A CEO's 6 month evaluation
of Obama's performance
By Bob Oster
My 6 Month Evaluation of the Obama Presidency
In November 2008, I drafted my evaluation of the Obama candidacy and
what it might mean to America. I filed it away, but sent it to family members
and a few close friends and associates, just so I’d be accountable for my real
time observations. It’s now been 6 months since Obama’s inauguration. (In the
business world, this is typically when a first job review would occur; so, I
made a note to myself to revisit his performance on the 6-month anniversary.)
Thus, I now commit to filing my mid-year evaluation of our new President. As
well, I’ve put in the file (but not forwarded to anyone) a separate “background
check” — the one the press should've done
on the Obama candidacy prior to presenting him to the American public — in case
this is ever of relevance as things unfold.
As concerned as I was by Obama’s candidacy when I wrote my November pre-election
reservations, truth be known, I didn't much like McCain/Palin either. At the
time, I still had hopes that Obama might “govern from the center.” Six months
into it, however, I can say that he’s been considerably worse than my worst
fears. Thus, I’m updating my evaluation — this time with the fervent hope that
by the year-end I can be genuinely more optimistic.
I’ve concluded that not only was Barack Obama too inexperienced to be President,
but he also appears to be incompetent as an executive,
more-than-just-politician-level-dishonest and a bit of a narcissist (if not a
fascist). He seems to have little understanding of American history, her
dreams, or her tremendous potential for risk-taking, self-correction and
innovation. He and Michelle have turned out to be quintessential Ivy League
“Oppression Studies majors” with (carefully concealed) “attitudes.” Obama
seems, above all, to be a Community Organizer with shakedown credentials and
extraordinary speaking ability. All of this should have been clear -- had we
simply done serious background checks. (The following 4 items, at least, should
have been clear to voters: (1) His surrogate father figure was Frank Marshall
Davis, an avowed Communist. (2) Barack served as a committed trainer for
Community Activist and Marxist Saul Alinsky. (3) He sat for nearly 2 decades
at the feet of Jeremiah Wright, an angry, anti-American “Black Liberation
Theologist”. (4) His first autobiography, Dreams from My Father, was almost
certainly ghost-written by William Ayers, a Vietnam-era domestic terrorist.
[This last assertion has now been supported by careful analysis of syntax,
spelling and common errors.] If these unusual threads (standing alone) are
discounted to the point of not being disqualifiers, those evaluating Barack
Obama might have considered that he’d never (a) held a job in the private
sector, (b) managed a payroll, (c) led a turnaround or held any sort
of executive position. But, none of this mattered in the fall of 2008. After 6
months, I’m left wondering if power brokers on the Far Left of American politics
aren’t pinching themselves at their success in creating a fictitious character
the press ushered to market in a Bush-weary and "politically correct" America.
In his second autobiography, The Audacity of Hope, Obama recognizes the
advantage of his tabula rasa “creation”
when he writes, “I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different
political stripes project their own views.”
And, project we did! Thus, the former Barry Soetoro of Honolulu, Jakarta,
Mombasa, Occidental, Columbia, Harvard and the mean streets of Chicago moved at
light speed from being the first-term senator nobody had ever heard of to
President of the United States. In the process, despite numerous efforts, no
one has yet seen his original birth certificate, his college transcripts, his
application to Occidental (likely as a “foreign student”?), or the passport he
used to travel in 1981 to Pakistan with buddy Wahid Hamid (likely an Indonesian
one?). For some reason, the Obama campaign has, so far, spent $3/4 million
keeping these records out of public view. So, it’s easy to wonder -- if they
supported Obama’s putative Curriculum Vitae -- why not make them available and
put to rest all suspicions about provenance, training, and politics?
My growing hunch is that there’s virtually no paper trail because the Obama
biography has been created largely out of whole cloth. There, I’ve said what
increasing numbers of people must be thinking, but are afraid to voice. But,
whether or not Obama is more than a cleverly-marketed fiction, and whatever one
thinks of his history, one thing is clear.
He finally does have
a record to evaluate. And, it’s not a confidence-inspiring one from my
standpoint.
At best, Obama
is an attractive symbol for America and a compelling communicator; but he’s....
1. Not
an executive. He’s
shown an utter inability to
focus, to set priorities and to consider 2nd and 3rd order or long-term
consequences to his actions. Lack of focus on priorities is fatal as a CEO;
(but, maybe less so for a political leader?)
