Faced with a growing environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, as well as falling poll numbers, the president played offense on Wednesday.
In a speech at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Mr. Obama threatened not only BP but all the oil companies with higher taxes:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: The time has come once and for all for this nation to fully embrace a clean energy future. It means rolling back billions of dollars of tax breaks to oil companies so we can prioritize investments in clean energy research and development.
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And not only that. The president has announced a criminal investigation into the British Petroleum corporation.
There is no question Mr. Obama is angry. He is watching his entire administration totter because of a situation no one can control.
If you don’t like Obama, it’s karma. If you do like him, it’s very bad luck.
But as we all know, the best defense is a good offense, so the president is also hammering his opposition, the Republican Party:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Now, some of you may have noticed that we have been building this foundation without much help from our friends in the other party. From our efforts to rescue the economy, to health insurance reform, to financial reform, most have sat on the sidelines and shouted from the bleachers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
And those shouts are being heard, as Mr. Obama’s job approval ratings are mostly below 50 percent.
Mr. Obama presently finds himself in a difficult place. He went against public opinion on health care. He’s at odds with most Americans on illegal immigration and the Arizona law. His stance on Israel is against the majority, and he is getting slicked big time by the oil spill.
So let’s take them one by one.
Obamacare is now law and the president doesn’t care what you think about it. He’s convinced he is right, end of discussion.
On illegal immigration, the president is at great risk. His view of controlling the border and mainstreaming illegal aliens is not nearly tough enough for the majority of Americans. Mr. Obama will get hurt on this issue.
The polls say 63 percent of Americans support Israel in its struggle with the Palestinians. The perception is Mr. Obama does not support Israel. Jewish-Americans comprise just two percent of the voting public. But it’s hard to see how this issue will help the president.
Finally, the oil slick. Here Mr. Obama has simply run into incredible bad luck. If he could stop the leak, he would. But with all the power America has, nobody can stop the leak. Yes, he can bluster against BP and on Wednesday he did. But so what? Bluster won’t stop this catastrophe, nor will higher taxes on the oil companies, which will simply sell more crude to China and India.
The president better watch his step here. Remember those gas lines under Jimmy Carter? Just saying.
As we said, the president was angry Wednesday. He knows where he is.
And that’s “The Memo.”
Pinheads & Patriots
Back in April, we mocked Pamela Anderson for a tax beef, but now she’s doing something positive.
Because of the oil slick in the Gulf, millions of birds are in danger, and Ms. Anderson is working with an organization called the International Bird Rescue Research Center trying to raise money to save some of these birds.
For that, she is a patriot.
Click here to watch “Pinheads & Patriots”!
On the pinhead front, comedian Sarah Silverman does not like Fox News:
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SARAH SILVERMAN, COMEDIAN: Right-wing Americans who appear in mainstream media are not out there calling black people (EXPLETIVE DELETED) or saying the Klan has good ideas. Instead, they’re questioning the legitimacy of Obama’s presidency by accusing him of being born in Africa or of being a Muslim. Or they’re having Tea Parties and calling Obama a communist and a Nazi. The entire Fox News Channel is a 24-hour-a-day racism engine, but it’s all coded, all implied.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
While Ms. Silverman is entitled to her opinion, we think she’s a bit of a pinhead.
— You can catch Bill O’Reilly’s “Talking Points Memo” and “Pinheads & Patriots” weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the FOX News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.
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