need to apologise for the Marshall Plan,. How dare we send hundreds of billions of dollars in international aide to those in need regardless of race, religion or nationality. How dare America defended and helped liberate our allies through two World Wars.  This was done while protecting South Korea from the North for over 50 years.  We dared to even help rebuild Japan and embrace the country as an ally. America should have minded its business instead of coming to the aide of the Middle East in Operation Desert Storm, providing economic assistance to Eastern Europe and Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union. A not so careful look at these lists suggests that the U.S. has indeed been arrogant, aggressive and purely acting in its own selfish interest.

This arrogance was brought to the level of an art in the last eight years. How else can one explain how Bush literally tripled America's aide to Africa. The same US govt and its people through arrogance, provided the biggest aide to help the 2004 Tsunami victims, distributed aide and assistance to earthquake victims in Pakistan, India, Iran and China. And how dare the US attempt to build international condemnation for the atrocities in Darfur. We shoudln't forget our arrogance to respond to an attack on the United States by terrorists the Taliban refused to give up. Even if we ignore that crazy logic, just the fact that it resulted in the single largest shift toward equal rights for women in the region in centuries makes it hard to believe how anyone could see the U.S. in a positive light.  No doubt the world would be a better place if the US has kept out of it.

Tayo-D:

Listen to yourself.  Obama should apologise to Europe for disregarding them in invading Iraq. Who the heck are they?

Does anyone need to be convinced as to the lunacy of the right?

@Davidylan,

Oh sorry, i forgot you fish in bigger waters. Worshipping at the throne of Rush Limbaugh.

Oh I'm sorry.  I should perhaps be worshipping at the throne of Barack Obama. Unfirtunately, its because of your royal highness Obama that I started listening to Rush.  How a Presidential candidate could buy up air time across the country to peddle lies against a private citizen still baffles me. It was this singular act that made me think Ruch must be worth listening to. Otherwise, Obama wouldn't have spent so much money to propagae lies against him.

What has this got to do with anything? If not for the media would anyone be talking of AIG execs? I asked earlier, what shld Obama have done to Chrysler? Simply thrown more money at them so you goons can come crying about "spending"?

No. If not for Obama, no one will be talking about the AIG execs. Do you know Obama voted for the bill to give AIG the bailout? Are you aware that the bill specifically stated that the prior bonuses will be paid regardless? So why did he vote for the bill and in a public show of false anger, derided the execs? Can you explain that?

lol considering you started this topic with Rush Limbaugh as the your prime source i wonder if you see the irony in your own words.

There is nothing wrong with quoting other people's articles. Do I agree with what he said and can I back them up with facts? Yes, and I have done that.

How has Obama been a bully? Because the uneducated Rush said so?

So the issue with the AIG Execs and the Chrysler bond holders does not reveal bullying?  I will post the resignation letter of one of the Execs for you to review.  Tell me if you will like to be treated like that.

Obama has been a divider? Sure . . . we cant pretend that 100% of those republican whinners are not doing so because they cant imagine a black guy sitting in the white house.

Again you have to bring race into this.  What a shame.

@topic,

The following is a public letter sent on by Jake DeSantis, an executive vice president of the American International Group’s financial products unit, to Edward M. Liddy, the chief executive of A.I.G. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/opinion/25desantis.html?_r=2

DEAR Mr. Liddy,

It is with deep regret that I submit my notice of resignation from A.I.G. Financial Products. I hope you take the time to read this entire letter. Before describing the details of my decision, I want to offer some context:

I am proud of everything I have done for the commodity and equity divisions of A.I.G.-F.P. I was in no way involved in — or responsible for — the credit default swap transactions that have hamstrung A.I.G. Nor were more than a handful of the 400 current employees of A.I.G.-F.P. Most of those responsible have left the company and have conspicuously escaped the public outrage.

After 12 months of hard work dismantling the company — during which A.I.G. reassured us many times we would be rewarded in March 2009 —we in the financial products unit have been betrayed by A.I.G. and are being unfairly persecuted by elected officials. In response to this, I will now leave the company and donate my entire post-tax retention payment to those suffering from the global economic downturn. My intent is to keep none of the money myself.

