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A Journey Through the Mind of an “Informed” Obama-Hater
Have you seen the Obama-should-have-been-impeached list that is floating around right-wing social media? It is actually pretty fascinating. The list provides a peek inside of the mind of the Obama-hater who fancies himself/herself as being “informed.”
There are lots of references to policies and actions which were certainly Fox News headlines, and memes floating around on social media.
The 25 “impeachable offenses” included in the list (below) offer insight into the indoctrination of a subset of folks who would go on to vote for Trump. Not your fiscal conservative republican voter. Not your hate-filled, lunatic, meme producing Facebook poster. But somewhere in between. The folks in between.
It is a surprisingly random laundry list, which should probably be entitled “Stuff that Happened During the Obama Administration that the Right Wing Didn’t Like.” Just a reminder. Impeachment is limited to officials who commit “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” But within days of the introduction of Articles of Impeachment against Trump by a small group of democrats, this list has found it’s way onto a half a dozen different right wing pages, and it is making the rounds.
What’s on the List
There are the usual right-wing fetish items. Birth certificate. Clinton emails. Muslim Brotherhood. Benghazi. Because we didn’t spend enough time or money investigating Benghazi.
Then there are some really random things. Obama should have been impeached because a military helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan. He should have been impeached because his secret service shot and killed a woman who drove her car through the White House gate.
#22 on the list cryptically reads only “Egypt.” So recite this sentence with me. “Obama should have been impeached because of Egypt.”
It is clear that the list is meant to be scanned. Not studies. Stuff that right wingers are passionately angry about are mixed in with obscure sorts of things that might ring a bell as being something one should be passionately angry about.
Then there are the “offenses” that fall into broader categories. We have the laws passed by Congress, which he signed, such as ACA. We have specific Executive Orders that he issued, including DACA, as well as a general category simply called “Executive Orders.” Treaties and international negotiations also appear on the list. Appointments. Lots of suggestions that Obama should have been impeached for the actions or inactions of the Department of Justice. Everything from dropping charges against one of two defendants in a case of voter intimidation, to accessing AP reporters’ phone records to a botched attempt to track the movement of illegally imported guns.
The most damning item on this list might be #25, Obama’s US Citizen “hit list.” Not sure what the list makers are talking about here, but I am going to guess they are talking about the administration’s decision to send drones to assassinate presumed terrorists overseas, including US citizens. I wrote a piece about this issue a while back. Quite surprised that the right wing is even interested.
The List
- Obama’s Iran nuke deal
- Obama knew about Hillary’s private email server
- Obama IRS targets conservatives
- Obama’s DOJ spies on AP reporters
- Obamacare & Obama’s false promises
- Illegal-alien amnesty by executive order
- Benghazi-gate
- Operation Fast & Furious
- 5 Taliban leaders for Bergdahl
- Extortion 17
- ‘Recess ‘ appointments – when Senate was in session
- Appointment of ‘czars’ without Senate approval
- Suing Arizona for enforcing federal law
- Refusal to defend Defense of Marriage Act
- Illegally conducting war against Libya
- NSA: Spying on Americans
- Muslim Brotherhood ties
- Miriam Carey
- Birth certificate
- Executive orders
- Solyndra and the lost $535 million
- Egypt
- Cap & Trade: When in doubt, bypass Congress
- Refusal to prosecute New Black Panthers
- Obama’s U.S. citizen ‘hit list’
What’s Not on the List
The content gives us fascinating insight into the right-wing grievances. These are the issues they have been told they should be upset about. But just as interesting are the issues that did NOT make the list.
During the Obama administration, there were impeachment memes going around social media calling for impeachment because the POTUS was violating your Second Amendment rights. But since he never got around to taking your guns away, that had to drop off the list.
No concerns about transgender folks using public bathrooms. I am hoping that the tide turned on that issue, and it was considered too volatile.
More surprising is the absence of the whole Uranium One farce. It is getting a lot of airplay. Perhaps this is just an old, recycled list, and the folks who started circulating it didn’t bother to make updates.
Articles of Impeachment Against Trump
But it seems that this list is a response to the articles of impeachment filed against Trump in November. There are only 5 on this particular list. So the republicans clearly have the BIGGER list. And let’s be clear. With the current make up of the House, these articles will probably never get a hearing. But just for fun, here is the list.
1. Obstructing justice by firing Comey
2. & 3. Emoluments clause violations (ways Trump is benefiting financially from his office)
4. Undermining the judiciary
5. Undermining the press
I don’t think we are going to be seeing any action against Trump until the Mueller investigation is over. But when it happens, these are probably the issues that the right wingers are going to counter with. And they will say “But what about (insert item from list)?”
Watch for it.
