The All Hat, No Cattle Obama Recovery Plan


The Caucus Blog of The New York Times says that Barack Obama’s transition staff are claiming that his so-called economic recovery plan will be a “paperless plan.” By that, they mean that there will be no “detailed documents, cost estimates” or the sort of announcements and “fanfare that capital watchers expect for the unveiling of major initiatives.”

It seems that, in Papal fashion, Obama plans to issue lofty rhetoric from the balcony to adoring crowds, then will retreat back inside his chambers to allow others to “fill in details.”

Forget the usual detailed documents, cost estimates and announcement fanfare that capital watchers expect for the unveiling of major initiatives. President-elect Barack Obama and his advisers suggested on Friday that he has provided the “framework” of a plan in recent public remarks; now Congress, coordinating with the Obama team, will flesh it out.

Mr. Obama and his advisers “wanted to set the broad outline and, very smartly, want Congress to sort of fill in some of the details,” Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, said in an interview. “It just makes sense. There’s a lot of knowledge here on the Hill.”

Like a true potentate, Obama plans to issue edicts and then to let Congress to fulfill his wishes.

When I first read this report, something struck me as familiar about the style. Then it hit me. Barack Obama is just like Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich!

One of the many jokes commonly said about Blago by Illinois legislators is that he “gives good press conference” but little else. The reason legislators were so fond of saying this is because Blago would come up with some wild idea, call a press conference, tell the state that he was going to “do” something or start some new program, then happily go home for a neighborhood jog. Blago, it appeared, felt that his job was to imagine every crazy program that he could come up with, announce it as a fact on TV, but leave it to everyone else to actually do the hard work of making laws.

Blago did not seem to think that he needed to craft an idea, work with legislators to garner support, oversee the writing of a bill, and arrange funding for those wonderful plans. He thought all he had to do was announce them on TV and *poof* we have new laws and programs.

Well, it appears that Obama is operating on an “all hat, no cattle” operating procedure similar to Blago’s style. Talk it up on TV in a sonorous voice and then go body surfing or something. Barack Obama has learned more from Blago than we thought.

Barack is a Blagoist. He’s Barack OBlago, even.


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19 Comments Leave a comment

Sounds more like a King...

fmaidment (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 8:55AM EST (link)

…Issuing an edict and expecting his parliament to unquestioningly write the necessary laws and rules.

Any good manager or leader knows that they can’t come up with all the ideas and details of a plan. However, they also cannot simply give broad frameworks and expect others to fill in the details. They have to be involved in the crafting and development, giving their own personal flair to the plan. They take in ideas and see how to adjust them, occasionally dictating how they want something to read. A leader must be involved in the details or the plan will take on a life of its own and have no real focus or structure.

No, he can’t know everything and should not have to write the whole thing himself, but he should have more to do with the plan than just issuing a framework.

Obama has never lead anything of importance. That shows very clearly in how he is crafting this “stimulus.”

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“I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.”
– - Thomas Jefferson, to Archibald Stuart, 1791

 

The One and his minions are more dangerous to liberty than an open barrel full of razor blades at a pre-school.

Kenny Solomon (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:02AM EST (link)

He’s got his ‘rock-solid’ ideas of what he sees the USA as being and Pelosi-Reid, et al have their ‘solid rock’ ideas of what they see the USA as being.

He thinks he controls them, they know they control him and there’s the big money far left lunatics who own them all.

Boy, are we gonna have fun — that is if we have any freedom left to enjoy.

 

"Transparency" according to Obama

bk (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:10AM EST (link)

As one of my wise managers once told me after a group we didn’t exactly trust promised us some major change would be ‘transparent’: When they tell you it will be transparent they mean you won’t be able to see what it is that hit you.

That is the sort of transparency Obama has promised to bring to Washington.

5 Your manager was VERY insightful!

From ME to You (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:41AM EST (link)

“When they tell you it will be transparent they mean you won’t be able to see what it is that hit you.”

That should be permanently enshrined in Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations !!!

Photobucket
 
 

I hate to nitpick, but there's a typo in the article...

6eorge Jetson (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:17AM EST (link)

It seems that, in Papal fashion, Obama plans to issue lofty rhetoric from the balcony to adoring crowds, then will retreat back inside his chambers to allow others to “fill in details there pockets.”