I take this action after 11 years of dedicated, honorable service to A.I.G. I can no longer effectively perform my duties in this dysfunctional environment, nor am I being paid to do so. Like you, I was asked to work for an annual salary of $1, and I agreed out of a sense of duty to the company and to the public officials who have come to its aid. Having now been let down by both, I can no longer justify spending 10, 12, 14 hours a day away from my family for the benefit of those who have let me down.

I started at this company in 1998 as an equity trader, became the head of equity and commodity trading and, a couple of years before A.I.G.’s meltdown last September, was named the head of business development for commodities. Over this period the equity and commodity units were consistently profitable — in most years generating net profits of well over $100 million. Most recently, during the dismantling of A.I.G.-F.P., I was an integral player in the pending sale of its well-regarded commodity index business to UBS. As you know, business unit sales like this are crucial to A.I.G.’s effort to repay the American taxpayer.

The profitability of the businesses with which I was associated clearly supported my compensation. I never received any pay resulting from the credit default swaps that are now losing so much money. I did, however, like many others here, lose a significant portion of my life savings in the form of deferred compensation invested in the capital of A.I.G.-F.P. because of those losses. In this way I have personally suffered from this controversial activity — directly as well as indirectly with the rest of the taxpayers.

I have the utmost respect for the civic duty that you are now performing at A.I.G. You are as blameless for these credit default swap losses as I am. You answered your country’s call and you are taking a tremendous beating for it.

But you also are aware that most of the employees of your financial products unit had nothing to do with the large losses. And I am disappointed and frustrated over your lack of support for us. I and many others in the unit feel betrayed that you failed to stand up for us in the face of untrue and unfair accusations from certain members of Congress last Wednesday and from the press over our retention payments, and that you didn’t defend us against the baseless and reckless comments made by the attorneys general of New York and Connecticut.

My guess is that in October, when you learned of these retention contracts, you realized that the employees of the financial products unit needed some incentive to stay and that the contracts, being both ethical and useful, should be left to stand. That’s probably why A.I.G. management assured us on three occasions during that month that the company would “live up to its commitment” to honor the contract guarantees.

That may be why you decided to accelerate by three months more than a quarter of the amounts due under the contracts. That action signified to us your support, and was hardly something that one would do if he truly found the contracts “distasteful.”

That may also be why you authorized the balance of the payments on March 13.

At no time during the past six months that you have been leading A.I.G. did you ask us to revise, renegotiate or break these contracts — until several hours before your appearance last week before Congress.

I think your initial decision to honor the contracts was both ethical and financially astute, but it seems to have been politically unwise. It’s now apparent that you either misunderstood the agreements that you had made — tacit or otherwise — with the Federal Reserve, the Treasury, various members of Congress and Attorney General Andrew Cuomo of New York, or were not strong enough to withstand the shifting political winds.

You’ve now asked the current employees of A.I.G.-F.P. to repay these earnings. As you can imagine, there has been a tremendous amount of serious thought and heated discussion about how we should respond to this breach of trust.

As most of us have done nothing wrong, guilt is not a motivation to surrender our earnings. We have worked 12 long months under these contracts and now deserve to be paid as promised. None of us should be cheated of our payments any more than a plumber should be cheated after he has fixed the pipes but a careless electrician causes a fire that burns down the house.

Many of the employees have, in the past six months, turned down job offers from more stable employers, based on A.I.G.’s assurances that the contracts would be honored. They are now angry about having been misled by A.I.G.’s promises and are not inclined to return the money as a favor to you.

The only real motivation that anyone at A.I.G.-F.P. now has is fear. Mr. Cuomo has threatened to “name and shame,” and his counterpart in Connecticut, Richard Blumenthal, has made similar threats — even though attorneys general are supposed to stand for due process, to conduct trials in courts and not the press.

So what am I to do? There’s no easy answer. I know that because of hard work I have benefited more than most during the economic boom and have saved enough that my family is unlikely to suffer devastating losses during the current bust. Some might argue that members of my profession have been overpaid, and I wouldn’t disagree.

