Putting a Label on Barack Obama

“Fascism should rightly be called Corporatism, as it is the merger of corporate and government power.” Benito Mussolini

People seem to have a problem putting a label on Barack Obama.  Actually, everyone puts a different label on the president.  Few actually call the president a socialist, but many say he supports socialist policies, which seems to be a distinction without a difference.  Mark Levin says he’s a statist, Dinesh D’Souza calls him an anti-colonialist, Hannity says he’s a dyed-in-the-wool radical, Gingrich calls him the “food stamp president”, Madonna says we need to “vote for the Black Muslim in the White House,” the Donald claims he’s a foreigner, and Dick Morris calls Obama a corporatist/fascist.  Providing backup for the Morris assertion, Edward Klein in The Amateur writes that Obama told a group at a fund raiser that he preferred big government, big labor, and big corporations.

Since everyone else is getting in on the act, I want to add my two cents.

President Barack Obama is a control freak.

He has an obsession to control everything—his life, my life, your life, and even the lives of people overseas.  He wants to control every American’s healthcare, weight, and reproduction.  He wants to control how much insurance companies spend on administration, how much profit they can have, and what services they cover.  He wants to control every little bank fee.  He wants to control what kind of car we drive, automobile mileage, and the type of fuel we use.   He wants to control equality in America by redistributing wealth with tax policies, letting people stay in their homes without paying, providing money to anyone who wants to go to college, and giving goodies to the rest.  Few who know the specifics of Fast and Furious doubt that the real purpose was to set up a narrative for gun control. This man even wants to control global climate change, stop the rise of the oceans, and heal the planet.

Someone who always needs to be in control hates uncontrollable situations.  He can function admirably with a handpicked audience, a teleprompter, and a carefully crafted set, but seems lost with ad hoc questions and only a podium for a prop.

A control freak needs to whip people into shape. If they disobey like the defense contractors who believe they must announce potential layoffs, he sends them letters that threaten their business unless they violate the law and follow his wishes. The IRS, SEC, EPA, DOE, and even NASA become levers to mold the country to his way of thinking.

If the other branches of government don’t follow his wishes, he bristles.  He berates Supreme Court Justices and congressional leaders in forums where they can’t defend themselves.  If Congress won’t act (the way he wants), he grandiosely puffs up his chest and says he will.  Laws are selectively not enforced and executive orders are issued that clearly violate the law.

The problem for President Obama is that our country does not lend itself to central control. Democracy is messy.  Free markets by definition are self-controlling.  Our constitutional federal system decentralizes control.  Small businesses, like cats, can’t be herded.  Freedom of religion influences personal behavior.  And the rich just go ahead and do what they want … and they just might want to reign in a control freak.

The world would be easier to control if it was made up of big government, big business, and big labor working together, with faithful, compliant, or fearful people put in charge of these huge entities.  When everyone unquestioningly follows the lead of a controlling leader, then the world will heal and all will be set right.

Many conservative pundits have warned us about Chicago style machine politics and crony capitalism.  Crony capitalism on steroids is fascism.  It’s all about control.  Socialism is also about control, but socialism strives to control through direct ownership of productive assets by the government.  Fascism controls with regulations and by putting cronies in charge of every power center.  The last piece to put in place for ultimate control is to wipe out the power base of any competing societal institution.  Hugo Chavez understands this.  He’s another head of state that wants to control everything, and after his recent reelection, he will be in complete control of Venezuela.

Everyone has a label for President Barack Obama. I think he’s a control freak.  I have a big problem with that … I hate to be controlled.

James D. Best is the author of the Steve Dancy Tales and Tempest at Dawn, a novel about the 1787 Constitutional Convention. Look for his new book, Principled Action, Lessons from the Origins of the American Republic.