Niall Stanage and Amie Parnes for The Hill:
Obama’s year to date has been marked by a combination of failures, distractions and uncertainties.
A push for gun control in the wake of the mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school last December came to nothing.
Controversies over the IRS and, more recently, National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden absorbed administration energy and time.
The effort to enact far-reaching immigration reform advanced though the Senate on a 68-32 vote. But the fate of the measure is in serious doubt in the House, where Republicans balk at providing a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants, which Obama demands.
His supporters argue that GOP recalcitrance is to blame for the lack of legislative progress, beyond healthcare.
Let’s not forget Obama’s renewed push for “comprehensive” global warming climate change REPUBLICANS CONTROL THE WEATHER! legislation, too. Calling for big, new action on an issue the GOP House is hostile towards, and the Senate doesn’t have the votes for, and which Americans don’t give a damn about — now that’s a distraction. But never you mind — Obama had to give a talk about something, because that’s what he does. And all the other potential subjects were even worse, politically. A Democrat calling for new laws to stop Republicans from ruining the nice weather is like farts from your dog — it’s just the noise they make while they sleep.
So where’s Obama going to score a win? I don’t know. But I haven’t given up on John Boehner handing him one on a silver platter.
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