Obama's Nixon-to-the-Lincoln Memorial Moment

Hugh Hewitt has a great analogy for President Obama’s shambolic race speech on Friday:

On May 9, 1970, President Nixon made an impromptu pre-dawn visit to anti-war protestors camped at the Lincoln Memorial.  It left many people scratching their heads at the time, and suggested Nixon’s inner turmoil about the war over which he presided.

Today’s 17-minute-long, rambling statement by President Obama on the Zimmerman verdict is just as odd as Nixon’s visit, though of course the trappings of the White House press room make it less obviously so.  The president’s comments were clearly unrehearsed, not at all logical, and seemed to be a sort of default to his days as a community organizer.

As to why Obama chose to end the week speaking out yet again on the Zimmerman verdict, Peter Ingemi, aka, “DaTechGuy” explains the president’s strange decision with three images.

As Hugh writes, “Race may be the only issue on which the president feels competent to talk.  Which puts the country in a pretty difficult place for the next three plus years.”

And afterwards? Moe Lane explores Obama’s post-presidential career:

I regret to tell some of you this, but: Barack Obama doesn’t really care enough about this country to want to radically change it: he’s doing so partially because of inertia from 2009-2011, and partially because he doesn’t like to be told no. Obama mostly wants to enjoy the perks of his office – which he will – and when his term is done, Barack Obama will continue to enjoy most of the perks of his office for the rest of his natural life without him actually having to do anything.  Do not be surprised if we see the man create the first ever seal for the Office of President-Emeritus of the United States: it fits Obama’s personality, and will probable add quite a bit to his honorariums.

Which would make sense; as Ace wrote in 2010, “Awww: Team Obama Thinks Being President Is Hard:”

Remember the whole “Office of The President Elect” thing? I joked that that was the office Obama really wanted, lots of meetings, the chance to give lots of fun speeches to adoring crowds, plenty of time for waffles but no real responsibilities.

Turns out, I was right.

Almost a year and half on the job and Team Obama is pretty bummed that being President means having to deal with actual problems.

Mr. Obama will be in mid-50s when he leaves office; allowing him decades of playing the role of the next Jimmy Carter (which he’s already been doing since 2009, of course), hectoring and second-guessing every decision made by the successors who will be cleaning up his administration’s numerous disasters.