Lucid Links (061609, Morning)

Noteworthy Net-Worthies:

It has become downright embarrassing watching this administration dither and fumble around trying to figure out how to react straightforwardly to humanity’s cry for freedom and representative government in Iran. Mark Levin’s home page currently has an accurate sum-up: “President Obama has no idea what to do with Iran. His speech in Cairo last week was largely incoherent and contradictory, and now after an unfair election in Iran, we are leaving the protestors out to dry as they dispute the election results.”

To be clear, I’m not sure confident that any of our presidents since Reagan, with the possible exception of Bush 43, would have done much better on substance. But they at least would have said something more coherent and with more conviction in less than 24 hours than the eyes-down, let’s-get-this-over-with clip you’ll see here at the BBC.

Make no mistake — What’s going on in Iran has echoes of the 1980s Solidarity movement (which Reagan and America’s unions led by Lane Kirkland proactively supported) and 1989 Tiananmen. The world’s thugs are watching what this administration isn’t saying and doing, and are taking heart, while freedom lovers everywhere can’t help but be discouraged. La-la Lefties, apparently including this country’s president, who get so fired up the least little and often imagined infringement on their own freedoms never seem to get very excited about the real oppression of others.

Update: “CNN producer — Iranian students say they’re doomed if Obama accepts the election.” President Obama, please don’t.

________________________________________

Jake Tapper Does Real Journalism relating to President Obama’s firing of Gerald Walpin, the Inspector General of the Corporation for National and Community Service (in chronological order, here, here, and here).

Ed Morrissey’s key capsule: “(The firing) raises the possibility that Barack Obama broke a law he co-sponsored in the Senate that protects the independence of the IGs. …. The administration has overtly interfered with the IG in his investigation, and now has tried to fire him, apparently for reporting to Congress. If so, then the White House has abused its power on behalf of a campaign contributor and political ally — an act that would make Richard Nixon blush.”

But apparently not Barack the Untouchable.

________________________________________

Tapper and his Political Punch crew are apparently the only ones doing journalism at ABC. The rest are apparently quite content serving as Obama administration spokesmouths.

Matt Drudge reports that the network is turning itself over to the Obama administration on June 24 in the name of promoting its nationalized, statist healthcare agenda.

Specifically, from Drudge – “On the night of June 24, the media and government become one, when ABC turns its programming over to President Obama and White House officials to push government run health care — a move that has ignited an ethical firestorm! …. ABCNEWS anchor Charlie Gibson will deliver WORLD NEWS from the Blue Room of the White House. The network plans a primetime special — ‘Prescription for America’ — originating from the East Room, (and to) exclude opposing voices on the debate.”

Republicans complaining about this are right — These programs should be presented as paid political announcements by the Democratic National Committee, and should actually be paid for in full by the DNC.

But they are missing a bigger point by not calling out ABC for completely abandoning anything even resembling journalism.

It also should be hastily added, Republicans are not the only opponents. Lots of other center-right, sensible conservatives who aren’t Republican Party members are bitterly opposed to this statist encroachment.

Beyond that, it should be added that, in substance, not all Republicans ARE opponents. Objectively Unfit Mitt Romney, for example, may claim to be an opponent of nationalized healthcare. But since he designed and signed off on a completely state-run system when he was governor of Massachusetts that is a mess (I’d say it’s a mess when “doctors are turning away new patients, costs to the state are climbing and thousands have paid tax penalties for being uninsured” — and that’s from a sympathetic AP report), his claim has no credibility.

Do you think we’ll hear anything from the high and mighty Columbia Journalism Review, Roger Mudd, or any of the self-appointed journalistic watchdogs about ABC’s sellout?