Thursday night’s show by President Obama struck me as…
Presumptuous: He demanded – 17 times – that Congress immediately pass a bill no one has seen.
Tired: The speech contained little new, just mostly recycled ideas or extensions of current programs that haven’t worked.
Small: Its proposals, while expensive, offer little hope of really jump-starting the economy.
Mind-boggling: Mr. Obama wants to drains hundreds of billions from Social Security for another stimulus.
Slippery: It will all be paid for, the president said, but it’s up to a Congressional committee to figure out how.
Misleading: These were just GOP ideas. Really? Republicans have proposed another $450 billion stimulus bill, Mr. Obama?
Arrogant: He refused to consult in advance with anyone on the Hill, even refusing a meeting request from the House Speaker and Majority Leader.
Self-centered: The only job he’s really concerned about is his own. If he really wanted a bipartisan package, he would have worked with Republicans to come up with one.
Unnecessary: The president would have been better off traveling the country this week to lay out proposals, surrounded by people he could claim would might benefit.
Completely political: Before he spoke, Mr. Obama sent supporters an email titled “Before I head to the Capitol” that ended with “You should donate today.”
Hyper-partisan: This speech – especially its angry tone – was aimed at setting up the Republicans for blame next fall. Then he’ll say the economy would be better if the GOP has just done what I ordered them to do.
Misguided: Mr. Obama is betting his re-elect on a massive spending bill.
Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln enjoyed the show.
Karl Rove is a Fox News contributor and former senior adviser and deputy chief of staff to President George W. Bush. He is a Fox News contributor and author of "Courage and Consequence" (Threshold Editions, 2010).
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