Blog Heap o' Links

It is evidence--not of the President's foreign origin, but that Barack Obama's public persona has perhaps been presented differently at different times.

Completely unrelated: From The Politicker: This campaign will be a state-by-state effort and will be powered by some of the president’s union allies in National Education Association... From Politics K-12: The president’s spending blueprint also includes... $30 billion to help prevent teacher layoffs.

Benjamin Smith: You Sir are trying to take the credit for what the American People have achieved in killing Bin Laden. Your use of the SEALs accomplishment as a campaign slogan is nothing less than despicable. I, as a former Navy SEAL do not accept your taking credit for Osama Bin Laden’s death. The American Military accomplished that feat. ... reliable sources continue to report that not only did you attempt to stop or delay Bin Laden’s demise, you did not even leave the golf course for the situation room until 20 minutes before SEAL Team 6 took out Osama Bin Laden. Even the clothes you wore in the situation room betray this fact. This is a Commander in Chief? A man who takes credit for actions largely taken while he was out golfing? ...

[May 9] marks the 258th anniversary of Benjamin Franklin’s “Join or Die” cartoon – often thought of as the first editorial cartoon in the Americas. It was published in the Pennsylvania Gazette as a rallying cry unity among the colonies.

any attack on Iran can be expected to unleash a violent reaction throughout the Muslim world, both in the more organized Shia minority camp where Iran has influence and in the majority Sunni countries where Iran may not have influence but anti-Americanism certainly does. The risk will be greater for Israel than for anyone else - a state already isolated and besieged by hostile states. With its conflict with the Palestinians unresolved, it will find itself even more isolated and under threat. The United States will find itself besieged in many parts of the Muslim world, making normal diplomacy unworkable and the effort to enlist Muslim states to support the U.S. war against Al-Qaida more difficult.

According to a book about to be released, The Rise of the President’s Permanent Campaign by Brendan J. Doherty, Obama has held more fundraisers than all presidents since Nixon combined. What does this have to do with socialism? A lot, really, because what Obama promises – especially in his second term — is a socialism of permanent elites, a kind of new, very American, version of the old Soviet-style nomenklatura. And those who are in it will get to stay in it (via government support) as social mobility, aka the American Dream, diminishes or disappears. This was what socialism ultimately was all about, indeed is all about, the preservation of nomenklaturas, whether of Hollywood, the media, union, and bureaucratic leadership or what remains of selected industry. Keep hoi polloi out. All those fundraisers and bundlers, from Clooney to the considerably more anonymous, know this on one level or another. It’s certainly not subtle and those too clueless to understand were reminded by the recent quasi-blacklisting of potential Romney supporters. A warning shot was fired. No elite status for them.

The continuing adventures of Barack Obama's favorite eyeless, mouthless government dependent [Graphics series]

When her washing machine cycle finished, she went into the laundry and discovered Tabitha's furry face looking back at her through the machine's glass. The cat was inside the washing machine for one hour and 45 minutes. ... not seriously injured.

In the end, Antony Blinken, Biden’s national security adviser, successfully prevailed over other officials in arguing that Wang’s asylum appeal should be rejected. Blinken, according to the officials, feared China would cancel the upcoming visit by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, whose visit was to be hosted by Biden, unless Wang was sent away from the consulate as soon as possible.

Earlier today Barack Obama posed for photos before he gave his speech tonight. [Photo of little man dwarfed by equipment] Tonight Barack Obama gave a speech at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan.
US soldiers were not allowed. [Entirely a matter of the President's safety, I'm sure. Um, wait. I'll bet Bush never felt safer than when surrounded by American soldiers. Hmmm.]