2. Not
a steward or fiduciary for America. Obama
clearly does not see his primary
job as one of overseeing the security and well-being of America during his
tenure as its chief executive. He’s not only unwilling to stand up for
America, but he also regularly seems to go out of his way to apologize for her
history. This makes it apparent that he believes his most important job is to
change America into what he and Michelle think itshould have
been had we not suffered the Founders’ flawed vision.
At worst, Obama’s
aims seem truly radical (if stealth); his methods pure Alinsky; and his success
derivative of obfuscating the truth, creating crises, and rushing changes into
law that no one can possibly absorb under artificial deadlines — all aimed at
limiting private property rights, changing the Constitution and forever altering
our free market system?
For those who consider Obama’s training and background irrelevant, they can now
evaluate him as a Commander-in-Chief and CEO from what he’s done over his first
6 months.
Among many other things, these evidences have come in the form of:
1. A
$787B “stimulus”
package (sold
as preventing a “crisis from becoming catastrophe”)
2. The
failure to focus on addressing the banking
crisis as
“Job One”
3. The
migration of TARP
funds to
non-banking concerns, including the auto industry
4. Announcing tax
increases in
the middle of a recession
5. Failure
to identify projects to fund job
creation (Thus,
<10% of stimulus yet to be spent)
6. Announcing
that there would be “no pork” or “earmarks” in
the “stimulus” package in order to get it passed without review when there were
nearly 10,000 buried in the unread bill (including a $9B high-speed rail line to
Las Vegas for Harry Reid )
7. Bailouts of
the banking and auto industries
8. The
appointment of a 31-year-old to
manage the revitalization on of the auto companies
9. The
exalting of union claims above those of bondholders (violating
a 200+ year history of contract law/property rights)
10. The
appointment of 34 unvetted
“czars” --
creating more than in the House of Romanov between 1762 and 1917!
11. The
failure to appoint a Cabinet of
tax-paying, competent Americans (Reason for the move to the Czar system of
administration?)
12. The
appointment of Sonia Sotomayor to
the Supreme Court despite some questions about her lack of qualifications and
judicial temperament.
13. The
dark-of-night passage of “Cap
and Trade” legislation
(300-page-long addendum inserted at 3
am the
morning of the vote in the House)
14. The
high pressure tactics to rush through a budget-busting $1.6 Trillion takeover
of our National Healthcare System.
15. Phony “townhall”
meetings with
a fake cross-section of Americans selling Obamacare on ABC.
16. “Lying”
abou t budget
deficits —
projecting 4% GDP growth by year-end.
17. “Lying”
about job
losses —
projecting that if Congress would just ram through the “stimulus” that job
losses could be halted at 8% (currently on their way to 10% and rising).
18. “Lying”
about the costs
of nationalized healthcare --
(just as when politicians projected Medicare’s cost in 1990 to be $3 billion,
its actual cost turned out in 1990 to $98 billion — 30 times as much)
19. Pretending
that new entitlement programs will provide lower costs, better care, no
significant tax increases, more competition (as government joins the fray!) and
keeping current private options. Claiming “free”
healthcare will
make America more competitive is baffling. Everyone knows the above are lies;
but no one seems ready to call them out.
20. Forcing
the “stimulus” package on states to impinge on“States Rights.”
21. Failing
to support the freedom-loving citizens in Honduras
and Iran (and
instead, giving comfort to their dictators) to say nothing of his
ineffectiveness with North
Korea and
his anti-Israeli pronouncements.
22. Allocating
$4 Billion of “stimulus” funds to ACORN,
the voter fraud thugs.
23. Seeking
to push through Union
Card Check,
the so-called “Fairness
Doctrine,” and
threats to take away 2nd
Amendment rights
(see Eric Holder), etc.
24. Moving
the heretofore non-partisan 2010
National Census into the Whitehouse under
the direction of Rahm Emanuel.
Whatever one thinks of the results, the process of getting to them should bother
all Americans. In the Obama (Mayor Daley) style of governing, it’s not clear
that Congress — who can’t possibly process thoughtfully the blizzard of
legislation — really serves any useful
purpose other than to provide Politburo-style cover. Not only does Congress no
longer debate legislation, but Obama has effectively circumvented its oversight
of the executive branch by his appointment of czars.
