Dear Readers: I had an opportunity to catch-up with Professor Athena today. If you recall, she is a highly placed profession in the finance and banking industry. She and I both agree that Obama’s release of the birth certificate was a win for Trump today – and is a shining example of how to deal with Obama on the 2012 campaign trail.
Besides Obama, the other loser in this drama is the elite media. Legal Insurrection’s Dr. Jacobson has the best take: The document goes a long way, if not completely, towards quieting the issue. But the ease with which Obama was able to get the document leads one to wonder why he resisted so long. It was only when the Obama campaign saw the issue developing into a strategic nightmare that Obama took the simple and easy step of releasing an original document. This also raises issues as to why the media repeatedly has told us that Obama was not able to obtain original documentation when clearly he was able to do so.
While the Obama campaign certainly will spin this as some sort of victory, it came at a high price to Obama in the polls.
Hillary is 44 has a complete dissection of how inept and corrupt the media has been ever since the birth certificate issue was initially brought up by the Clinton campaign. The article is today’s essential reading, and will be good to keep in mind as we go forward. I think the money quote is: But the main reason to release the birth certificate is Donald Trump. Donald Trump was to make his first foray into New Hampshire today. Obama knew Donald Trump was making headway as a potential presidential candidate and he had to be stopped. A few minutes before The Donald’s plane touched down in New Hampshire Obama struck. Unfortunately for Barack Obama and his thugs it is too late to stop the damage Donald Trump has inflicted. More importantly Donald Trump has shown the Republican Party how to fight and get what you demand.
Speaking of thuggish behavior, Professor Athena noted that many Republicans seem stifled by Team Obama’s thug tactics. She indicates that the GOP nominee should be the candidate who will not falter under the nasty nastiness emanating from Chicago-on-the-Potomac. Professor Athena prefers Chris Christie, as do many of my fellow SLOBS – WE NEED SOMEONE BIG AND LOUD.
The other candidate she liked, based on the Lack-of-Fear-Factor is Paul Ryan. My favorite based on the Trump standard for engaging Obama is still:
I called the Professor to discuss my fears regarding the economy — and I admitted to being more concerned about the economy more than any other time in my adult life. Professor Athena brought her savvy insights to bear, and confirmed that we would be seeing gasoline in the $5-6 range during the summer. Food prices are also going to jump, putting the squeeze on wages that couldn’t possibly keep up. This was going to impact any recovery very negatively, however weak it is.
I mentioned one pundit, who said that Americans could handle the gas crunch by not going out for a meal or skipping a latte. We both got very angry at the ignorance — as it obvious that such choices will effect the restaurant industry and small, local businesses. Talk about anti-stimulus!
Professor Athena said that she was MORE concerned about the S&P bond warning showing that the current leadership in both parties seem unable to control the deficit and that there is a 1 in 3 chance that the rating will be downgraded. This has even more potential to wreak havoc on the American economy.
The one upside: Housing prices will remain low, which is usually a key impactor when inflation occurs. Professor Athena said she had three reasons to be hopeful about the country’s future:
1) The Tea Party.
2) The fact that average Americans are talking about the debt and deficit.
3) There is now substantial push-back on Public Employee Unions (MUT Note: Even in deep blue enclaves like Massachusetts!)
Speaking of unions, the Professor sent the following link about Lamar Alexander’s thoughts on why the Tennessee auto industry works:
“In 1980 Nissan chose Tennessee, a state with almost no auto jobs. Today auto assembly plants and suppliers provide one-third of our state’s manufacturing jobs,” Alexander wrote. “…Recently Nissan announced that 85% of the cars and trucks it sells in the U.S. will be made in the U.S.— making it one of the largest ‘American’ auto companies.”
He added, “But now unions want to make it illegal for a company that has experienced repeated strikes to move production to a state with a right-to-work law…. Jobs would flee overseas as manufacturers look for a competitive environment in which to make and sell cars around the world.”
I am hoping Professor Athena will have more soon, especially on the Fed!
I sent a boatload of information to the various SLOBs to help them today. I hope it is found useful!
Yes! I hope I can post again this week, so I can use it.
Mut,
Agree that Obama and the press look bad on the birth certificate issue. I also agree that Chris Christie might be the best candidate to beat Obama. But would he veto a repeal of Obamacare? I’m not so sure.
With regard to gasoline prices, they will peak and then fall, see my post and the experience of 2008.
I did read that great post, and liked it very much. My concern is that without increased refining capacity or more available domestic drilling, this cycle might not come back down. The current administration does not look poised to do either — in fact, it seems ready to smack down one of our biggest oil producing states (Texas) via the EPA.
Did you know Shell has spent $4billion to develop its oil leases offshore of Alaska? The site has a potential 27billion barrels of oil. But the EPA will not issue air permits because a village of 245 Innuit 70 miles away might be impacted. So Shell can’t drill. Then there is the Gulf of Mexico moratorium. Reagan is still right, government is the problem and not the solution. Its not speculators who are the problem, its government interference that is aritficially distorting the market.
As for the birth certificate. The President called it all silly, the uproar. If it is so silly, why did he spend almost $2million in legal costs to prevent the release. He thinks he might have punctured this bubble, but I fear not. It has festered too long and become a bete noir of the conspiracy crowd. The doctor who’s signature is on the new document died in 2003, which will also feed the conspiracy crowd – as in did Obama and his supporters go shopping for a doctor of the right time period who is now decently dead and surviving family has no idea if he did attend. The fraudulent COLB that surfaced in 2008 does not help the veracity of this new document. People will still wonder if this one is a fraud due to all the hiding. Makes Bill Clinton’s draft dodging seem mundane in comparison.