# Obama is running out of time to fulfill these GOP predictions **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 2, 2016, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479 "2016-11-02T21:25:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/41 "2016-11-04T07:16:04Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > No, but employer-provided health care stipends is a compelling government interest. And having those stipends correspond to the best available health care advice is, again, a compelling government interest. You may disagree, but at that point we’re not quabbling over freedom of religion and “living your faith” (an argument that apparently never comes up for Rastafarians and their use of illegal drugs), but rather over what constitutes a compelling government interest. It’s not a compelling interest because the government actually wants to move away from employer provided health care. > [@](#): > > And yes, by the way, I disagree that your personal religious belief should amount to an exemption in the law. The fact that you believe in a specific sky daddy does not mean that you should have the right to ignore the law, regardless of how petty that law is, so long as that law has a secular purpose and is not meant to simply oppress your religion. That’s a standard liberal argument these days, so I’m not sure why there’s disagreement here about what liberals and Obama want to do to freedom of religion(basically, confine it to the inside of a church). ---
**Author:** ![Damuri\_Ajashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/42 "2016-11-04T14:29:34Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > Nope. I do remember when the left said he had no personality and how he denounced his very own healthcare plan in an unsuccessful attempt at pandering to the unthinking hard right, but I do not remember anyone on the left saying he was the worst person in the world. > [@CaptMurdock](#): > > I’ll cop to calling him “out of touch rich boy” and “flip-flopper” but “worst person in the world”? Hardly. :rolleyes: Trump makes Romney look like a candidate for Mount Rushmore. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > Just saying “But both sides do it!!” doesn’t cut it any more. We’ve shown our homework-you show yours. > [@Procrustus](#): > > The Republicans could nominate someone worse than Trump (Walker or Crux, for example) but they could not nominate someone more unqualified. I certainly had issues with Romney, but he was in and is light years ahead of Trump in every way. > [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I started the thread with specific, linked and verifiable claims by Republicans predicting an outcome that would happen under Obama, but haven’t (yet). Do you see the difference? Talking shit about the other candidate is politics as usual. Are you guys asking for a link that there were some ridiculous predictions made about what would happen if Romney or McCain became president? Because I was getting about 5 emails a day telling me all the horrible things that would befall America (indeed the world, if not the universe) if McCain or Romney became president. Sure, Trump makes everyone look good by comparison but I don’t see how that is relevant. I am not accusing anyone of overreacting to a potential Trump presidency. There is no problem with making dire predictions about what will happen if the other guy wins (some of the racist shit is unacceptable but IIRC both McCain and Romney discouraged that sort of talk). No, the problem with the Republicans is that they did everything in their power to make those dire predictions come true. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/43 "2016-11-04T14:40:40Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Talking shit about the other candidate is politics as usual. Are you guys asking for a link that there were some ridiculous predictions made about what would happen if Romney or McCain became president? Because I was getting about 5 emails a day telling me all the horrible things that would befall America (indeed the world, if not the universe) if McCain or Romney became president. > [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I’m looking to collect some examples of predictions, preferably from prominent Republicans or members of the media, that he is running out of time to fulfill. Let’s keep it out of Alex Jones territory for there lies madness (and way too many nonsense predictions to parse). > [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I’m looking for other concrete examples of right wing predictions that Obama has only a few scant months to get moving on! If you have an citation of a Democratic senator or similar to verify your claim: > [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Remember when Romney was the worst person in the world? then by all means, provide it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/44 "2016-11-04T16:51:38Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > Remember when Romney was the worst person in the world? No, I called him Robot Romney, and he was so\* very\* wrong on many of the issues, but Romney was sane and statesmanlike. We have done worse (cough GWB cough). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/45 "2016-11-04T16:54:30Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > . Which is where I suspect the closet atheist in chief would take us if he could. > **[Pointless scrutiny of Obama's church attendance](https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/pointless-scrutiny-obamas-church-attendance-msna536106)** > > Reagan rarely attended religious services. It didn't mean people questioned his faith the way the right questions Obama's faith. \*President Obama is a Christian. His wife is a Christian. They’ve baptized their children as Christians. The Obama family were members of a Christian church in their hometown of Chicago. At his inauguration, Obama was sworn in on a Christian Bible, and as president, he’s proceeded to speak many times with pride about his Christianity. And yet, Byron York asked over the weekend, “Why are Americans confused about Obama’s religion?” [W]hen it comes to confusion, or wrong information, about Obama’s religion, Scott Walker is far from alone. Polls have long shown many Americans know little about the president’s faith. That’s true. As best as I can tell, since the dawn of modern polling, no modern president has had his faith questioned the way President Obama has, and as such, there are no polling points of comparison. That said, there’s considerable, independent data suggesting a chunk of the population is unsure about Obama’s faith. If the president’s far-right detractors hoped to persuade Americans to be skeptical about the president’s personal religious beliefs, it would appear those critics have had some success. One can speculate about why Obama, and none of his modern predecessors, has been subjected to such attacks, but whatever the reason, they’ve had some effect on public attitudes. \* I suspect Obama is indeed a 'doubting Christian" but that’s very common. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/46 "2016-11-04T16:59:41Z")
The right continues to question his religion because he doesn’t club people over the head with it. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/47 "2016-11-04T17:08:06Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The right continues to question his religion because he doesn’t club people over the head with it. The right continues to question Obama’s religion because many of them are questioning his religion. Yes, it’s circular logic, but this is par for the course. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/48 "2016-11-04T17:18:40Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > The right continues to question Obama’s religion because many of them are questioning his religion. Nah, they question his religion because he didn’t derive the same political conclusions from it has they did. ETA: The religious conservatives never questioned Reagan’s faith, though he was even less publicly demonstrative of his religious beliefs than Obama has been of his. And the reason is simple: they liked Reagan’s politics, but they hated Obama’s politics. End of story. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/49 "2016-11-04T17:31:51Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > It’s not a compelling interest because the government actually wants to move away from employer provided health care. I didn’t know the government had _intent_ with respect to this question. Evidence, please? > [@](#): > > That’s a standard liberal argument these days, so I’m not sure why there’s disagreement here about what liberals and Obama want to do to freedom of religion(basically, confine it to the inside of a church). Yeah, and if my religion said black people were subhumans who shouldn’t be allowed in my place of business because they might piddle on the carpet, should I be free to practice my religion? Or if my religion stated that a woman’s place was in the home, and if they insisted on working anyway, they should only be paid half of what a man earns for the same work, in order to properly discourage them, then should I be free to practice my religion? ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2016, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/50 "2016-11-04T18:34:07Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > The right continues to question his religion because he doesn’t club people over the head with it. Neither of the Clintons club people over the head with religion either, but most people know and agree that they’re a variety of Christian. The issue with Obama’s religion is part of an overall effort to cast him as the outside, other and foreign. It goes hand-in-hand with attacking his citizenship and birthplace. Maybe this is just propaganda. Maybe it’s because even hillbilly rednecks know better than to say it’s because he’s black; perhaps they won’t even say it to themselves. They needed another reason, so they invented it. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/51 "2016-11-05T02:38:05Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I didn’t know the government had _intent_ with respect to this question. Evidence, please? Yeah, and if my religion said black people were subhumans who shouldn’t be allowed in my place of business because they might piddle on the carpet, should I be free to practice my religion? > > Or if my religion stated that a woman’s place was in the home, and if they insisted on working anyway, they should only be paid half of what a man earns for the same work, in order to properly discourage them, then should I be free to practice my religion? Okay, so liberals want no religious exemptions to laws. We get it. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/52 "2016-11-05T03:12:04Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > There were some specific and dire predictions about the Obama presidency in the elections of both 2008 and 2012. I’m looking to collect some examples of predictions, preferably from prominent Republicans or members of the media, that he is running out of time to fulfill. Let’s keep it out of Alex Jones territory for there lies madness (and way too many nonsense predictions to parse). > > For example, nationwide, a gallon of gas costs [about $2.21](http://gasprices.aaa.com/). This is in contrast to Senator Mike Lee (R Utah) predicted in 2012 that electing Obama would mean that we’d be paying [$6.60](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/07/mike-lee-gas-prices_n_1327224.html) by now. Newt Gingrich took it a step further and predicted [$8-9](http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/03/newt-gingrich-obamas-goal-is-8-or-9-a-gallon-gas/) by now. Trump, in typical fashion just stated that gas prices would be "[through the roof like never before](https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/trumps-bad-prediction-high-gas-prices-like-youve-never-seen?utm_term=.dpO8BW1X56#.jvNR7gd1Xe) due to secret deals with Saudis or something. > > On the unemployment front, Mitt Romney promised us that if we elected him we could look forward to unemployment being [under 6% by now](http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/05/romney-promises-to-get-unemployment-rate-below-6-percent/257597/). I guess it’s a good thing we didn’t elect him, because Obama has gotten us down [to 5%](http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000) despite predictions by Romney that a vote for Obama was a vote for [chronic high unemployment for four years](http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/romney-predicts-chronic-high-unemployment-if-obama-is-re-elected), which at the time was north of 8%. > > Obama has his work cut out for him if he is going to fulfill Rush Limbaugh’s prediction of [total economic collapse within the years of the Obama presidency](http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/09/10/how_long_do_we_have_if_obama_wins). Bonus points for predicting that California would be bankrupt and Obama would require Texas to bail them out. > > Young people, you are in for it, because Obama has only a few more months to fulfill Michelle Bachmann’s 2009 prediction that you are [headed for re-education camps](http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/06/michele-bachmann-greatest-hits?page=2). > > I’m looking for other concrete examples of right wing predictions that Obama has only a few scant months to get moving on! I remember all these Ron Paul morons were claiming we would have Weimar Republic hyper-inflation. Still waiting for that one. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479/53 "2016-11-05T03:13:22Z")
I’ll cop to that. Not hyperinflation, but I did predict(not here), that Obama’s fiscal policy would bring us back to somewhat higher inflation in the 7-8% territory. Of course, Obama was also prevented from continuing his big spending ways. And rather abruptly at that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obama-is-running-out-of-time-to-fulfill-these-gop-predictions/770479.md?page=2)