Obama Presidency: Bullying from the Pulpit

There used to be a certain level of decorum incumbent upon the office of the President of the United States. After all, the office is more than the man that occupies it. It’s also more than his politics or platform. In many ways the Presidency is the embodiment of America. It’s the face we put forward to the world. With the election of President Obama the presidency has also awakened dreams in many children who never believed the White House was attainable.

The mandates of the office dictate how those entrusted with its power should act. The Obama White House has failed to maintain the high standards of this office. Rather than operating in a dignified manner the staff has desecrated the office by resorting to old-school Chicago-style politics. That is to say they’ve used the Presidency to reward their friends and single out and attack their enemies.

The White House bully pulpit should be used to advocate for policies to benefit the American public. Instead we’ve seen it used to inure benefits to political supporters and to wage campaigns against critics.

The National Endowment for the Arts call on August 10, 2009 is a prime example of how the Obama Administration has sought to reward its friends. They invited “artists, producers, promoters, organizers, influencers, marketers, tastemakers, leaders or just plain cool people” to advocate on behalf of the Obama Administration. Buffy Wicks from the White House Office of Public Engagement used the call to express her “deep appreciation for all the work that you all put into the campaign for the two plus years that we all worked together.” Ben Shapiro has revealed how this improper political call violated a slew of federal laws in a shallow attempt to reward Obama’s political supporters and enlist their aid in producing government sponsored propaganda.

While rewarding supporters the White House has also aggressively used the bully pulpit to attack and intimidate those who dare to offer a dissenting viewpoint. These bullying tactics include singling out talk show hosts and engaging in a vicious campaigns against them. Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has targeted Rush Limbaugh, Jim Cramer, and Rick Santelli.

The Obama Administration has also attacked Fox News calling it “a wing of the Republican Party.” White House Communications Director Anita Dunn has been using her position extract revenge on Fox News for a grudge she still holds against the network resulting from its coverage of the Obama campaign.

Recently the Obama Administration has set its sights on the voice of business, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Administration has honed in on the organization for opposing the White House healthcare and climate change proposals. The President has called their advertisements “completely false.” He has made public statements criticizing the organization for its policy proposals and impact. When viewed in light of the NEA call the lesson becomes clear, Obama welcomes your input as long as you agree with him.

The Obama White House isn’t winning on the issues. Their fight for universal healthcare has not met with the approval of the American public. They’ve had to enlist the help of the Obama Campaign machine which is now housed at the Democratic National Committee under the auspices of the Organizing for America banner to fight for the President’s policy proposals.

While Organizing for America has advocated for the President’s policy proposals, Robert Gibbs and Rahm Emanuel have turned the White House into a powerful weapon used to quell political dissent. Even the Left has to admit that President Bush had too much respect for the office to use it in such a distasteful manner.