That is why I have decided to donate 100 percent of the effective after-tax proceeds of my retention payment directly to organizations that are helping people who are suffering from the global downturn. This is not a tax-deduction gimmick; I simply believe that I at least deserve to dictate how my earnings are spent, and do not want to see them disappear back into the obscurity of A.I.G.’s or the federal government’s budget. Our earnings have caused such a distraction for so many from the more pressing issues our country faces, and I would like to see my share of it benefit those truly in need.

On March 16 I received a payment from A.I.G. amounting to $742,006.40, after taxes. In light of the uncertainty over the ultimate taxation and legal status of this payment, the actual amount I donate may be less — in fact, it may end up being far less if the recent House bill raising the tax on the retention payments to 90 percent stands. Once all the money is donated, you will immediately receive a list of all recipients.

This choice is right for me. I wish others at A.I.G.-F.P. luck finding peace with their difficult decision, and only hope their judgment is not clouded by fear.

Mr. Liddy, I wish you success in your commitment to return the money extended by the American government, and luck with the continued unwinding of the company’s diverse businesses — especially those remaining credit default swaps. I’ll continue over the short term to help make sure no balls are dropped, but after what’s happened this past week I can’t remain much longer — there is too much bad blood. I’m not sure how you will greet my resignation, but at least Attorney General Blumenthal should be relieved that I’ll leave under my own power and will not need to be “shoved out the door.”

Sincerely,

Jake DeSantis

How would you feel if this was you?

@pres-elect,

phew . . . . . tayo . . .

I knocked the breadth out of you ehn? I know I have that effect on babes and unrepentant liberals. Which one are you sef?

first of all, anybody listening to boss limbaugh is an idiot. if anyone is a bully, it is that fat brainless, alcoholic and imbecillic drone called limbaugh, who recently bullied the so called new america bla bla bla . . . (jeb bush, eric cantor, mitt romney etc) who went out on a ''listening tour'' and after the ''boss'' bullied them to stop the listening tour b/c republicans dont listen but tell people what to do/believe, cantor did a u-turn and said on ''morning joe'' that it is not a listening tour. well, i can see tayo wants us to listen to that bomboclaat god of his.

Tell me what are they supposed to be listening to? You mean they were not listening all the while McCain's campaign only gained energy when Palin was selected as his vice? Of course they are deaf to realities. The RNC has consistently lost elections ever since they started flirting with the center. America only needs one DNC, the RNC is too late trying to become that Party. By the way, Rush is a commentator. He said what he felt about the listening tour. There is no crime in that.

2. the issue of torture is not about obama vs bush administration. infact, i'm disappointed in obama who promised ''change we can believe'' but is now shielding those criminals of torture from full prosecution, conviction and possible execution. anyway, there's always another election.

There are many of us looking forward to that next election.

3. obama has never ridiculed bush. he criticised bush's policies. he never ridiculed bush b/c he didnt need to. that brainless natural disaster is an auto-ridiculing machine.

Can you guys debate without calling people names? Being foul-mouthed does not reveal intelligence. Not when you are trying to appear more intelligent than the former President of the greatest nation on earth.

4. the mob outside AIG were not sent by obama. and if i were in the US at that time i would have been a part of that mob. better attack and wound/maim some of those fat cats who caused mayhem on a globalised economy and also the rumsfield mob that caused mayhem in the middle-east which lead to the loss of over I00,000 lives and still counting. obama has been playing it cool with those corrupt maniacs (probably to maintain his so called coolness- - - he is loosing the support of the base that sent him to change these things)

Of course they were not sent by Obama. The attorney for the Chrysler Bond holders who declared they were threatened by the administration were just dreaming right? As if the jobless liberals who were calling for the peoples's head would have gone to their houses if Obama had not set the ball rolling. By the way, did you read the resignation letter I posted above?

5. if only i can lay my hands on the chrysler executive that still has mouth to talk. these people should be behind bars. but the law should be followed. so may be boss limbaugh can forward the names of those who acted outside the law, so we may investigate and believe (note that tayo doesnt need to investigate and believe, he beleives everything his god tells him, and that is understandable. there's freedom of religion in the US)

Do you know what you are atlaking about? They should be in jail for buying bonds? That way, probably 90% of America's workforce will be behing bars. Of course that would be the liberal's dream, 'cos none of them will be affected.

