Hour 2: Fill-in Steyn on Obama's presidency: "[T]his is like his first full-time job in his life"

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by Simon Maloy

Steyn began the second hour by revisiting the "three takes" on Obama. Once again, "moderate centrist" was chucked out the window. According to Steyn, Obama spent too much time hanging out with far-left characters -- like the first lady -- so his idea of the "center" is too far to the left. Steyn then launched into a critique of European government spending, claiming that places like Sweden, Ireland, and Wales have levels of government spending so high that they might as well be Soviet Russia... Obama's alleged leftist leanings, according to Steyn, are betrayed when he goes of the teleprompter, and Obama's goal is to turn American citizens into "junkies" with the government as the "pusher." From there he went on to attack Barney Frank as a "no-account congressman," and made a veiled reference to the spurious allegation that Frank was involved in a prostitution scandal -- a favorite smear of The Rush Limbaugh Show, regardless of the host.

So, Steyn says, if Obama's not a "leftist," then he's "incompetent." Steyn said he could go either way on this one, because Obama's been very "effective" at "eviscerating" American wealth by "talking down" the economy and the private sector. Steyn expressed great concern that the Treasury Department's newly unveiled plan to buy risky assets would not be "effectively" implemented because of staffing shortages at Treasury. Steyn "guarantee[d]" that the bulk of the money will be wasted, because there is "no structure on Earth" that could effectively spend $1 trillion.

Back from the break and a very agitated caller talks about how his family fled generations of "socialism" in Germany, calling Obama a "Marxist Pollyanna dolt." Steyn loved this bit of verbiage, ensured the caller that he was writing it down, and promised that they'd have the phrase on a bumper sticker right away. The caller then asked who Steyn thinks is Obama's "puppet master." In a breathtaking leap of originality, Steyn eschewed the fallback "George Soros" response, and instead went for the lighthearted "rogue teleprompter" route, comparing the teleprompter to HAL 9000.

Back from the break, and it was time for some extolling of the flat taxes of Eastern Europe, and some lampooning of Al Gore and the "flatulence taxes" of Western Europe. Steyn drew from history to offer some context: "I like to think if you go back to 1776 and King George announced that he was taxing colonial cattle on their flatulence, in Boston they would have had a big old Boston baked bean party in Boston harbor." Steyn elaborated on this point, claiming that the 90 percent tax on AIG bonuses passed by the House was "worse than anything King George III attempted to do to colonial settlers in colonial New England in the eighteenth century," ironically adding: "People have got to get real about this."

Another break and another caller, this one claiming that Obama doesn't want to be president, he just wants to play one on TV. Steyn agreed, but thought there was more to it than that, pointing to Obama's Florida townhall and attacking Henrietta Hughes, claiming that she asked Obama for "a new house" with "a fitted kitchen." According to Steyn, Obama told her to "call 1-800-OBAMA and we'll take care of it," adding: "That is the relationship between a subject and a monarch." In reality, as we've pointed out before, Hughes said her family needs a house with their own kitchen. Period. Not a "new house," not a "fitted kitchen." Just somewhere to live. Obama, for his part, offered to have his staff speak with Hughes after the town hall.

After attacking President Obama as holding "his first full-time job in his life," Steyn rounded out the hour with the popular conservative falsehood that the AIG bonuses were "specifically provided for" in the stimulus package, and claiming that there is no such thing as "the Belgian dream."

Highlights from Hour 2

Outrageous comments

STEYN: You know, we're in danger of forgetting why this country rebelled against King George III, and it's important. All of these tea parties over these -- I like to think if you go back to 1776 and King George III announced that he was taxing colonial cattle on their flatulence, that in Boston they would have had a big old Boston baked bean party in Boston Harbor. They would have had the Boston bean party, and they would have told the king where to get off. That at some point, at some point, we have to remember -- we have to remember that we are free-born citizens, and every crazy idea does not suddenly become legitimate because Barney Frank or Nancy Pelosi or some other figure like that is on TV announcing it as if it's perfectly normal. And that's what's wrong with this -- that's what's wrong with this present thing, when they say -- you say you don't like this AIG's bonus. You don't like AIG's bonus. Barney -- when Barney Frank is on TV and they're saying, "Well, this is unacceptable. We're going to tax them at 90 percent," that is worse -- that is worse than anything King George III attempted to do to colonial settlers in colonial New England in the 18th century. People have got to get real about this.

[...]

STEYN: The people who told us that Obama was the smart guy who could get things done, a guy, by the way, who has never -- who has never done -- this is, like, his first full-time job in his life. This is the first job he's done where he's got to turn up at 8 in the morning and make decisions.

America's Guest-Truth Rejector

Repeated falsehood about Henrietta Hughes:

STEYN: So you're right on that, that I think essentially he wants to be president. He's happy being president. He likes going on TV. I don't understand, by the way: Why would a guy think it's his priority to be on Jay Leno? I don't understand it. Now you say, Timmy, you say he likes playing one on TV. I think it's more than that. I think it's -- when you see him with Henrietta Hughes at these pseudo-town meetings -- I don't think of them as real town meetings, by the way, because if you live in New Hampshire, a town meeting is where you see some cranky old coot in plaid gets up because the town wants to spend $500 on a fence for the town dump, and you talk about it for three hours until the cranky old coot in plaid gets everyone to vote it down to, you know, $325. That's what a town meeting is. He likes these pseudo-town meetings where Henrietta Hughes says, "Oh, you know, I really need -- I'm hurting for a new house and I need -- we need a fitted kitchen and we need a bathroom," and he says, "Hey, don't worry about it, sweetie, call 1-800-OBAMA and we'll take care of it." I think he enjoys -- that's, by the way, not the relationship between a citizen and an elected leader. That is the relationship between a subject and a monarch.

Repeated false claim that stimulus package "specifically provided for" AIG bonuses:

STEYN: The guys go, "Well, you know, need to sign this bill now - in 24 hours. We've got no time to wait. You've got to pass this bill. Pass this bill. Pass this bill." So they all pass this bill that none of them have read -- that none of them have read.

CALLER: Exactly.

STEYN: And they pass it and they sign it, and a couple of weeks go by and suddenly there's a big fuss because some guys get bonuses for it, and the bonuses are specifically provided for in the legislation, and they say, "Well, I can't have been expected to know anything about that. What do you think? I'm the kind of guy who reads legislation before I vote on it?"