PRESIDENT OBAMA: INCIPIENT AUTOCRAT OR SAVY POLITICIAN?

The mentally disturbed,   20 years old mentally Adams Lanza, killed his mother, and later 20 children and three school officers, at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut. Soon after, he killed himself. The incident was the second deadliest school shooting in United States history, while the 2007 Virginia Tech Massacre ranks as the first one. The deadliest mass murder incident at an American school was the 1927 Bayh School Bombings, in Michigan.

The hair-raising event shocked all Americans while creating a cloud of fear, anger, and impotence. President Obama speech shared his empathy with the American People’s feelings.  He shared their feelings and concerns.  In his speech, President Obama,  used not only his finest speech abilities, but a great number of Propagandistic devices , which had been  used on many other Presidents’ speeches.  It was an emotional speech, by which he let very well established:

1. The Congress has been very slow and had not taken action in reinstate the Federal Assault Weapon Band ended in 2,004 that Clinton Governed passed: 

2. He will take care of the problem in a very speedy and efficient way.

3. He let well define his three prerogatives:

A.  Reestablishing a ban on military style assault weapons

B.  More thoroughly check on gun buyer backgrounds

C.  Restrictive high capacity ammunition clip

The sentence “ It will take commitment and compromise,and most of all it will take care and courage” was a very explicit one.  The words courage and commitment are key works of this sentence.  They served to announce that he will dedicate all efforts and works, and at the same time he will fight against all the opposition he encounters in enforcing his dictum. The word “compromise” was a word that was not used in his latter actions.

Immediately, President Obama appointed Vice-President Biden to head a Task Force to hear interested organization’s and people’s advice and opinions. In truth, Vice-President  Biden, did an excellent job in fulfilling his Boss’ orders, and he went beyond any expectations. He interviewed more than 200 people and made innumerable phone calls. On a call with one parent of a victim he spent a full 45 min. One of those participating in the meeting said that the meetings resembled more a session of the two  Chambers of the Congress, than  a simple meeting to put together a group of recommendations. Another government official, demanding anonymity, declared that Vice-president Biden was carefully collecting all data, but in reality was more interested in the  organizations and people wishing to affect  gun control than the information he was collecting.
Obama’s three goals were present each of the meetings. In true, Vice-President Biden did an excellent job in fulfilling his Boss orders, and he went beyond any expectations. He made more than two hundred interviews and innumerable phone calls. On one call with the parents of one of the victim he spent 45 min. One of the participating of the meeting said that the meetings resembling more any sessions of the two Chambers of the Congress, than a simple meeting putting together a group of recommendations. Other government official, demanding anonymity, declared that Vice-president Biden was carefully collecting all data, but he was more interested in the organizations and people very in favor or opposite to gun control than in the information he was collected. President Obama’s three goals were present during each of these meetings.
After Vice-president Biden enthusiastically fulfilled his assignment he gave his recommendations to President Obama. Now, the President had the material on which he would base his recommendations and send them with the diligence he had stated.  What was left, was to hurry up the actions of the Congress.

President Obama also acted with a high level of efficiency and enthusiasm to solve a problem he thought was of national urgency. He probably felt very satisfied; finally he was able to peel some skin off of  the second amendment of the Constitution. He could also re-enact  Clinton’s Restricted ban.
President Obama has been a notorious and vocal pro gun control advocate since entering public life as community organizer, civil rights attorney, representative, 3^th District Illinois Senator, and lecturer of constitutional laws at the Chicago University in Chicago. During his first presidential mandate he kept his opinions at bay. Now, the Sandy School massacre crisis was an unique opportunity to initiate the first step to move on his gun control agenda.
Everybody thought the gun control controversy was now in the hands the Congress, but it was not so. Obama fulfilled his promised and he acted quickly, frontally and with “courage”. He would not wait and so immediately issued 23 executive orders. Previous president from both parties have issued executive orders; but this was out of the ordinary.  23 executive orders invades the power of the legislature.  Two executive orders were considered unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. One of them was the  Supreme Court rule in Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha.  It was considerated unconstitutional because President Reagan vetoed a bill   without "bicameral passage followed by presentation of a bill  to the President”.
President Obama has also now demonstrated that his executive orders are not constitutional.  Recently, he  already had trouble with the executive order he issued  on Jan. 4, 2012.  It involved the filling of three appointments of  members to the National Labor Relations Board. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C ruled (Jan 25/2013) that Obama executive order was unconstitutional, because   the President edict the executive order during other time than the  official recess of the Congress, as the Constitution command.
President’s executive orders really inverts the order in which a Bill is transformed into a Law. The Article I of the Constitution rules that after a bill is proposed, it has to be introduced  in either the House of Representative or the Senate.  Then, it has to be amply discussed by the members of both Congressional Chambers.   In this way, the voice of all the 50 States is heard. Then, it comes a reconciliation meeting and the result is the final Bill.  During these discussions compromises occur between the majority and minority parties in Congress.   That Bill is sent to the President.  If he approves the bill it becomes  Law. If the bill is vetoed, it goes back to the Congress where it can be only approved only with a veto over-ride of votes.
What President Obama should have done, was  to present recommendations to Congress about the presented bills, and not usurp the power of the legislature.
Kesavan and Sidak explains the purpose of the Recommendation clause:"The Recommendation Clause also imposes an executive duty on the President. His recommendations respect the equal dignity of Congress and thus embody the anti-royalty sentiment that ignited the American Revolution and subsequently stripped the trappings of monarchy away from the new chief executive. Through his recommendations to Congress, the President speaks collectively for the People as they petition Government for a redress of grievances, and thus his recommendations embody popular sovereignty. The President tailors his recommendations so that their natural implication is the enactment of new legislation, rather than some other action that Congress might undertake. Finally, the President shall have executive discretion to recommend measures of his choosing.^”
Gun control is a great controversy, and divides the American people.  This uncovered plan to deal with the second amendment interferes with the Legislative Branch of our government.

