Writing for the Fox News website, New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin attempts to place our 44th president in historical context.
America has had some great presidents, many mediocre ones and a few bad ones. But we’ve never had one like Barack Obama. He’s the first who thinks the job is beneath him.
He’s the first who turns political give-and-take into a crisis by refusing to negotiate with Congress.
He’s the first who thinks the way to more power is to inflict pain on ordinary people.
The move to barricade the World War II memorial reveals the mentality of a tin-pot dictator. The limited government shutdown did not need to affect the memorial because it is open 24 hours, without gates and often without guards.
But to turn public opinion in his favor, Obama’s goons trucked in barricades to keep out World War II vets and other visitors. By one estimate, the barricades and workers cost $100,000.
The same punish-the-people attitude led to shutdowns of other parks and historic sites that get no federal funding.
“We’ve been told to make life as difficult for people as we can. It’s disgusting,” a Park Service ranger told The Washington Times.
The ranger cited the order to close the parking lot at George Washington’s home in Mount Vernon so visitors couldn’t use it. The cheap trick captured the contrast between a revered president and the current one.
Goodwin suggests that 39th president Jimmy Carter should rest easy now that he has lived to see the United States of America encounter a president who is worse than he was.