Cites aftermath of Boston terrorism as way of moving agenda forward
Complaining about a lack of community spirit in Washington DC, the president said Sunday that he wishes to see institutionalized the kind of atmosphere that emerged in Boston following the recent terrorist bombings, so his administration can get things done.
Obama made the comments while speaking to wealthy millionaires at a fundraiser inside a five-story mansion owned by Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. Only 60 guests were present at the event, with names from banking, fashion and entertainment, including singer Justin Timberlake, actress Jessica Biel, and designer Tommy Hilfiger.
“More than anything, what I will be striving for over the next three and a half years is to see if that spirit we saw in Boston and West Texas, to see if we can institutionalize that [and] if we can create a framework where everybody’s working together and moving this country forward,” Obama is quoted as saying in a press pool report highlighted by The Daily Caller.
Obama is clearly referring to the Boston attacks, as well as the explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas last month. In both situations, communities were reduced to states of confusion, panic and fear in the face of crisis.
Obama is said to have noted that such events have a positive impact of rallying Americans together, and that such an impact should be made commonplace.
The comments are reminiscent of those by Obama’s former Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emnauel, who notoriously stated “You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.”
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also infamously said, “never waste a good crisis.”
The idea of the permanent crisis is a long standing one. In his book Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, which documents the origins and nature of fascist movements, columnist Jonah Goldberg notes that “The utility of terror was multi-faceted, but among its chief benefits was the tendency to maintain a permanent sense of crisis. Crisis is routinely identified as a core mechanism of fascism because it short-circuits debate and democratic deliberation” (42-43).
Indeed, with regards to terror threats, the US is still officially in a state of emergency declared On September 11, 2001 and formally put into writing three days later by George W. Bush. The state of emergency has been extended every year since, and continues to be renewed annually by Obama.
Although it is constantly argued that this action violates the Constitution, it continues to be re-declared, invoking several war-time powers that give the president greater control of the military. Those powers include the ability to suspend retirements and separations of military personnel, recall the Ready Reserve, activate recently-retired Coast Guard officers and personnel, and prohibit or regulate financial transactions with foreign entities involved in terrorism.
There are far too many stipulations of the state of emergency to list here, as it activates some 500 legal provisions, including those allowing the president to effectively impose censorship and martial law.
So not only is the president saying that he wishes to institutionalize a crisis state, he is actively doing so. Of course, Congress has the power to revoke the state of emergency, but that isn’t likely to happen any time soon.
During Monday’s fundraiser, Obama went on to blame opposition to his administration in Washington on “hyper-partisanship”, and specifically on radio host Rush Limbaugh:
“What’s blocking us right now is a sort of hyper-partisanship in Washington that I was, frankly, hoping to overcome in 2008 … My thinking was when we beat them in 2012 that might break the fever, and it’s not quite broken yet,” he said.
“But I am persistent,” he added. “And I am staying at it. And I genuinely believe that there are actually 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.”
“As a consequence, we get the kind of gridlock that makes people cynical about government and inhibits our progress.” he stated.
“If there are folks who are more interested in winning elections than they are thinking about the next generation then I want to make sure there are consequences to that,” he said, in what could be interpreted as a veiled threat.
Later in the afternoon, Obama addressed yet another 60-person fundraiser hosted by Alexandra Stanton, a former advisory to ex-Gov. David Paterson, and her husband, Sam Natapoff. Tickets to each event ranged from $16,200 to $20,000 and benefited the DNC.
In the evening, Obama spoke at another elite fundraiser at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, also featuring Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Senator Chuck Schumer. The final event was attended by approximately 140 guests paying between $7,500 and $32,400. In total the president is thought to have raised over $3 million by speaking to less than 300 people.
At the end of the dinner, Obama reportedly told attendees that they were “investing in people who share your values and your vision for the future.” before repeating the same desire to “institutionalize” the crisis atmosphere.
“It’s that spirit that we saw in West, Texas; it’s the spirit we saw in Boston; it’s the spirit that we see here in New York City, and as I was driving up and saw the new Freedom Tower rising, it reminded me of just what it is that we’re fighting for.” he stated.
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Steve Watson is the London based writer and editor for Alex Jones’ Infowars.com, andPrisonplanet.com. He has a Masters Degree in International Relations from the School of Politics at The University of Nottingham, and a Bachelor Of Arts Degree in Literature and Creative Writing from Nottingham Trent University.
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