"Ok, I don’t know where to go with that"

"Ok, I don’t know where to go with that."

Assuming you've seen the Sprint "Framily" commercials you recognize that line, spoken by the father (alright, he is a hamster living in a plastic ball) in response to his rather dim witted son Chuck's comment at the dinner table with "Grandpa." Here is a link to the commercial in case you somehow missed it ---> Dinner with Grandpa

Dad's frustrated punch line in the commercial, "Ok, I don’t know where to go with that," mirrors my frustration with the inexplicable behavior of our virtually absent Commander in Chief, who appears to be nearly totally uninterested in world events in Gaza, the Ukraine or Libya, the border crisis here in the United States or even his own plummeting poll numbers.  He seems to be blissfully ignoring them all.

Surely President Obama is not as dim witted as Chuck in the above mentioned commercial.  So what is he doing?  It's a great mystery to nearly everyone.

Frustration among Democrats is starting to boil over as President Obama faces criticism from many members of his own party in Congress who simply don't understand why he is so unengaged, detached or oblivious to events swirling around him.

He demonizes Republicans at every chance (mostly at fundraisers), but never attempts to actually engage them. He claims to have a "pen and a telephone" but the telephone is never used.  He never calls John Boehner or Mitch McConnell or Paul Ryan in an attempt to broker a deal, reach a compromise and reduce tension.  He quite literally has no friends or allies in Congress or anywhere on the world stage.

The entire nation, indeed the entire world, simply "doesn't know where to go with that."  No one alive today has ever seen the President of the United States simply abdicate his role in world affairs.

Yesterday, spokesmen from the White House suddenly gave credence to the wildly speculative talk of possible Impeachment.  I simply must say, "Ok, I don’t know where to go with that."  It's almost as if they wish Republicans would engage in that behavior as it might actually raise the President's approval rating much as it did for President Clinton. Perhaps they believe talk of impeachment would help turn out Democrats in the fall elections.

However, curiously, two polls about his possible impeachment were released yesterday.  It's laughable to read CNN's downplaying the fact that their own poll indicated an astonishing 35% of Americans favor impeachment.  That number is huge and more than a little scary.

The media downplayed a Fox News Poll, also released yesterday, that showed a nearly identical 36% favor impeachment.

I don't believe that impeachment is even a remote possibility today. House Speaker John Boehner says it's "off the table."

But.... If Barack Obama continues his absentee role as President and his approval rating continue to fall.... and more Democrats continue to criticize him... well, "Ok, I don’t know where to go with that."

--------------------------------

Perhaps because I spent a good part of my career in Advertising I really appreciate the genius of the new Sprint "Framily" commercials. They have become a cultural phenomena.  Virtually everyone I meet, both friends and random acquaintances seem to know virtually every line from every commercial in the series.  It is a client's dream and I'm sure Sprint loves that this series of commercials has gone viral.

The voice of Dad, also known as Tom Frobinson (the hamster), is voiced by Andrew Dice Clay.  The part of Mom, or "Tacos" Mollie Frobinson in the commercials is played by brilliant Judy Greer  The son "You can also text" Chuck is played by Kyle Mooney. And the part of "It's pronounced Gor-don" is played  fantastically by Justin Michael.

The series of commercials, referred to in the industry as "The Frobinsons" was created by Figliulo & Partners and is their first campaign for Sprint.  The campaign was created in partnership with DigitasLBi and MediaVest and designed to promote a rather unique cellular telephone plan now called the Sprint Framily Plan.  Under Sprint's concept you get to decide exactly who you consider to be members of your "Framily." It can be actual family, friends, acquaintances, roommates or even hamsters.  The more members of your "Framily" the lower the bill for each member.

Why I HATE Political Parties and Partisan Bull

I've always been a big, big supporter and fan of Republican Representative Paul Ryan. Even though I'm a Democrat I cheered when Ryan was selected as Mitt Romney's running mate in the last election.  He is one of Washington's finest. He is certainly one of their brightest. He's honest and even handed, logical and fair, pragmatic yet principled.

Here's a great example from today's news.  Ryan is working hard, against his own political party, to help Immigration Reform happen.  From the Boston Globe:

Dem Pin Immigration Hopes on GOP's Ryan 

Democrats doggedly pursuing a far-reaching immigration bill are counting on help from Republican Rep. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney’s running mate last year and an unlikely candidate for delivering the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s second-term agenda.

 Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman who is frequently mentioned in the GOP lineup of possible 2016 presidential candidates, stands apart from many fellow House Republicans in favoring a way out of the shadows for the 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. in violation of the law. He casts sweeping overhaul as a necessity to ensure both economic and national security — a fitting argument for an acolyte of Jack Kemp, the late Republican congressman and 1996 vice presidential candidate who backed an ill-fated effort in 2006 to overhaul the immigration system. 

‘‘Paul Ryan says we cannot have a permanent underclass of Americans, that there needs to be a pathway to citizenship,’’ says Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., who has been working relentlessly on immigration legislation. ‘‘He is my guiding light. I know I get him in trouble every time I say it.’’

Ryan is being himself.  He hasn't changed and he doesn't change to suit the political party line.  He is a man of principle and substance.

Here's why I hate Political Party's and the mindless partisan hacks who simply echo the party line without a single intelligent thought of their own.  Many of my fellow Democrats and especially the so-called "Progressives" who now praise Rep. Ryan were lambasting him as the worst human being alive (or dead) during the last election.  He was called every name in the book and accused of hating old people, women and minorities.  None of that was true.  None of that was necessary.  And any reasonable person with moderate intelligence knew it.

Paul Ryan, Washington DC's Lone Adult

Over on the Democratic Party side of Washington, DC there was rejoicing in a new PPP Poll that showed when the public was made aware of Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney's arguable mistreatment of his dog Seamus, over 28 years ago, Romney's approval rating tanked.


Seriously, my Liberal and Progressive friends on Tiwtter are simply giddy with excitement.  Leave it to Mitt Romney's dog to sniff out a path to Obama's victory.


Our future is now safe.


Meanwhile, on planet Earth, Representative Paul Ryan has prepared and proposed the most realistic, bold and brilliant budget in the last 20 years.  To do what Ryan has done takes thought, analysis, honesty and courage.  And no polling.


Ryan will be savaged by Democrats who deserve no place in government, cowards and liars, manipulators and pollsters who will not only allow our country to fail, but will ride Seamuss into the very gates of hell.


One does not need to agree with Ryan's every idea, but he should be held in high regard for discussing the real issues of our economy and our exploding debt.


Democrats have failed to produce a budget for three years and they've already signaled that will fail to do so again.  It's so much easier to criticize than to propose ideas and stand behind them. And that's the Democrat plan.


Here are just a few lines from the Washington Post Story linked here and above: 


House Republicans laid down a bold but risky election-year marker Tuesday, unveiling a budget proposal that aims to tame the national debt by reshaping Medicare and cutting deeply into Medicaid, food stamps and other programs for the poor, while reshuffling the tax code to sharply lower rates.


Congressional Republicans plan to use the document to demonstrate their willingness to tackle the nation’s difficult fiscal problems head-on. They argue that restraining future borrowing is a moral imperative and that entitlement programs for the elderly and the poor must be redrawn both to reduce red ink and to ensure that federal benefits continue to be available. 


The proposal, authored by Budget Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), calls for spending cuts and tax changes that would put the nation on course to wipe out deficits and balance the budget by 2040. The national debt would continue to rise but would shrink to the historic norm as a percentage of an expanding economy.