6. Let me educate tayo and his god about ''my way or the highway'' free of charge . another benefit of nairaland . that statement did not originate with al capone but as far back as the lincoln assasination. his wife wanted lincoln buried at the cemetry of her choice, but the officials of the day wanted him buried in another location in springfield, so she sent them a message to either bury him in the cemetry she wanted or he will be buried in chicago (hence refered to as the highway b/c lincoln's corpse was to pass thru many US cities including chicago which was in the highway of lincoln's body's itinerary from DC to springfield) she said, my way or the highway.

Exactly what is your point? That the phrase can only be used when Lincoln is directly referenced? You serious?

7. tayo, as much as i dislike what obama is doing now with regards to his kid gloves approach to the issue of torture, i still accept, and indeed admire the fact that for now we have someone in washington called . . . . . . . .

PRESIDENT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

Thank God I'm not white. You would have accused me of racism. You like what he's done to the AIG Execs? Would you like Obama to have the final say on all your contractual obligations?

sometimes u can be funny. honestly. anyway, i'm male. and i dont fully know what u mean by liberal, i say what i feel, if that makes me liberal, perhaps rush is also liberal.

i respond to this kind of post b/c it was posted by u. somehow, i respect you (honestly i dont know why i do so ) but ehm, some posts deserve silence and this is one of them. but b/c it came from you, i decided to respond and let you know how i felt about it_______absolute nonsense.


all the republicans, rush followers/worshippers , etc can continue their malignant delusion while their leaders can continue thier fear mongering. in the next 4 yrs, it wont change anything. the democrats are in charge and the people are with them. say what u like, we dont care i'll be in the states hopefully by the end of the year, for good. i'll join moveon.org and make my contribution to real change (hope obama will listen to us)

you may say i am changing the topic, but tayo my brother, the post u made here is really not worth my comment other than what i've said already

@pres-elect,

Perhaps I should have included some smiley emoticons after my statement.  My statement was meant as a good-natured joke. Of course I know you be guy. Why are you so sensitive now? You need to get married and release some tension, if you know what I mean  .

But on a more serious note, why do you find it so easy to attack people's personalities, even though you can't stand being at the center of criticisms, however good-natured?  This is about the 2nd or 3rd time I have taken exceptions to the way you easily attack people like Rush and Bush.  I have enormous respect for Obama, even though I do not agree with his politics. Someone can't chieve what he has achieved without been admirable. Same goes for Rush and Bush.  You need to respect that. So when we discuss, let's keep it on issues.

Indeed you may not agree with my opinion, but you can't but respect the fact that I express them without attacking personalities. Besides, why the attention on my person? This is supposed to be about issues, which so far, you have not addressed. You've tied to divert the attention to Bush and Rush.  This is not about them.

As for the issue at hand, did you read the resignation letter of that AIG Executive? Are you aware that he and the majority of people who were tongue-lashed by Obama and co were not even involved in making the deals that brought the company to its knees?  They were retained to unwined those deals based on a contractual agreement. The CEO promised to honor the contracts which was specifically mentioned in the bailout bill that Obama and co voted for.  Why then were these Executives made scape goats?  According to you, you would have carried placards to their homes to protest as well. You think they deserve that treatment? As it is now, their only remuneration for one whole year is $1. That is mean.

i have always known that Tayo- D is a kangaroo.

Tayo-D don come again. Uncle e don do na.

@tombola,

i have always known that Tayo- D is a kangaroo.

My guy, I never go Australia before now. Why then the mention of kangaroo?Take time o. I won't let you get off easily next time. If you have nothing to say about the issues, then keep quiet. This is not a personality contest. Seun created the meet-up zone and romance session for people like you who can't debate beyond people (apologies to other users of that forum).

Tayo-D don come again. Uncle e don do na.

What can I say my guy. Bush had enormous goodwill after 911. According to his critics, he used that opportunity to role back civil liberties. Shouldn't we learn from that history to ensure Obama does not use his goodwill to do same, or even worse?

I don't understand why immigrants support Republicans, especially non Western-European immigrants.
Also why are Republicans so quick to jump on Obama who has not been in office for a year but Bush was allowed to goof off for two terms?
Its all dirty politics but it seems that Republicans like to turn and tumble in the filth. Pretentious filth at that. The right is claiming not seeing change but I guess they don't want to open their eyes.

