OPINION:
President Obama’s actions in Libya continue to provide fodder for discussions about the Constitution and the controversial War Powers Act of 1973.
A friend recently pointed out that while Mr. Obama’s actions might be legal in a strict sense, they show a lack of respect for the Constitution. That struck me as profound. Yes, Mr. Obama seems to have a complete lack of respect for the Constitution, Congress and the American people. He also seems to lack respect for our values, traditions and culture. Mr. Obama doesn’t respect our judicial system or the power and authority of the states.
We have a president who doesn’t respect the 230 years that Americans have governed themselves. America has been the single greatest force for good that the world has ever seen, yet even that hasn’t earned Mr. Obama’s respect. Today, though gravely wounded financially, we remain the economic engine of the world. That doesn’t garner Mr. Obama’s respect. We are the freest people on the planet, yet Mr. Obama would abridge that freedom.
Therein lies the difference between President George W. Bush, who unabashedly loved this nation, its people and its government, and a man who came into the office very prematurely and probably doesn’t feel very at-home there. Whatever your opinion on the war in Iraq, Mr. Bush gave a constitutional tour de force in how to take the nation to war the right way, while Mr. Obama did it all wrong.
I was a tepid supporter of the no-fly zone at first, but Mr. Obama’s lack of respect that led him to ignore Congress and, more importantly, the American people, changed that.
WILLIAM CARD
Dumfries, Va.
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