There, I fixed it ;)

w/ a typo myself (there vs their) (nt)

6eorge Jetson (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:18AM EST (link)

spelling is the hobgoblin of puny minds

Mike gamecock DeVine (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:27AM EST (link)

smile

I’m a substance guy

Mike DeVine’s Examiner.com, Charlotte Observer and The Minority Report columns
“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

A "substance" guy, eh?

Thrhheggeegwc Jjtkylkfofud (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:28AM EST (link)

I don’t know whether to report you to the authorities or refer you to a self-help program…

:)

Just kidding.

as opposed to procedure, but hey, I am on step

Mike gamecock DeVine (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:37AM EST (link)

13

Mike DeVine’s Examiner.com, Charlotte Observer and The Minority Report columns
“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

 
 

Bad spellers of the world "untie"

cookcountyconservative (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:28AM EST (link)

Don't make fun of bad spellers!

Thrhheggeegwc Jjtkylkfofud (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:30AM EST (link)

We are smart! S-M-R-T smart!

 
 
 

No, I think you were right the first time

Thrhheggeegwc Jjtkylkfofud (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:27AM EST (link)

Their is possessive.

I used "there" twice, once incorrectly, once correctly.

6eorge Jetson (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:59AM EST (link)

 
  “fill in details there pockets.”

  There, I fixed it

Georges, we are trying to solve the problems of the world here

Mike gamecock DeVine (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:06AM EST (link)

There is no there in their!

Mike DeVine’s Examiner.com, Charlotte Observer and The Minority Report columns
“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

Is bad spelling not a problem of the world? :) (nt)

Thrhheggeegwc Jjtkylkfofud (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:33AM EST (link)

know - nt

Mike gamecock DeVine (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 11:27AM EST (link)

Mike DeVine’s Examiner.com, Charlotte Observer and The Minority Report columns
“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

 
 
 

Got it

Thrhheggeegwc Jjtkylkfofud (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 10:20AM EST (link)

I missed that.

 
 
 
 

Awful Lot of Money Floating Around

Spartan4Life (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 9:38AM EST (link)

The culture of corruption(see Baltimore, Illinois, et al) has come to DC. Only now they are playing for big money.

 
 

It's really the way a union Executive Board

Achance (Diary) Saturday, January 10th at 11:09AM EST (link)

works in relationship to the union’s Business Manager. Don’t be fooled by titles like President that mirror government officers, they’re usually only ceremonial. The real power in unions is the Business Manager, sometimes shared with the Secretary Treasurer. You will NOT be on a union executive board unless you support the Business Manager. In some unions you will not remain healthy or even alive unless you support the Business Manager. The Executive Board exists to give the appearance of democracy in the union’s workings, but in reality most unions are total autocracies. We should not be fooled by what looks like conflict between Congressional leadership and the Administration; there isn’t any. They’re doing a head fake; the Congress is setting it up for BHO to be the moderate and act all bipartisan by getting some stupid Republicans to vote for his smash and dash on the US Treasury.

That management style is the essense of the Chicago Way and is BHO’s background. It is iron clad dogma that you destroy any opposition – in physical terms if necessary. Stupid Republicans who think they can be friends and work with these people sometimes will find out the hard way that you work with these people ALL the time or they work to destroy you. They don’t do that freedom stuff; you are on the program or you are out of the game. They will not tolerate “loyal opposition.” If you oppose anything, you are not loyal.

If we are smart: we’ll take our initial losses. Some nominal Rs will have to choose betwen us and them and some may join the Democrat caucus; not many, but some may feel they have to to survive because it is going to be very cold and lonely if you’re a Republican in a Blue State. We really can’t moderate Republican positions to help our weaker Members. We will concentrate our efforts on keeping what’s ours and that means the Republican Congressmen had better become really good friends with Republican Governors, State Legislators, and State Party Officials because the Democrats are coming for us with all the power of the US Executive Branch. Secondly, we MUST find ways to make the Democrats vote on the hard issues. There are a lot of Democrats, especially those elected in the last two generals who CANNOT survive in thier district or state if they hew closely to the Democrat Party line. Our leadership MUST fork them on their constituency vs. their caucus.

In Vino Veritas