Not Even Cute And Fuzzy Bunnies Can Stop Him Now...

The ever-fearless Rufus T. Firefly leaps quickly into action to save Gaia from catastrophe:

WASHINGTON — President Obama will use his first Oval Office speech Tuesday night to outline a plan to legally compel BP to create an escrow account to compensate businesses and individuals for their losses from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, administration officials said on Sunday.

Unless those Justice Department lawyers can absorb oil when dipped in the Gulf, I think this measure falls short. And Rufus wouldn't be Rufus if he didn't manage to make the oil spill all about himself...

It would be part of a week of activities intended to convey presidential command of a crisis that continues to test both the government and the company.

Wasn't the whole ass-kicking thingy supposed to do that? Has the White House come to the conclusion that Rufus lacks street cred? How can this be, given just how fearful we white folks are of angry negroes?

Beyond that, it's worth noting that the New York Times wouldn't be the New York Times if it didn't try to peddle this sort of line while wearing a straight face:

The actions reflect the administration’s efforts, nearly two months into the crisis, to telegraph a take-charge decisiveness when Mr. Obama and the federal government are all but powerless to actually resolve the calamity, given the sheer technological challenge of plugging a leak a mile below the gulf’s surface. Mr. Obama’s actions this week, together with events in Congress, put BP on the defensive more than at any other time since the explosion.

Wow. Telegraphing take-chargedness. At the two month mark. Not even cute and fuzzy bunnies can stop ol' Rufus now...

Note: Damn good thing Bush ain't around. He'd be just the type of president to ignore the whole thing.

Comments

[ThomasD]

That NYT article sure kicked ass!

[Dennis the Peasant]

Yep. My Fat One is still tingling'.

[DocSavage]

But nothing beats the recent ROLLING STONE article which actually tried to lay the blame for it on Bush IN THE F*CKING HEADLINE!

[Dennis the Peasant]

Wow. Rolling Stone kicks ass, doesn't it?

[Dan from Madison]

I read that Rolling Stone article, it was so very sad.

[PDS]

Makes me want to kick some Hippie-ass. Just like in the old days.

[DocSavage]

ROLLING STONED proclaimed Barry the new messiah before the last election, so it doesn't surprise me they are trying to salvage things. Good God, what would happen if they ever put their joints down long enough to reflect?

[aelfheld]

Can you say 'slush fund'? I knew you could.

[Allen]

That will sure show everyone, Obama is going to give a speech.

Yippee! A sppech, why didn't I think of that?

I'm wondering if it will include a free shot of rhetorical ass-kicking.

[mojo]

This mook can't even command the family dog.

[just passin by]

3 quotes from the article...

"...intended to convey presidential command..." ; mind you, not actually take command

"...to telegraph a take-charge decisiveness..."; again, not to make those decisions

"...given the sheer technological challenge of plugging a leak a mile below the gulf’s surface"; you see, now I understand...BP has the magical power to plug it up where technology fails...BP is just being lazy about doing so, since it IS in BP's best interest to lose money and reputation.

The first year of The Messiah's admin has shown how dishonest and corrupt the Democratic Yapping Machine is, but coming into this second year, they way they react to things is making it more obvious how incredibly stupid they are as well. Well, obvious to anyone except themselves.

[MikeinAppalachia]

aelfheld has the concept correct.

[BillT]

...they way they react to things is making it more obvious how incredibly stupid they are as well.

Insane Clown Posse: "Well, yes, we could issue an exemption to the Jones Act to allow foreign-owned and -crewed vessels to operate in US waters, but none of the governments that offered us the use of oil-skimmers requested an exemption, so we can't issue one."

Observer: "Ummmmm -- didn't Bush just initiate exemptions without request during Katrina relief?

Insane Clown Posse: "Oh, well, sure, but Katrina was all his fault to begin with."

[David]

The Prez is apparently worried that BP is going to get tired of being bullied and avail itself of the liability cap, which it has already exceeded in response and remediation costs.

I love the Gulf Coast as much as any other part of the 'states, but I'd truly, truly love to wake up some morning soon to the headline "BP to Obama administration- 'F-ck off home, we be out of here'."

Obama gives the term "tar baby" a whole new layer of deeply perverse meaning.

David

[Eric Blair]

I'm waiting for BP to say "Well, it's really Shell's well in the first place, we were just leasing it; so go yell at Shell.

[Daphne]

Dennis, I do believe you've firmly placed yourself on the list of subversives who require watching. I trust your tax returns are in good order, best make sure you aren't storing paint thinners inappropriately, my friend.

If my mild shit is getting hits by the various feds, they must be crawling all over your loud stink.

[TmjUtah]

What really riles up Team O is all the time these tedious photo ops take from writing more regulations and transferring more oversight and control to agencies they've stacked with their own people.

Cloward-Piven takes a lot of work, even if it is meant to destroy something.

The Constitution has stood for over two hundred years; a civil war, three world wars, the odyssey from slave nation to universal suffrage...

It's going to be tough to take it down in only two years, even with the most corrupt and inept political class to ever stagger across the national stage working as the chorus... but Team O things they may just have a shot.

If those darned media people would just get on script (back on their knees) this would be a lot easier for everyone...

[just passin by]

The media is still on their knees, but now they're just swallowing instead of the gulping they've been doing for 3 years.

I think they realize that they are a joke outside of their own enclaves, and will keep up the charade til the bitter end in preference to admitting what partisan hacks they are.

[Mike C.]

I'll be very interested to see just how the O proposes to force BP to establish some sort of fund, what with that little constitutional prohibition against bills of attainder and ex post facto laws and all.

[kansas]

Now Jug Ears wants BP to pay for the costs that will result from him and his communist fucks stopping off shore drilling for 6 months. Tony Hayward should tell O Jug Ears to go find someone else's ass to kick. You think you can handle this, we fucking quit.