The Explainer in Chief on 60 Minutes

[Clocker]

Obama says Americans are much better off than they were when he took office. They just don't know it. The ungrateful little whiners.

In an interview with Steve Croft of “60 Minutes” that, at times, seemed more like an audition for press secretary than journalism, President Obama said, “The country is better off than when I came into office.” The reason for his horrible poll numbers? People don’t feel it.

When asked if people “feel it,” the President said, “They don’t feel it. And the reason they don’t feel it is because income and wages are not going up.”

In 2008, the median household income was $53,644, in 2012, that number had DROPPED to $51,017. If that’s better off, we could all use a dose of worse.

He went on to say, “When I came into office our economy was in crisis. We had unemployment up at 10 percent, it’s now down to 6.1.” That’d be great, if it were true. It’s not.

When he took office the unemployment rate was 7.8 percent. After his trillion-dollar “stimulus” package, the unemployment rate went up steadily, topping out at 10 percent in October of 2009 (long after he took office), and staying above nine percent for more than two years.

Article here.

[Greyfox]

Originally Posted by Clocker

Obama says Americans are much better off than they were when he took office. They just don't know it. The ungrateful little whiners.



Article here.

Mr. Dithers....I mean Mr. Hope and Change sees the world as he wants to see it, not as it is.

[cj's dad]

"In 2008, the median household income was $53,644, in 2012, that number had DROPPED to $51,017. If that’s better off, we could all use a dose of worse."

Not to worry. Before the day is out, 'Cap or Mosty will be along with their
to explain everything.

[Clocker]

In his 60 Minutes interview, Obama blamed his intelligence people for the underestimation of ISIS.

Steve Kroft: I understand all the caveats about these regional groups. But this is what an army of 40,000 people, according to some of the military estimates I heard the other day, very well-trained, very motivated.

President Obama: Well, part of it was that…

Steve Kroft: What? How did they end up where they are in control of so much territory? Was that a complete surprise to you?

President Obama: Well I think, our head of the intelligence community, Jim Clapper, has acknowledged that I think they underestimated what had been taking place in Syria

Some folks are taking issue with his blame game.

Nearly eight months ago, some of President Obama’s senior intelligence officials were already warning that ISIS was on the move. In the beginning of 2014, ISIS fighters had defeated Iraqi forces in Fallujah, leading much of the U.S. intelligence community to assess they would try to take more of Iraq.

But in an interview that aired Sunday evening, the president told 60 Minutes that the rise of the group now proclaiming itself a caliphate in territory between Syria and Iraq caught the U.S. intelligence community off guard. Obama specifically blamed James Clapper, the current director of national intelligence: “Our head of the intelligence community, Jim Clapper, has acknowledged that, I think, they underestimated what had been taking place in Syria,” he said.

Reached by The Daily Beast after Obama’s interview aired, one former senior Pentagon official who worked closely on the threat posed by Sunni jihadists in Syria and Iraq was flabbergasted. “Either the president doesn’t read the intelligence he’s getting or he’s bullshitting,” the former official said.

Full story.

[tucker6]

probably a bit of both. Obama doesn't seem to care enough about his job to read briefs, and he's a consummate bullshitter. I think we got a two-fer on this one.

[Tom]

Obama was the only one who didn't see SIS coming.

That is because:

a. he is an idiot
b. he is a terrorist
c. he is a terrorist enabler
d. he is a really big idiot
e. all of the above

[Clocker]

Joe Sestak is a former Rear Admiral and a former Democratic member of the House of Representatives. He was on MSNBC and was asked how our intelligence people got this wrong.

“How did the U.S. intelligence community get it so wrong on ISIS?” MSNBC host Jose Diaz-Balart asked.

“I don’t think they did,” Sestak replied bluntly, prompting Diaz-Balart’s eyebrows to nearly rocket off of his face in shock.

“If you remember back in January and February, the head — the general, the Defense Intelligence Agency, actually testified before the House and Senate that in 2014, ISIS would take over large swaths of territory,” the Navy veteran asserted. “In fact, at the time he testified, they had already seized Ramadi and Fallujah — 35 miles from Baghdad.”

Sestak noted that even DNI Clapper, who today still bears the tire marks from the bus under which he was thrown by the president, testified that ISIS maintained the capability to expand out from Syria into a wide swath of territory in Iraq.

“I think it was slow on the part of the entire administration to assess that they — what they had to do in order address the threat,” Sestak concluded.

Story here.

[tucker6]

The problem is that Clapper tried to inform Obama during one of his many vacation golf outings. Can't blame Obama for his subordinate's poor timing.

[johnhannibalsmith]

Originally Posted by tucker6

probably a bit of both. Obama doesn't seem to care enough about his job to read briefs, and he's a consummate bullshitter. I think we got a two-fer on this one.

I'm openly vocal about what Obama has been a failure at, generally things that at one time I thought he might get right. When it comes to being commander-in-chief, that was always going to be a mess. Stuff like this he ought to just admit that he's ill equipped to lead on. He wants to live in a political world where he can bellow out rhetoric and fanciful idealism, not the gray world of choosing the best of ten horrible options because that is the reality of being in charge of a messed up world. I'd stand up and give him a rousing ovation if he just shrugged and said that he blew it because it's way outside his realm of alleged expertise.

[Greyfox]

Originally Posted by johnhannibalsmith

I'd stand up and give him a rousing ovation if he just shrugged and said that he blew it because it's way outside his realm of alleged expertise.

That's an ovation that you will never have to give.

[Clocker]

Originally Posted by johnhannibalsmith

I'd stand up and give him a rousing ovation if he just shrugged and said that he blew it because it's way outside his realm of alleged expertise.

I can't remember him ever admitting that he had ever done anything wrong.

I remember an interview right after his reelection (it might have been with the same guy from 60 Minutes), he was asked if he had any regrets about anything he had done in his first administration, anything that he would do differently.

His reply was that he often spent too much time making sure that he got the policy right, and not enough time explaining the policy to the country.

[tucker6]

Originally Posted by Clocker

His reply was that he often spent too much time making sure that he got the policy right, and not enough time explaining the policy to the country.

you're too stupid to appreciate what we have in Obama. Shame on you!!

[Clocker]

Originally Posted by tucker6

you're too stupid to appreciate what we have in Obama. Shame on you!!

It's Obama's fault for not 'splaining it to me good 'nough.

[TJDave]

Originally Posted by Clocker

I can't remember him ever admitting that he had ever done anything wrong.

Presidents do that?

[tucker6]

Originally Posted by Clocker

It's Obama's fault for not 'splaining it to me good 'nough.

He's too busy making decisions for his cabinet members since he's better at policy in their chosen fields than they are. Once you let that sentence roll around for a while, nothing he does is a surprise. A basic lack of leadership skills from someone unused to management or leadership at any level of govt or business. We got what some of us knew we were getting.