Krauthammer: Obama’s Second Inaugural was an “Ode to Big Government”

 During an appearance on Fox News, syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer argued that the president’s Second Inaugural Address was -- among other things -- an “ode to Big Government” and a “rebuke” to Reaganism:

The Presidents Remarks were surprisingly ideological. And he didn’t mince words when outlining his progressive agenda. Yes, he hopes to expand voting rights and economic opportunity -- two laudable goals -- but curtailing climate change and investing in “green energy” seem to be the central policy objectives of his second term. Take a moment and let that sink in.

Worse, conspicuously absent from his remarks -- as Krauthammer points out -- is any mention whatsoever of the rising costs of healthcare, nearly five years of trillion dollar-plus deficits, and the paucity of jobs in America. It seems as though the president really does believe that we “don’t have a spending problem,” and that any mention of reforming entitlements -- the number one driver of our long-term national debt -- is superfluous. We cannot carry on forever spending money we don’t have, of course. But, as the president’s probably calculated, he’ll be long gone -- perhaps working on his post-presidential memoir -- when the house of cards comes crashing down. “Reducing the deficit” is nothing more than a soothing talking point; it is not one of President Obama’s policy goals.

In the end, the return of Big Government reminds us that elections have consequences. And, if history is any guide, the next four years are going to be a sobering reminder of what voters – i.e., the American public -- have wrought.