Is the reported 2009 Obama enemies list a road map for a great purging of critics in the lead-up to the 2012 elections?
Aaron Dykes
With the sudden death of Andrew Breitbart immediately prior his plans to release footage damning of Obama, the recent firings of Judge Napolitano and Patrick Buchanan, and the IRS harassment of anti-war critic Cindy Sheehan (notably alone in left-leaning protests of Obama in the post-Bush era), we have the suggestion of a great purging of critics in the lead-up to the 2012 elections.
Breitbart, in particular, was reportedly meeting with Sheriff Joe Arpaio and others in his final days, signaling a possible resurgence of challenges to Obama’s eligibility and re-electability. Meanwhile, an admitted secret media war has been taking place against the Ron Paul campaign.
“Right,” wrong, or in between, several prominent critics of President Obama, or of the controlled, staged elections & left-right paradigm in general, have been targeted in recent months (or, alternately, fallen on bad luck). With respect to the fact that the full picture is still obscured, something is brewing here.
Breitbart, Napolitano, Buchanan and Sheehan weren’t on the list reported by the Globe in September 2009, released well within Obama’s first year in office. But at least some of those who’ve come under fire lately were listed on the reported “enemies list” tied to the Obama White House. Among those are Glenn Beck, Rupert Murdoch and country music legend Hank Williams, Jr. Whatever their own issues, baggage, or integrity in reporting, all have been targeted in a larger suppression of free speech.
While most of those on this list are typical neo-con rightwing critics, some like Jesse Jackson were anything but. Others, like Larry Sinclair, were leveling allegations at the time, but have since failed to gain significant traction or larger media attention.
But does the list, which also included Alex Jones shortly after the release of his film The Obama Deception, prove accurate in highlighting the vindictiveness and methodical targeting of the Obama team or its allies? Does it paint a picture of media targets yet to come as the 2012 vote approaches?
• #1 Glenn Beck was pressured off of Fox News, according to analysis, due to over-reporting on George Soros, including a great deal of legitimate and damning info. Undoubtedly, the Soros network of operations was hitting back.
• #11 Rupert Murdoch, a veritable media Don, has been targeted via the News of the World scandal, with the various roles of he and his staff and family still under investigation. Reports of behind the scenes threats of blackmail or compromise have circulated, while fresh attempts at lawsuits are underway.
• #17 Hank Williams, Jr. was booted from the NFL’s Monday Night Football after comments he made on Fox News comparing Obama to Hitler. Bizarrely, Williams was an obscure and infrequently outspoken critic, not nearly in the same limelight or spheres of political influence as the others mentioned here.
Certainly, the Globe’s 2009 report is not the only account of an Obama enemies list or of the embrace of such tactics.
Investigative Journalist Wayne Madsen received what he termed ‘credible’ threats against his life during his investigation of Barack Obama’s numerous, overlapping ties to the CIA and intelligence front community.
In February 2012, only a few weeks ago, the Washington Times reported on a separate element in Barack Obama’s counter-opposition enemies list phenomenon that it argued as critical to the re-election strategy:
While he may not have an official “enemies list” in writing like Richard Nixon did, he certainly has spent far too much time demonizing private citizens for a sin no greater than disagreeing with him.
He tried demonizing Fox News. They were derided as not being a real news network. Everything Mr. Obama does is poll-tested, and the bashing of Fox News stopped once the polls showed that the strategy was failing. Fox News has a larger audience than its competitors combined, and attacking over half the news watching public was not smart.
He tried demonizing talk radio, starting with Rush Limbaugh. This strategy failed miserably because Rush thrives on such criticism. If Bill Clinton was the best thing that ever happened to Rush Limbaugh, Barack Obama was a close second. Attacking Rush allows him to rally his supporters, energizing them in a way Mr. Obama does not want. This is like stoking the bear, and Mr. Obama quickly surrendered that fight.
[...] He wanted to demonize Congress, but for the first two years of his presidency the Democrats controlled everything. The Republicans held a majority on the Supreme Court, so he attacked the High Court. That failed.
The Wall Street Journal, like this Washington Post article, also reported on the heated and sustained targeting of the Koch Brothers, in describing the Obama White House’s use of an enemies list.
Back in the 2008 presidential campaign, the Obama campaign concerted under the color of law to intimidate critics against telling “lies,” threatening to arrest those trying to portray the then-aspiring candidate in a manner counter to the image the O-team projected. Now, with a total dedication to war, fronting for Wall Street’s record looting and very real questions about the sitting president’s providence and qualifications for office, it is clear the projected image was itself the real “lie.”
Link:
http://www.prisonplanet.com/the-great-stalinist-purge-of-media-critics-on-obamas-reported-enemies-list.html
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