@savanaha,

I don't understand why immigrants  support Republicans, especially non Western-European immigrants.
Also why are Republicans so quick to jump on Obama who has not been in office for a year but Bush was allowed to goof off for two terms?
Its all dirty politics but it seems that Republicans like to turn and tumble in the filth. Pretentious filth at that. The right is claiming not seeing change but I guess they don't want to open their eyes.

Bush given a break? I can't believe someone will ever say this.  But then, the truth and self-reality don't match sometimes.

I'm trying to figure out if the RNC has been harsh on Obama. In my opinion, that is not so. If anything, they are afraid to take him on for fear of being called racists by the Obama Press. It's only a few people who dare to take him head on.

Obama may be popular, but his major policies so far are not. This irony is epitomised by no other than Warren Buffet who has consistently decalred his love for Obama, even though he does not agree with virually all the actions Obama has taken on the economy.  Let's take the issue we are discussing for instance.  Here is what Warren Buffet had to say about the Chrysler debacle:

Warren Buffett endorsed Barack Obama for president last year and has generally remained positive about the new president's actions to try to restart the economy. But the Oracle of Omaha apparently has significant reservations about the way the administration handled secured lenders of Chrysler LLC in the days leading up to the automaker's bankruptcy last week, predicting that the government's actions to abandon principles that govern what creditors have priority "would have a whole lot of consequences."

Chrysler filed for Chapter 11 protection last week after some holders of its $6.8 billion in secured debt refused to go along with a government-mandated restructuring that would have seen them receive just pennies on the dollar. The lenders complained that they were being treated unfairly, noting that the United Auto Workers' unsecured claim would receive 55% of the company's equity.

Obama had harsh words for those lenders during a press conference announcing the bankruptcy, saying "a group of investment firms and hedge funds" had decided to hold out for what he called "the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout."

Buffett, speaking to CNBC's Becky Quick at Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s annual meeting, uses the sort of colloquial language that has earned him the title "America's billionaire next door" to explain in simple terms what he sees as the danger of the administration's actions.

He said:

"The bondholders want a secure bond. IIf I have a first mortgage on my house here, and the first mortgage is for half of what the house is worth, and somebody says I want you to take a big haircut because I've got credit card debt someplace else, that's got problems. It has problems in terms of future lending. I mean, if priorities don't mean anything that's going to disrupt lending practices in the future."

He warned that the Chrysler example could make lenders more hesitant in the future, perhaps delaying an economic recovery.

"If we want to encourage lending in this country," Buffett said, "we don't want to say to somebody who lends and gets a secured position that that secured position doesn't mean anything." - Lou Whiteman - http://www.thedeal.com/dealscape/2009/05/buffett_warns_of_chrysler_cram.php

@tayo

na which tension u say make i carry marriage release . . . no wahala, i'm working on it

i must confess, i dont like rush, yes, i hate him. i have a right to hate him. dont i? as for bush, i dont hate him. he is a charming guy. easy going and likeable personality. i guess i was a bit vitriolic in that post b/c of the name rush. but i dont think i disrespected you  i was careful not to disrespect you . .   . . . _{abi i f-uck up somewhere?}

about the CEOs, he who wears the crown bears the pain. Obama, as president is responsible for any attrocities comitted by the US. it dont matter if the attrocity was done under George Bush or Abraham Lincoln. Bill Clinton had to apologise to some black soldiers that were disrespected during WW2. He also apologised to some blacks used unethically in some medical study in the earlier half of the 20th century. so the AIG exec had to bear the responsibility for what his office represents

i'm afraid i cant read that long letter u posted. i need to save my brains for the summer exams, but honestly, i do not need to eat an egg b4 i know if it is rotten. it may interest you to know that my annoyance is not specifically targeted at AIG though, but the system whereby in this recession some execs (names withheld) spend $2 million to refurbish their office. how much does it take to renovate oval office? soem go on a holiday, pay bonuses etc and u expect people to sit by and say oh, it was a contract bla bla bla is unacceptable

this is not an AIG attack, or Chrysler attack. no. it's just on those insensitive and arrogant execs that act as if the world is theirs. uncontrolled hedonism after bail outs from tax payers money. anyway, me i'm tired o, let me try and do some studying b4 midnight. this school don tire me sef, no be say job dey for man pikin

