"Hope" A Casuality Of The Recession

It turns out that the whole “Hope” thing was just a talking point. Surprised? Today Barack Obama proved that his bumper sticker friendly, campaign slogan of “Hope Over Fear” was just that. A “slogan”.

The slogan implied that some politicians have exploited the fears of the American people over the past eight years on issues such as terrorism and other threats from abroad in order to gain support for a political agenda and that Obama would govern differently. Whether or not you agree with his assessment of the least eight years, you’d imagine that Obama would at least wait until he was in office before breaking a promise that essentially made up the basis for his entire campaign.

In his first policy speech since winning the election Obama attempted to make Americans even more nervous about the economy than they already are in order to gain traction for his massive government spending legislation.

“I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. Our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future. And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and standing in the world.

In short, a bad situation could become dramatically worse.”

Again:

“We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future.”

Whoa! No fear there!

I believe that Obama is greatly exaggerating the dangers of the current crisis, however, regardless of that, Obama knows that this tactic could work. You have to get the American people on your side if you want to pass legislation such as this and just as with decisions involving war and peace, it is important that Americans know the consequences of inaction.

However, today’s statement was exactly the kind of thing that Obama promised NOT to do .

So for those of you who bought into the whole “Hope Over Fear” thing, you should really ask yourself, just how much of a pass are you going to give Obama before you begin to reassess your high opinion of him as a “different” kind of poltician?

- Dan Joseph

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