Sunday, November 16, 2014

Last Call For The War Pigs

The incoming Republican Congress will almost certainly destroy any deal President Obama reaches with Iran on its nuclear weapons, because Republicans want war with Iran.  

International negotiators have until Nov. 24 under an interim agreement to reach a deal with Tehran that would curb its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief, or seek another extension of talks. 
While the GOP won’t take control of the Senate until Jan.3, they are quickly making it clear they are serious about closely vetting any agreement. As the deadline approaches, Republicans fear the administration is too eager to reach a deal and could concede too much in talks.

A GOP Congress could doom what the president hopes will be a legacy foreign policy achievement.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) took to the Senate floor on Thursday to ask for unanimous consent to schedule a vote on a bill that would give Congress final approval over any deal, or else reinstate tough sanctions on Iran.

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.) quickly rejected the request, arguing that scheduling a vote on the deal would be "premature at this point." He said it would "send a fairly chilling message" that U.S. officials at the table with Iran did not have full authority to negotiate an agreement.

But when Republicans take control of the Senate, they could move to pass that bill, or push legislation from Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) which would reinstate sanctions if Iran violates any deal.

Their bill also pledges military support for Israel if it decides to strike Iran's nuclear facilities, which it has threatened to do.

Never forget that a ground war with Tehran has always been the final goal with the GOP, and they will get it any way they can.  If the GOP is able to get enough support for the Menendez/Kirk war bill, we will be going to war with Iran, plain and simple.  Our good friends in Israel will see to that.  The pressure will be on to scuttle the deal and pledge US military forces to assist Israel in bombing Iran, and then all hell breaks loose.

You may not like what Obama is doing in Iraq and Syria right now.  It'll be a fond memory compared to what's coming if we go to war with Iran.


Obama Calls The Bluff

Shorter President Obama to Republicans:  Please proceed, GOP.

A defiant Barack Obama dives into what could be a defining period of his presidency this week, after repeatedly enraging Republicans from afar during his Asia tour.

Obama faces showdowns with the GOP over immigration, the Keystone XL pipeline and his drive for a nuclear deal with Iran, all of which have huge consequences for his political legacy.

Far from being chastened by the Republican capture of the Senate, Obama is setting out to prove he is no lame duck and can still set the agenda.

But the GOP insists the mid-terms gave them a share of power in Washington, and believe Obama risks usurping his authority and even the constitution with his bold new strategy.

Obama chose a highly symbolic setting to set the tone for two final White House years in which he will face a unified Republican Congress.

Side-by-side in Myanmar with the world's most famous dissident, Obama refused to bow to what Republicans regard as the capital's new political "reality."

On the veranda of the lakeside villa from where Aung San Suu Kyi faced down a junta, Obama said he had long warned House Republicans he would use executive power to reform the US immigration system if they failed to.

"That's gonna happen. That's gonna happen before the end of the year."

The president doubled down in Australia on Sunday, before boarding Air Force One for home, saying he would be derelict in his duties if he did not act.

"I can't wait in perpetuity when I have authorities that at least for the next two years can improve the system," he said.

Good for President Obama.  It's outstanding to see him not backing down and daring the GOP to make good on its threats.  If they want to shut the government down again, let them.

Having said that, it's important to note that Democrats didn't take advantage of the last time the GOP did this, because the shutdown was immediately followed by the Obamacare "failed rollout" news, which of course was not a failure.  Still, don't expect the media to keep pounding on the Republicans when this happens.  Eventually the blame will shift to Obama for not giving in by our "liberal media".

Still, the GOP is about to fulfill every expectation of what liberals promised would happen in a GOP-controlled Congress, and it's going to be a rough two years for them.

Yes, Republicans Want To Impeach Obama

Let's remember folks that Republicans want to impeach Obama more than anything right now, and so far in just the last few days we've had Republicans openly threaten to do just that.

Rep. Joe Barton of Texas:

Well impeachment is indicting in the House and that’s a possibility. But you still have to convict in the Senate and that takes a two-thirds vote," Barton said. "But impeachment would be a consideration, yes sir."

Rep. Steve King of Iowa, who reiterated last month what he first said in August:

"Congress has to sit down and have a serious look at the rest of this Constitution, and that includes that 'I' word that we don't want to have to say," King said on Fox News Sunday.

"I only say that now on this program because I want to encourage the president: Please don't put America into a constitutional crisis," he added.

 Rep. Walter Jones of North Carolina:

"To me a constitutional question means that we have the option of impeachment," Jones said in an interview Breitbart published Thursday. "We have a Constitution, and I am very disappointed from year to year that we do not follow the Constitution. To me, if you think the president has violated his trust of office, meaning with the American people, then follow the Constitution."
And let's not forget the GOP hype machine.  FOX News is calling for impeachment already:

On the November 13 edition of Fox News' The Kelly File, host Megyn Kelly suggested that "some say Republicans have no choice" but to impeach President Obama if he issues executive action on immigration reform. Fox contributor Charles Krauthammer agreed, saying Obama's executive action is "an impeachable offense." Kelly went on to advise Republicans on legal options to "thwart President Obama's executive action," suggesting impeachment again, and adding a lawsuit, cutting off the funds needed to carry out the executive order, and holding up Obama's judicial and other appointments.

And of course National Review's Andrew McCarthy has written an entire book about impeaching Obama and is calling for it again now, saying Democrats should join Republicans in convicting him:

In the past, presidents acting in such ways would surely have been impeached. But as Kelly and Krauthammer illustrated, tolerating Obama’s lawlessness invites a destructive new era of dictatorial presidency. Not all future presidents will be liberal Democrats. Even with the press as the wind at their backs, Democrats faced with a Republican president who exploits Obama’s precedents to impose his agenda lawlessly will experience what Republicans are going through today: They will have insufficient support for ending the lawlessness. Obama will have devolved us into a banana republic where might makes right.

This is the theme of Faithless Execution: All Americans who aspire to sustain a nation of laws not men have a vital interest in rejecting executive lawlessness. The Framers understood that presidential usurpation of lawmaking power would be the road to tyranny. They were right . . . and avoiding tyranny should not be a partisan issue.

So yes, I fully expect the President to be impeached and soon.  This was always going to be the endgame of the Obama presidency after his re-election in 2012.  They have to destroy him now.