Spiritual Forum

This is what happens when you hire someone with little to no experience -read a few books by marx and alinsky and surrounds himself by his own ilk-His formal title was "senior lecturer," but the University of Chicago Law School says he "served as a professor" and was "regarded as" a professor. Then a community organizer, state senator, US senator for 1 and a half years-WTF?

WASHINGTON — In this summer of global tumult, the debate in Washington essentially boils down to two opposite positions: It is all President Obama’s fault, according to his critics; no, it is not, according to his supporters, because these are events beyond his control.

Americans often think of their president as an all-powerful figure who can command the tides of history — and presidents have encouraged this image over the years because the perception itself can be a form of power. But as his critics have made the case that Mr. Obama’s mistakes have fueled the turmoil in places like Syria, Iraq andUkraine, the president has increasingly argued that his power to shape these seismic forces is actually limited.

“Apparently,” he said in frustration the other day, “people have forgotten that America, as the most powerful country on earth, still does not control everything around the world.”

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While as a statement of fact Mr. Obama’s assertion may be self-evident, it was seen by adversaries as a cop-out and even by more sympathetic analysts as a revealing moment for a president whiplashed by international instability.