Cramer had supported Obama and bashed the Bush White House repeatedly. None of that mattered. He had committed an unpardonable sin – he went against Obama. For that, he was the main course at a national buffet. And so-called progressive groups are now targeting CNBC in its entirety.
But this isn’t about CNBC or the left’s top targets – Cramer, the Howard Beale-esque Rick Santelli or the statesmanlike Larry Kudlow. What it’s about is a White House with a monstrous agenda to stifle dissent. Obama’s pack has abandoned all pretense of bipartisanship and embraced what Hillary Clinton once called “the politics of personal destruction.”
It was only January when The Washington Post headline was claiming “Transition Signals A Centrist Approach In Obama White House.” No rational conservative believed it then. If anyone else does now, they aren’t being rational.
Obama is trying to give the public someone to hate so they don’t focus on what he is doing. The difference now is the left is backing that up with a sophisticated network of Web sites, TV shows and pundits who take their cues from the White House. When the Obama administration is not throwing red meat to its base over Wall Street, it’s going after critics.
Soon after Cheney criticized Obama, Huffingtonpost.com’s own Arianna Huffington responded – envisioning the former vice president as the main course for Stewart, a comedian pretending to be a populist. She was angered that CNN’s John King was insufficiently rude or militant to the former VP and wished the “Daily Show” host had filled in for King. In what’s left of Arianna’s mind since her great liberal conversion, Stewart is the new T-Rex able to intimidate all into submission. She even lamented the lack of a “Jon Stewart Journalism Deprogramming Center.” “Is there any sentient human being – other than Bush apologists – disputing that the Bush administration left Obama a mess?” she whined.
Yes, Bush left Obama a recession. So what? Clinton left Bush one. Both situations stink, so fair’s fair. But that’s not the point. The point is that the response is part of a clearly orchestrated strategy to hunt down and destroy any opposition.
Less than two months in and the Obama administration hasn’t advanced, it’s devolved – all the way back to the age of the dinosaur. And like those dinosaurs, it’s big and powerful and dangerous.