The Incredible, Shrinking President

So, as with all Presidential second terms, President Obama is fading from relevance. It is inevitable and common for second term Presidents to become less popular and effective, Republican or Democrat.

But, the decline of the Obama Presidency is setting new precedent for irrelevancy and unpopularity. Recent polling shows that President Obama is held in less esteem than ANY other modern day president, including his immediate predecessor George W. Bush.

The reasons for this are numerous and touch upon nearly every voter across the spectrum. It is not the realm only of conservative right wing citizens. The more the President and his supporters attempt to paint it as the opinion only of Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, and racism, the more public disappointment grows, because a growing public majority isn’t buying the blame Bush rhetoric anymore. It’s been nearly six years.

The evidence of failure, not just for the President, but for the country has become painfully obvious. Political scandals that the President was able to sweep under the rug during his reelection have become more subversive and new scandals have come to light to pile onto the administration. The IRS loses emails, the Veterans Administration kills patients, and the Border Patrol is changing diapers.

Congress feels free to openly tell the President that they don’t trust him to enforce the law so they refuse to pass legislation they know the President will selectively enforce. Congress can state these claims blatantly only because the public knows it to be true and the public no longer trusts President Obama. Can anyone recall a House Speaker ever calling out a sitting President in such blatant fashion, let alone preparing litigation to challenge a President’s executive actions.

In the past two weeks, the United States Supreme Court unanimously overturned the President’s executive actions on recess appointments. In a split decision, the court also shot a hole in the President’s signature accomplishment, the Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare.)

Internationally, the hard fought peace in Iraq has dissolved. What Vice President Biden once claimed to be a key success for the Obama Presidency, a stable, democratic Iraq, has now completely disintegrated into civil war. The Obama Administration, in desperation, has even reached out to Iran for help. The United States is no longer feared by our adversaries or trusted by our allies.

And what has the President done in an effort to rebuild trust with Congress, the Courts and most importantly, the people? He has issued more threats that he will use executive power to do what he wants, even when the legislature and the people oppose his actions.

It has become less and less likely that Democrats will hold onto their narrow majority in the United States Senate in November. The House of Representatives will increase upon its Republican majority. If the Supreme Court takes up the House Speaker’s litigation, it is likely to diminish this Presidency further.

Mr. President. It’s time to step back from this cliff. When you promised to remake America, this wasn’t what anyone expected nor do you have the support of the People to keep going.