Then-President Obama meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office, November 10, 2016. Photo credit: Pete Souza / White House
Wouldn’t you think Barack Obama, whose administration “couldn’t get a website to work during the Affordable Care Act rollout” or keep his key health-care promise, “If you like your plan, you can keep your plan,” might be more reticent about criticizing President Trump amid the worst pandemic in a century?
Especially given that the Strategic National Stockpile’s supply of N95 masks were depleted on Obama’s watch and never replenished, Karl Rove reminds readers in the WSJ.
Obama’s Crocodile Tears for the Rule of Law
On Friday, the former president claimed that the Justice Department’s decision to drop charges against former national security adviser Michael Flynn means “our basic understanding of rule of law is at risk.”
Here’s another possibility: The department dropped the charges to defend the rule of law. It noted the charge “requires a statement to be not simply false, but ‘materially’ false with respect to a matter under investigation.”
“Flynn Was Not Lying”
Having found no collusion with Russia, the FBI moved in December 2016 to end its investigation of Mr. Flynn. Only a paperwork snafu allowed FBI Deputy Assistant Director Peter Strzok to have Mr. Flynn interviewed on Jan. 24, 2017, an action the department now says had no “legitimate investigative basis.” Further, the government was likely to lose the case. It turns out Mr. Strzok and his lover, FBI lawyer Lisa Page, edited the Flynn interview report. The original notes haven’t been found, but the agents involved said at the time that they felt “Flynn was not lying.”
Still, Mr. Obama’s appearance Friday to rally the Democratic faithful helped boost—at least in weekend coverage—his party’s presumptive nominee. They are risks, however, to being too visible too often during the campaign.
Where in the World Is Joe Biden?
Mr. Obama reminds voters of how comparatively feeble Mr. Biden’s political and oratorical talents are and the peripheral role Mr. Biden played as his vice president. Having the former president speaking frequently could overshadow Mr. Biden, who’s already hard to find.
Obama Not on Ticket, Biden Is
That alone gives Mr. Trump a good chance to win.
