Inside Obama's bank CEOs meeting
...But President Barack Obama wasn’t in a mood to hear them out. He stopped the conversation and offered a blunt reminder of the public’s reaction to such explanations. “Be careful how you make those statements, gentlemen. The public isn’t buying that.”
“My administration,” the president added, “is the only thing between you and the pitchforks.” ...
WOLF: Tyranny in our time
...This abuse is not limited to the IRS. Mr. Obama’s appointee to the Environmental Protection Agency likened himself to a Roman conqueror ready to wield his government power to arbitrarily “crucify” — his word — energy companies just to keep them obedient and fearful. His forced resignation fails to hide what we’re learning today, that even in his absence, the EPA routinely waives burdensome fees for politically acceptable groups but imposes them to their fullest on adversaries.
This is not simply picking winners and losers — it is something so much more. This is a government declaring friends and enemies among fellow Americans, and it goes all the way up to the Oval Office. In 2010, it was Mr. Obama himself, who declared to a roaring crowd, “We’re gonna punish our enemies and we’re gonna reward our friends.” Chilling.
Punishing enemies and rewarding friends will be the sad, pathetic and enduring legacy of the Obama presidency. The stimulus failed to create jobs — there are 3 million fewer today than when Mr. Obama took office — but it did succeed at its real purpose: rewarding political friends and connected crony donors. The IRS witch hunt unleashed a culture of intimidation.
“Obamacare” is poised to force everyone else to get in line. Consider this: The IRS has demanded that conservative groups report the content of the prayers and reading clubs report the content of the books. The same IRS agent who ran this witch hunt has now been put in charge of enforcing Obamacare.
“After we win this election, it’s our turn. Payback time,” warned Valerie Jarrett, Mr. Obama’s longtime senior adviser. “Everyone not with us is against us, and they better be ready because we don’t forget. The ones who helped us will be rewarded, the ones who opposed us will get what they deserve. There is going to be hell to pay.”...
