President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, said, “You never let a crisis go to waste, and what I mean by that is, it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before” (to a distracted electorate).

This Marxist doctrine has played a key role in the Obama administration’s agenda. It was employed to pass the $862 billion stimulus law, the health-care law, and is now being used to pass cap-and-trade legislation due to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The handling of the Deepwater Horizon rig explosion disaster has been slow, ineffective and corrupt. Although BP bears much of the blame, the failure of the federal government and President Obama can’t be overlooked. Government regulators failed to properly oversee the rigs and enforce controls/standards. Liberal environmental policies forced oil companies to drill in deep, dangerous waters, and President Obama dragged his feet and was negligent in responding to the cleanup of this terrible disaster.

Most distressing, the Obama administration delayed common-sense solutions and blocked needed assistance. Right after the rig explosion, according to “Foreign Policy” publication, 13 countries offered the United States help. At least two of these (the Netherlands and Belgium) offered immediate use of ships and cleanup equipment and technology not available in the United States. The administration’s excuse for refusing help? The Jones Act, also know as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920. This act is a union protectionist piece of legislation that requires that vessels in U.S. waters be licensed in the United States by U.S. crews.

Why didn’t Obama waive this act by executive order as previous presidents have done during disasters? Also, why didn’t Obama accept help from a Texas company that could provide booms, and why were the frantic calls from Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana to acquire crude-sucking barges and construct berms to prevent the oil from reaching the coastline ignored?

The White House’s actions concerning this disaster have been shameless and reckless. Instead of focusing on intensifying federal efforts to clean up the coastline, the administration and their cohorts in Congress have engaged in the blame game, a major coverup and tyrannical personal attacks. Using hyperbole and slogans, instead of facts, they smeared BP and bullied the company with threats until it agreed to set up an escrow fund. In unprecedented action, BP was forced by a president to hand over $20 billion, which rightly belonged to BP stockholders and retirees (pensions), including Americans. Billions of dollars have been put into an Obama slush fund outside of the control and oversight of Congress. This money is now under the control of Obama and someone he appointed to distribute it.

Is this legal, constitutional extortion, and does it violate the Fifth Amendment?

Finally, using the present crisis as a pretext (the Rahm It Through Doctrine), President Obama is pressuring Congress to pass cap-and-trade legislation, even though it has nothing to do with the leak or spread of oil.

In summary, the oil spill in the Gulf is a terrible disaster. BP is being demonized, while the incompetent EPA, feds and the environmental extremists who pushed oil companies out to uncontrollable offshore drilling areas are off the hook. A U.S. president and his administration are using a crisis to destroy the U.S. oil industry, steal pensioners’ money, advance their Marxist agenda (cap-and-trade), vilify capitalism, kill jobs by stopping oil exploration and drilling, and seize power in violation of the Constitution.

As Americans, we must stand up for our freedoms, expose corruption and replace all statist politicians in November. Otherwise, our Democratic Republic will turn into a Third World nation, with a dictator as its leader.

Diana Thorn
Carpinteria