At one time in our nation’s history, there was an unwritten tenet that former presidents should remain quiet during their successor’s term. It was considered discourteous, even boorish, to criticize the man who took your place. But the political equivalent of, “I’ve had my turn. Now it’s yours,” is something Barack Obama cannot abide. On the campaign trail this week, he exhibited behavior not in keeping with a former president or an erudite Harvard man – but a crude vulgarian. Couple this with his other gift of segregating and dividing people and you have the portrait of an insecure man in the throes of a self-identity crisis; a man who cannot emotionally deal with someone who is better at being president.
Without a doubt, there is one area in which former President Barack Obama excels above all others: He is a master at creating division. This is not a riotous or partisan statement; it is a fact that can be easily verified. Unable to leave behind the damage he’s already wrought, Mr. Obama is determined to do what he does best – make speeches and sow discordant political seeds by trash-talking a sitting president.
Master of Division
Exhibit A of this principle is race relations. In January of 2008, 19% of those polled believed that race was a “very serious” issue plaguing our nation. By autumn of 2016, that number had jumped to 42%. And that’s from a CNN poll. Now, one might be able to understand these figures if, say, George Wallace was president, but with the first black man – how does this happen? It occurs rather seamlessly thanks to the pretentious Obama manner that was so carefully designed to impress. He does it by using a veneer of culture and phony intellectualism that the media laps up like a thirsty dog.
[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=”24″]He is a man with an identity crisis wide and deep.[/perfectpullquote]
The former president outclasses just about everyone else in the field when it comes to fanning the flames of conflict. So, it should come as no surprise that Mr. Obama traveled to Milwaukee and Detroit this week with the express purpose of vilifying President Trump. This is not his first foray into denigrating the president in public, but he chose a significant time, with the midterm elections just a breath away.
Without naming Mr. Trump, which would have been beneath the dignity of Barack-the-poseur, he unleashed the heavy artillery:
“Throughout human history, certainly throughout American history, politicians have exaggerated. But what we have not seen before in our public life is politicians just blatantly, repeatedly, baldly, shamelessly lying. Just making stuff up.”
And that was just his warm-up act. Calling the Commander-in-Chief a bold-faced liar may have been the thesis on which his speech was built, but Mr. Obama’s coup-de-grâce was when he said with a straight face:
“I’m hoping you think it’s wrong to hear people spend years, months, vilifying people, questioning their patriotism, calling them enemies of the people. And then suddenly you’re concerned about civility. Please.”
“Poseur” really is the perfect word to describe Obama. He’s not merely a braggart and an egotist, nor is he just affected and insincere but rather he is primarily a fake person – a phony, through-and-through. One could aptly label Barack Obama “The Great Pretender.”
The former president is an expert at playing the role of someone who is just-so-very-above the plebian masses; you know, those Walmart shoppers who cling to their guns and religion. For heaven’s sake, these are not the folks The Royal “We” would ever mix with for cocktails on The Vineyard.
Arrogance
Calling the president of the United States a shameless liar would not befit a man of integrity and decency. These are not the words of a respectful and noble man. This is classic Obama pomposity wrapped in hypocrisy. To say, “Trump is a low-life, but I am dignified and venerable,” is the essence of Barack-the-poseur. By taking the opportunity to vituperate President Trump, Obama reveals his main weakness. You see, all arrogant asses believe they can put one over on the people. And in some ways, he still is doing just that as the advocacy media and leftists continue to buy into this phony persona.
But the essential problem with Barack Obama is that he has never known who he really is. He is a man with an identity crisis wide and deep (just read Dreams of My Father). In many ways, he is a lost soul who is envious of Donald Trump because, for all his foibles, Mr. Trump knows precisely who he is.
So, while Mr. Obama is lambasting others and casting aspersions far and wide, let us remember that he is the one down in the muck – filthier and more vile than his political nemesis and Trump’s deplorable followers.