In contrast to the direction Obama is taking us all, the Economist recently
pointed out that 53% of all of the jobs created in the U.S. were created in one
state last year: Texas (the most free market of all State economies and the
“last best hope” for secession). Meanwhile, in California, -- as a perfect
preview to “Obama’s America” -- job losses are already well into double digits,
the state faces a $25 Billion budget deficit and is closing down services and
considering bankruptcy. I cannot predict what will happen to Obama’s
popularity, as people wake up to the size and intractability of the deficits
he’s promoting, the unavailability of credit for small businesses, or the
increased tax rates on energy and payrolls provoking a continuing loss of jobs
as small businesses shed employees due to skyrocketing costs.
But, is bad economic news bad for Obama? Sadly, the answer, if one studies the
Alinsky formula for bloodless revolution, is “Heck no!” Indeed, high
unemployment is necessary for the
Obama Redistribution Plan. According to Alinsky, only with high unemployment
will people look to the government for help (and then become dependent),
allowing government to gain control over the factors of productions. If one
considers that the Alinsky manual might be Obama’s “playbook,” one can’t help
but evaluate how closely it’s being followed.
Thus, in evaluating Obama’s performance, it’s probably worth noting (for the
6-month record) the key elements of the Alinsky formula. Written in 1971 by
Chicago Organizer, Saul Alinsky, under the title of Rules for Radicals, this
manual for effective change became Young Barack Obama’s “bible.” David Alinsky,
son the author said of our new President: “Barack
Obama patterned himself after the Saul Alinsky model in everything he has done
since arriving in South Chicago.”
Alinsky clearly stated its purpose: “Any
revolutionary change must be preceded by a passive, affirmative, non-challenging
attitude toward change among the mass of our people. They must feel so
frustrated, so defeated, so lost, so futureless in the prevailing system that
they are willing to let go of the past and change the future. This acceptance is
the reformation essential to any revolution.”
Note how closely Obama is following the rules for internal revolution, based on
Alinsky’s specific instructions:
1. Pursue
an “Ideology of Change” (Alinsky’s
phrase for the most effective way to market revolution)
2. Target
the banks that
serve the steel, auto, and other basic industries.
3. Start
class warfare --
Fuel the anger of what Alinsky calls the “Have-Nots,” and the
“Have-some-but-want-mores” against the “Haves.”
4. Use
crises to create fear.
5. Use
pollution as
a foil to grab power.
6. Set
up “jobs programs” to
make workers dependent on government.
7. Show
supreme self-confidence.
8. Make
communication skills your key weapon.
9. Use
simple catch phrases and
vague slogans (‘Of
the Common Wel fare, [Nazi takeover of Germany], ‘Bread and Peace,’ [Bolshevik
Revolution]) In this context, it’s not hard to imagine that Change & The
Audacity of Hope will one day be seen as the battle cry for the Obama
revolution.
10. Use
deception…in
war the end justifies almost any means.”
11. Remain
calm, appealing, likeable while
inciting fear, conflict, and defeat.
As
these steps are being pursued, the press continues to refer to "the Republican
recession," so Obama’s popularity remains high. Any who saw tapes of President
Bush warning Congress (on two separate occasions) that the market was headed for
disaster unless it instituted the very reforms Barney Frank and Chris Dodd
pooh-poohed, may be surprised to see the level of “cover” the press is providing
this revolution.
As bleak as things look for free markets, I have hope. Why? Just as Bernie
Madoff learned that ponzi schemes eventually come to light — Barack Obama may
soon learn that you “can’t fool all of the people all of the time.” It’s
unclear to me how much and how long America will have to pay for its experiment
with Obamunism — his fantasy “green jobs,” his new taxes, his junk science, his
czars, his meddling in the auto and banking industries, his
sure-to-be-disastrous Obamacare and the encouragement he’s giving to union
bosses, dictators and tyrants the globe over, to say nothing of his
"Peace-through-Weakness” foreign policy. But, at some point, reality will take
over, as it always does. I just hope America will have its Winston Churchill or
Ronald Reagan ready to step into the breach when the time comes.
So far, the nervousness of Blue Dog Democrats and their ability to resist some
of the wackier directives has been the only thing that has kept Obama from an
outright failing grade, in my view. Perhaps, just as the Gingrich Congress
rescued Bill Clinton, it may be these so-called Blue Dogs that rescue Obama. If
not, it may be important for the survival of the Union for government to be
forever split between the parties.
Bob Oster was CFO of Oracle when it went public, also CFO of Syntex, and holds a
Ph.D. in economics from UC-Berkeley. Since 1987, he has been an angel investor
and private venture capitalist. He is also on the Board of Overseers at the
Hoover Institution.
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