Tayo-D
Bush started bail-out. Bush should have used bankruptcy laws instead of waiting for Obama to do it. What your party and president did not do ,you are nowcriticizing Obama for not doing. I would be mad at my party for starting a bailing out fiesta. Wall Street asked for these bail outs not White  House. Please put square pegs in square holes not round pegs in square hole. Its so disingenuous for folks like Rush and you to take a swipe on Obama on programs that were started by your president and GOP.
The difference between hard liners like you and Rush and moderates like Obama is the way you guys keep trumping your extreme views. When Bush was president, some liberals said  " we will  move to Canada" now Obama is president, some cons like you are saying " we will secede or we want the president to fail.  Clinton was investigated in granting pardon to Mark Rich as well as his Natl Security Adviser . Mr Berger who was prosecuted. Clinton was impeached by a GOP dominated house for having sex with Monika.

@pres-elect,

You know what tension I'm talking about. Abi you want me to spell everything out on the www?

Hate is a very strong word, especially when you use it in a sentence with a fellow human as the object. I don't know what the guy has done to you, but I am sure he does not deserve such negative affection. If anything at all, people who know Rush describe him as an everyday fellow with a very likeable personality. I'm not sure who I'll prefer as a friend between both of them anyways.

No you were not disrespectful to me. Quite the opposite, and I appreciate that. My point was just that you should be consistent with the golden rule irrespective of the personality involved. "Do to others what you'd like them to do to you". You may disagree with him, but calling him or any other person names is unwarranted. To make you get over your prejudices, I have tried on other threads to direct the issues to the points he raised, but it seems you can't get past that. Don't you think you need to wean yourself off of the sources of information that makes you hate somebody because of their political opinion?

You really need to read the letter. It will make you see how irresponsible Obama was in making a victim of these fine individuals. You sure are like millions of people who were fed a one-sided and factually innacurate information by our Commander-in -Chief. Many like you do not bother to seek out the facts, but have carried placards and taught to hate hard working citizens like you. It's such a pity.

Yoy might say this is not about AIG or Chrysler, but they are the main reason why this thread was started in the first place. The president using his office to bully ordinary citizens.

How people act is none of your business, as long as they do not violate your fundamental human rights. If Obama cares so much about the way money is being spent, why then would he approve Air Force One flying over NY for a photo-op that cost the tax-payers over $300,000? How does that help the economy at this time? And don't tell me he didn't know about this before hand. No way Air Force One will get off the ground without the president knowing about it.

@adconline,

Bush started bail-out. Bush should have used bankruptcy laws instead of waiting for Obama to do it. What your party and president did not do ,you are nowcriticizing Obama for not doing. I would be mad at my party for starting a bailing out fiesta. Wall Street asked for these bail outs not White House. Please put square pegs in square holes not round pegs in square hole. Its so disingenuous for folks like Rush and you to take a swipe on Obama on programs that were started by your president and GOP.
The difference between hard liners like you and Rush and moderates like Obama is the way you guys keep trumping your extreme views. When Bush was president, some liberals said " we will move to Canada" now Obama is president, some cons like you are saying " we will secede or we want the president to fail. Clinton was investigated in granting pardon to Mark Rich as well as his Natl Security Adviser . Mr Berger who was prosecuted. Clinton was impeached by a GOP dominated house for having sex with Monika.

Try to look beyond Republican versus Democrats. I have always ben agaisnt the bailout, whether under Bush or now under Obama. If I recall correctly, Rush also criticised the bailout idea that was embraced by John McCain and Bush. It has been a bad idea all along. That Obama has continued with it does not make it better. So your accusation false flat. Wanna make another one?

If bailout was the final route for Chrysler, why then did Obama force things around and determined winners and losers before agreeing to bankruptcy? How come the non-secured party, UAW gain 55% of the shares while the secured bondholders are not only deprived of their investments, but publicly condemned and ridiculed by the President? Wanna explain that? You don't think that is bullying?