The issue is an important one.  The ten Bill of Rights was thoughtfully written, and passed with great effort.  The right to bear arms not only involves the problem of gun possession for individual protection, it also involves the protection the American people against a reaching government, even when elected by the majority of the United States populace.  A far reaching President, who can control or usurp legislative powers, control a majority in the Supreme Court, and add to his sanctioned executive powers can change into a despotic government over night. I was very young, but I watched these changes during the Presidency of Gerardo Machado, one of the best and most popular leaders of Cuba, during his first term.  He was elected to a second term, however the Great Depression compromised the Cuban economy, and he believed that he needed omnipotent powers to solve the problem.  He changed the constitution to  make his second term last 6 years, and not 4.  He began reprisals against his critics.  But he changed into a political dictator who would not allow the smallest criticism.  He went from being one of Cuba’s most beloved Presidents to one of his most hated by the end of his second term. In Cuban history, he and Fulgencio Batista were the two political dictators in Cuba’s history. Fidel later became not only a political dictator but also a social, economic and somewhat religious one.  Fidel changed Cuba from one of the richest and civilized nations in Latin America to one of the poorest.  It has remained under his control, or recently under his appointed successor’s Raul’s, control, for 50 plus years.

So why did President Obama not push Congress to act quickly through the force of his speeches and of his bullet pulpit?  Why instead did he want to solve this quickly, by himself execution orders?  Why did not present his recommendations instead of issuing executive orders? I have arrived to my own conclusions after reading many articles about Mr.  Obama as  a community organizer, later as a representative  and Senator from Chicago, and finally as Obama as the President of the United States?

1.   Obama is probably an incipient autocrat, that may or  not may develop into an autocratic-despot. Some hints:  Obama House of Representative passed the Obamacare behind closed doors; not asking the opinion of the Republican minority. And, the Obamacare is in reality a socialist measure that allows the government to punch the United States constitution.  Also his 23 executive orders reflect what he already wanted the task force to pass. Gun control is not only hallmark of autocratic governments, but it is one of the first thing many of these governments do. Machado and Batista did not impose gun control.  Castro’s governmemt did.  During one of his speeches Castro said,  “Armas, para que? (Guns for what?).  Interestingly this was when his “peace dove” landed on his shoulder. His government collected all the guns in citizen’s hands in Cuba. Removing citizens guns was one of the factors which turned Cuban’s into in defenseless sheep in a secured island pen.

 

2.   Obama took advantages of the Crisis the Sandy School Massacre offered him.  Rahm Emmanuel was the President Obama Chief of Staff until the Election of 2010. He was the author of the memorable quote, “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”. President Obama follows this thoughtful advice. He thought  the problem of gun control would  result in loss of his political capital, so, during his first term he concentrated on  Obamacare, the stimulus and other agendas during his first term.  The Sandy School massacre, was the crisis he was waiting for, it was his  time to advance  gun control  wih almost no  loss of his political cost.  As a president, President Obama wants to advance his wishes and ideal and those of the majority of people that voted for him, but needed to be cognizant that you catch more flies with honey, and that as President he could not say, “My way, or the highway.”

3.   Obama counts on his popularity and on the support of majority our national media outlets:   tv channels, newspapers, even the common smarmy swipe of a sit com.   And finally, a political machine so effective and so large that it is considered. the most potent in the political history of this country . Above all, he counts 0n  the powerful force of his speeches, and the advantage of being President of the United States.

4.   President Obama is a savvy politician.  Through his efforts he was able to save his political majority during the past election.  He  was able to pass Obama care, stimulus package, and to spend uncontrolled deficits. These three things allowed him to advance his progressive political agenda, although he lost he eventually lost control of the House or Representatives. He also chanced upon a very savvy new tactic.  He helps insure that Democratic senators and representatives do not vote against bills that are unpopular in their red states. Republicans present bills in Congress, but his henchman, Harry Reid does not bring them to the floor in the Senate.  Then Obama acts as if he were Senator Reid, and he and not Reid, speaks to Speaker Boehner.  In effect he bypasses reconciliation, and bypasses the legislature compromising.  His encounters with the less savvy Boehner end in him making the Speaker out as the non-compromising guilty one, when Obama makes not compromise on his end. He also amazingly enough, gets the press to agree with him that somehow, ex-President Bush is still the culpable party.   Newt Gingrich, recently declared that when he was Speaker of the house, because of the respect the constitution demands toward the President, that it subsequently made him look like one subordinated to his President’s ideas.  He also indicated that is what was happening during the President’s meetings with Boehner.

As a result, President Obama issued the executive orders as a very savvy politician.  Republicans also need to  become savvy and create their own plan of actions as a counter measure and stick together; or else these changes could easily lead to the President becoming an incipient autocrat.