XPost: ba.politics, dc.media, soc.penpals   
   XPost: alt.burningman   
   From: billy@bigpond.com   
      
   The unfolding sectarian violence in Iraq is just the latest   
   crisis where the Obama administration seemingly has been caught   
   off guard. From the Veterans Affairs scandal to Russia's swift   
   annexation of Crimea, news of the world somehow keeps taking the   
   commander-in-chief and his team by surprise.   
      
   The following is a refresher of major domestic and foreign   
   policy developments that, apparently, were news to the White   
   House.   
      
   1. Islamist militants gaining in Iraq   
      
   The New Yorker (1/27/2014): "In the 2012 campaign, Obama spoke   
   not only of killing Osama bin Laden; he also said that Al Qaeda   
   had been 'decimated.' I pointed out that the flag of Al Qaeda is   
   now flying in Fallujah, in Iraq, and among various rebel   
   factions in Syria; Al Qaeda has asserted a presence in parts of   
   Africa, too.   
      
   'The analogy we use around here sometimes, and I think is   
   accurate, is if a jayvee team puts on Lakers uniforms that   
   doesn’t make them Kobe Bryant,' Obama said, resorting to an   
   uncharacteristically flip analogy. 'I think there is a   
   distinction between the capacity and reach of a bin Laden and a   
   network that is actively planning major terrorist plots against   
   the homeland versus jihadists who are engaged in various local   
   power struggles and disputes, often sectarian.'"   
      
   The Wall Street Journal (6/11/2014): Iraq Drama Catches US Off   
   Guard   
      
   2. Russia's intervention in Ukraine   
      
   Politico.com (3/4/14): "A White House spokeswoman declined to   
   comment on whether Obama was satisfied with the intelligence he   
   received on Russian intentions in Ukraine. But spokesmen for the   
   U.S. intelligence community defended its work.   
      
   The Central Intelligence Agency says it’s always noted the   
   possibility of aggressive military action.   
      
   'Prior to and throughout the situation in Ukraine, the   
   intelligence community has provided timely and valuable   
   information that has helped policy makers understand the   
   situation on the ground and make informed decisions. That   
   continues to be the case today,' said Shawn Turner, a spokesman   
   for Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. 'Any   
   suggestion that there were intelligence shortcomings related to   
   the situation in Ukraine are uninformed and misleading.'   
      
   .. While officials appear to disagree about the insights   
   offered by U.S. intelligence, it’s beyond dispute that a lot of   
   public commentary pundits offered as the Ukraine crisis unfolded   
   was less than clairvoyant."   
      
   3. NSA spying on foreign leaders   
      
   Wall Street Journal (10/28/2013): "Obama was unaware for the   
   last 5 years, the NSA had been spying on German Chancellor   
   Angela Merkel and other members of world leaders. Only after an   
   internal Obama administration review in 2013 did the White House   
   know of the spying."   
      
   President Obama news conference with Turkish Prime Minister   
   Erdogan (5/16/2013): "I can assure you that I certainly did not   
   know anything about the I.G. report before the I.G. report had   
   been leaked through press -- through the press."   
      
   4. VA waiting list scandal   
      
   Jay Carney during a White House press briefing (5/19/2014):   
      
   JIM ACOSTA, CNN: "When was the president first made aware of   
   these problems? Of these fraudulent lists that were being kept   
   to hide the wait times, when was he first made aware of those   
   problems? And when did other White House officials, top White   
   House officials, become aware of these problems?"   
      
   JAY CARNEY: "When you say these problems, the fact that there   
   have been bureaucracies --"   
      
   ACOSTA: "The delays have been known for some time."   
      
   CARNEY: "You mean the specific allegations that I think were   
   reported first by your news network out of Phoenix, I believe.   
   We learned about them through the reports. I will double check   
   if that is not the case. But that is when we learned about them   
   and that is when I understand Secretary Shinseki learned about   
   them, and he immediately took the action that he has taken."   
      
   5. IRS targeting scandal   
      
   President Obama in a joint press conference with British Prime   
   Minister Cameron (May 13, 2013): "Well, let me take the IRS   
   situation first. I first learned about it from the same news   
   reports that I think most people learned about this. I think it   
   was on Friday."   
      
   6. HealthCare.gov failing   
      
   Remarks by President Obama on HealthCare.gov (10/21/2013): "Of   
   course, you've probably heard that HealthCare.gov -- the new   
   website where people can apply for health insurance and browse   
   and buy affordable plans in most states -- hasn't worked as   
   smoothly as it was supposed to work. And the number of people   
   who visit the site has been overwhelming which has aggravated   
   some of these underlying problems."   
      
   Jay Carney during a White House press briefing (10/23/2013):   
   "While we knew that there would be some glitches and actually   
   said publicly that we expected some problems, we did not know   
   until the problems manifested themselves after the launch that   
   they would be as significant as they have turned out to be."   
      
   7. DOJ obtaining AP phone records   
      
   Jay Carney during a White House press briefing (5/14/2013):   
      
   QUESTION: "When did the president find out about the Department   
   of Justice's subpoenas for the Associated Press?"   
      
   CARNEY: "Yesterday. Let me just be clear. We don’t have any   
   independent knowledge of that. He found out about the news   
   reports yesterday on the road."   
      
   QUESTION: "What was his reaction to that? Does he believe that   
   this was an overreach?"   
      
   CARNEY: "All I can tell you is that I cannot and he cannot   
   comment specifically on an ongoing criminal investigation or   
   actions that investigators at the Department of Justice may or   
   may not have taken. It would be wholly inappropriate. And if we   
   did comment on it, or if we did have insight into it, you would   
   appropriately ask why and is that correct procedure, because it   
   would not be."   
      
   8. Fast and Furious scandal   
      
   Jay Carney during a White House press briefing (6/27/2012): "The   
   president did not know about this tactic until he heard about it   
   through the media; the attorney general did not know about it."   
      
   9. Air Force One flyover in Manhattan   
      
   President Obama during media availability on arrival at FBI   
   headquarters (4/28/2009):   
      
   QUESTION: "Sir, what do think of the Air Force One incident --"   
      
   THE PRESIDENT: "No -- no questions --"   
      
   QUESTION: "-- over New York City yesterday, sir?"   
      
   QUESTION: "Are you concerned about New York City yesterday, sir,   
   with the Air Force plane?"   
      
   THE PRESIDENT: "It was a mistake, as was -- as was stated. It   
   was something we found out about along with all of you and it   
   will not happen again. Thank you."   
      
   http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/06/20/obama-administration-   
   caught-by-surprise/   
      
       
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)