What the heck are you talking about with Marc Rich?
How does President Bush feel about the Rich pardon inquiries?

Bush has been quoted as saying he thinks "it's time to move on," and by all accounts has little interest in pursuing any investigation that keeps his predecessor in the national spotlight. - [url]http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,99302,00.html[/url]

@tayo,
good to know i didnt deride u. well, unfortunately i am not perfect. all through my life i've come to realise that i just hate some people for no just cause. especially Hillary Clinton , who has done everything right to deserve respect, but i find myself hating her the more, i've tried to like her, but i cant . . . rush is another. i'll continue trying though, b/c hating these folks do me no good. infact it harms my soul. i'll try my best

why did u say obama ridicules bush? he never did that. c'mon tayo, u know better than that. obama criticised bush's policies, not bush himself. for the airforce one stuff, i'll comment when i have the facts. but what i know now is that the president was livid when he heard of what happened. and dont think the president must know every detail of what happens around him. not when so much is happening at the same time. but i'll get back to u on that.

bush failed, and america plummetted with his administration . . . .stretched/tired out military, shambolic economy, widened gap between rich and poor, disgraceful education etc etc etc, . . . .and rush wants obama to fail . . . a failed presidency= a failed nation . people will hurt. that guy is moronic tayo i'm sorry, permit me to use just one negative word in this post. republicans have good ideas too, but many of them now are just clueless especially here on nairaland where people like toshman have run out of ideas and just vanished.

tayo-D as much as strive to make sense most times while upholding ur mouthpiece of what american politics (read obama's administration) should be, i have a question . . .
dont u think its high time u stopped listening to the words of a deranged man experiencing mid-life crisis who deals with his moods by exhibiting his partial psychosis by broadcasting disinformation on air ?

hey just a thought . . .

seriously if u would get over the obama's what's wrong with america notion and look at the american situation for what it really is,
dont u accept that he sure is on to something and he deserves a bit of time?

i mean ur party had 8 yrs to rule under bush, what singular good came out of that?

@pres-elect,

No one is perfect, and I sure don't expect you to be. You promise to make an effort to correct what you have personally recognised to be a bad habit. I, or anyone for that matter cannot ask for more.

Just tell your Obama to leave Bush alone. He won an election by associating Bush wiuth everything wrong in the world. Does he plan to govern by the same tactics too? Bush is past tense, he is the present and should guide into the future.

Let me address your issue about the widening gap between the rich and the poor! Tell me, how is that a problem when the standard of living and the income of the poor have risen along with the rich. It makes economic sense for that to happen. Think of it this way. Assume a poor man invests like $10,000 of his discresionary income and makes a profit of 100%. At the same time, assume a rich man invests $1,000,000 and makes a profit of 10%. Your logic suggests to us that there is injustice because the gap has widened. The truth is that the poor person has even done better than the rich in the market place. This is the truth you are not being told. Your attention is focused on the gap and not the fact that the poor who work are doing better and have acquired more during the Bush Administration.

@bluespice,

tayo-D as much as strive to make sense most times while upholding ur mouthpiece of what american politics (read obama's administration) should be, i have a question . . .
dont u think its high time u stopped listening to the words of a deranged man experiencing mid-life crisis who deals with his moods by exhibiting his partial psychosis by broadcasting disinformation on air ?

Let me ignore your tirade against him for now. Can you please point out the misinformation here? Is it true that Obama has been bullying private citizens? The answer is an undisputed YES. You may want to read my previous entries here to see the facts.

hey just a thought . . .

You ever think about addressing issues without attacking personalities?

seriously if u would get over the obama's what's wrong with america notion and look at the american situation for what it really is,
dont u accept that he sure is on to something and he deserves a bit of time?

Of course he is up to somthing. Like transfering wealth from the private sector to the public sector. Whatever a record deficit? Yeah, he is up to something alright. In his words if I remember correctly: "We live in the greatest nation on earth, so join me as we change it."

i mean ur party had 8 yrs to rule under bush, what singular good came out of that?

Did you notice that the DNC was in charge of the congress for most of it? Did you ever notice how things started going downhill since then? Did you notice what the DNC did to bring about the subprime mortgage mess?