FLASHBACK: California’s Drought IS Man-made, ….politically.

***As news about California’s ongoing drought continues to worsen (it’s now about to cause EARTHQUAKES, apparently…), we thought we’d re-offer this old post as a reminder that their current water shortage was not only predictable, but also largely preventable.  Something to think about as that state’s agriculture-based economy continues to crater, and our nation’s food prices continue to soar.  —JTR

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[originally posted 2-17-2014]

Recently, our Feckless Leader reached new heights of ingenuousness, as he sought to “rescue” us from a problem which he and his ideological buddies created in the first place:

(via Yahoo! News) – “…President Barack Obama toured parts of California’s drought zone on Friday and pledged to speed help to the No. 1 farm state, but he said harsh weather in the United States will get worse until more steps are taken to address climate change.

California is coming off its driest year on record and a recent winter storm did little to dull the impact of the drought in the state that produces half the country’s fruits and vegetables. A recent drought monitor said 91.6 percent of the state is experiencing severe to exceptional drought…”

In the absence of context, this is kinda-sorta true: California is indeed experiencing a terrible drought, and the winter is doing little to alleviate the situation. What’s deliberately missing is WHY this is such a problem right now. And no, it hasn’t a whit to do with Climate Change.

The President who finds out about EVERY scandal as it breaks in the news, now claims to never watch the news, because “…whatever they’re reporting about, usually I know…”

This is an example of either:

• blatant, head-shaking stupidity, OR
• this man’s ego is such that he honestly believes whatever vacuous verbiage spills out of his pie-hole to be unqualified brilliance, despite any/all previous contradictory utterances on his part.

Of course, it COULD be both…

From the Washington Times:

“…In scandal after scandal in the Obama administration, President Obama has said he didn’t know about the problems until he heard it on the news.

But the president changed his tune about his supposed ignorance at a Democratic fundraiser near Seattle on Tuesday night.

“People with Something to Hide”: the #IRS and Lois Lerner

Hey, remember this?

Yes indeed: words spoken by none other than Barack Obama himself. Of course, that was back in 2010 when he was discussing Campaign Finance Reform, a concern which almost sounds quaint in comparison to the Scandal carousel this White House has since become.

Just the same, keep that quote in mind as you watch the following about our ol’ buddy, Lois “I-have-nothing-to-hide-so-I’m-Pleading-the-Fifth” Lerner from the IRS:

Of course: Somehow, GOP is to blame for “Wrongheaded” and “Cynical” distrust of Government…

Obviously, it’s not as if the President and the Democrat-led Senate could ever be to blame:

(via The Hill; May 13, 2013) – “…What’s blocking us right now is a sort of hyper-partisanship in Washington that I was, frankly, hoping to overcome in 2008, and in the midst of crisis rather than saying now’s the time for us to come together, decided to take another path,” Obama said. “My thinking was when we beat them in 2012 that might break the fever, and it’s not quite broken yet.”

“I genuinely believe there are Republicans out there who would like to work with us but they’re fearful of their base and they’re concerned about what Rush Limbaugh might say about them,” Obama said. “And as a consequence we get the kind of gridlock that makes people cynical about government…”

Ah-ha!! So, it was “gridlock” (which was mysteriously created by the combined efforts of the Republican base and Rush Limbaugh) which was/is responsible for Americans becoming increasingly “cynical about government”. Sure. That, like, makes total sense, …right?

Riiiiiiiight.

Okay, so it doesn’t. Which is precisely why barely a year later, the President realized that he needed to remind us all (again) what silly little ninny-heads we seem to be:

OUT: the “Rule Of Law” — IN: the “It-All-Depends-On-How-Obama-Feels-That-Day” of Law

Or put another way: the Rule of ‘Whim‘.

In light of the recent prisoner-swap of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, we need to once again discuss our President’s apparent disdain for the Constitution and its laws, which undergird our nation. Because to Barack, Rules and Laws are little more than speed-bumps.

Ever since his inauguration in 2009, Obama’s tenure has been one long game of ‘Can-You-Top-This?’ played at (and with) our nation’s capital. Just consider:

Hey, you know who’s REALLY to blame for this #VAScandal, don’t you? Don’t you?!?

At this point, the Democrats have transformed the Koch Brothers into some devilish amalgamation of Emmanuel Goldstein, Keyser Söze, and Godzilla.

Which is handy, actually, since they can now be blamed for anything everything.

Why do I mention this? Well, as you’ve no doubt heard by now, VA Secretary Shinseki has (finally) resigned his post. The only surprise about this “entirely political soap opera”  is that the resignation/firing/whatever didn’t happen already (via @Doc_0):

“…Contrary to Obama’s pitiful spin attempts, there is no question that these awful deeds took place at VA clinics.  Reports about those doctored wait lists have been in the hands of top officials since last year.

Endangered Democrats in purple and red states only started yelling for Shinseki’s scalp when they performed a political calculation and realized the public was now fully engaged and furious…” 

It’s a horrifying situation highlighting just some of the built-in (and entirely predictable) problems with government-run healthcare. Whether Shinseki was complicit with the problem, or utterly ignorant of it, doesn’t really matter. One is just as bad as the other if you’re the one in charge. Either way, he had to go.

But don’t tell that to Bernie Sanders. No, no, no, he’s got the REAL culprit in all of this nailed dead-to-rights:

Remember: NO ONE is more upset about (fill-in-the-blank) than BARACK OBAMA…

Let your mind drift back to any number of incidents and scandals over the past 5+years: the failed Obamacare website; the AP phone records; the IRS. And then ask yourself: what was President Obama’s reaction?

It’s always the same: only the reasons for it change. And this time, Barack’s reason for being more upset than you (or anyone else) is the burgeoning VA scandal.

From the Wall Street Journal:

‘…White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough took to CNN Thursday to say that “nobody’s more mad than the president.” Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters the president is “concerned and angry” about the situation.

That, as my colleagues Colleen McCain Nelson and Ben Kesling write, reprised, nearly verbatim, a similar White House tactic from last fall’s health-care website debacle. In October, Mr. Obama spoke of his anger in the Rose Garden. “Nobody’s madder than me about the fact that the website isn’t working as well as it should,” he said...’

Especially since his Nobody’s-More-(blank)-Than-Me shtick usually is in regards to some level of incompetence or illegality perpetrated by the Government. You know, that big Federal thingamajig of which he’s ostensibly in charge??

Three Reasons Why #Benghazi Matters — (VIDEO)

It’s been almost exactly one year since this video (attached below) was released, and little has changed since then:

• The White House continues to stall, …and lie. Especially lie.
• The Democrats are still ridiculing any attempts to get answers.
• And the Press is still largely uninterested …which I can only assume is due to it not reflecting poorly on a Republican Administration.