Americans received a special Christmas present from the White House: a two-for-one package. Barack Obama’s weekly message also featured a message from his wife and even took the time to mention Jesus, despite the fact that the Obamas have traditionally eschewed going to church on Christmas.
By way of contrast, as Mark Knoller of CBS News noted at the end of 2013, George W. Bush attended church 120 times during his eight-year tenure; Obama had attended church a grand total of 18 times in his first five years. Ronald Reagan did not visit church on Christmas, but he offered a salient reason; he had been the victim of one assassination attempt already, and he did not want to make others’ services difficult with all the Secret Service preparation.
Let the President and his wife, who have exhibited Christian charity toward others with their focus on what they presume to be a racist America, have their say:
PRESIDENT: Merry Christmas, everybody! Now, we’re not going to take much of your time because today is about family and being together with the ones you love. And luckily for me, that means I get a little help on the weekly address, too.
THE FIRST LADY: The holidays at the White House are such a wonderful time of year. We fill the halls with decorations, Christmas trees, and carolers—and this year, we invited more than 65,000 people to join us. Our theme was “A Children’s Winter Wonderland”—and Americans young and old had a chance to come together and celebrate the season.
THE PRESIDENT: And today, our family will join millions across the country in celebrating the birth of Jesus—the birth not just of a baby in a manger, but of a message that has changed the world: to reach out to the sick; the hungry; the troubled; and above all else, to love one another as we would be loved ourselves.
That’s correct; the same president who has alienated virtually every traditional American ally and embraced dictatorial regimes from Iran to Cuba certainly knows how to return kindness for kindness.
THE FIRST LADY: We hope that this holiday season will be a chance for us to live out that message—to bridge our differences and lift up our families, friends, and neighbors… and to reconnect with the values that bind us together.
One of those values, we would presume, would be renouncing the urge to cry racism at every opportunity, but no matter.
But wait, now the Obamas will display their support of the troops:
THE FIRST LADY: And as a country, that also means celebrating and honoring those who have served and sacrificed for all of us—our troops, veterans, and their families.
THE PRESIDENT: In just a few days, our combat mission in Afghanistan will be over. Our longest war will come to a responsible end. And that gives us an opportunity to step back and reflect upon all that these families have given us. We’re able to gather with family and friends because our troops are willing to hug theirs goodbye and step forward to serve. After a long day, we can come home because they’re willing to leave their families and deploy. We can celebrate the holidays because they’re willing to miss their own.
Responsible end? The Taliban, based in Afghanistan, just executed 133 children in Pakistan, and Obama says we ended the war, his war, 75% of the cost of which was spent under Obama, responsibly?
THE FIRST LADY: And so, as our troops continue to transition back home—back to our businesses, our schools, our congregations, and our communities—it’s up to all of us to serve them as well as they have served us.
This from the same administration whose reign included the infamous veterans’ scandal in which 40 veterans died waiting for appointments at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health Care system, some of whom were on a secret waiting list; the same place where 1,400 to 1,600 sick veterans were forced to wait months before they could see a doctor.
THE FIRST LADY: You can visit JoiningForces.gov to find out how you can honor and support the troops, veterans, and military families in your communities. That’s something we can do not only during the holiday season, but all year round.
THE PRESIDENT: So Merry Christmas, everybody. May God bless you all. And we wish you and your family a happy and healthy 2015.
Sent to you poor shlubs looking for work from sunny Hawaii!
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