Obama's desperate bluster

Rich Lowry:

President Obama likes to present himself as the only adult left in Washington, but last night's televised address to the nation had more than a whiff of childish desperation about it.

It's clear: The only thing that matters to him right now is not the fate of the country but his re-election.

Discussing the looming Aug. 2 deadline to raise the debt ceiling -- the subject of fierce debate and negotiation for the past few weeks -- the president last night once again (a) blamed Bush, (b) demonized the successful, (c) denounced "tax breaks" for corporate jets and oil companies, (d) threatened the country's seniors, veterans and contractors with the chimera of "default" and (e) dredged up the ghost of Ronald Reagan to try and cast himself as the great compromiser.

In short, he was hoping the country mistakes bluster for a negotiating position. For demanding a "balanced" approach to solving the crisis (read: massive tax increases) is so yesterday. Events have already passed Obama by.

House Speaker John Boehner, who followed the president with a calm, confident -- and firm -- speech of his own, noted that the House has already passed its "Cut, Cap and Balance" proposal (unceremoniously rejected by the Senate) and told the country he'd soon be sending over a new proposal.

Boehner's plan would delay the current crisis by authorizing an immediate $1 trillion increase in the debt ceiling in exchange for $1.2 trillion in real federal spending cuts over the next decade. A subsequent step would allow another $1.6 trillion in borrowing in exchange for cuts of at least $1.8 trillion in 2012.

Even Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has blown by Obama with a plan to bump up the ceiling just once, by $2.5 trillion, with (allegedly) $2.7 trillion in spending cuts. But it includes a $1 trillion "savings" in ending the wars in Iraq in Afghanistan -- something that will happen (or not) no matter what Congress does.

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Obama is desperate to stay relevant as events unfold. It is not working. His best chance would be to take the deal Boehner offered him originally or at least try to split the difference on revenues.

BTW, revenues could be significantly increased if the Obama administration would open up federal controlled properties to oil and gas drilling. The royalties alone would be worth over a trillion dollars, not to mention the hundreds of thousands of jobs that would be created.