Anderson Cooper’s Interview of Former President Obama

Written by Frank Li

Former President Barack Obama was recently interviewed by CNN’s Anderson Cooper. Overall, it was a fair interview. However, two remarks by President Obama are worth noting and criticizing …

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1. The Interview

2. Remark 1

With regard to the GOP’s denial of the 1/6/2021 insurrection, President Obama said the following:

I didn’t expect that there would be so few people saying I don’t mind losing my office.

Here is the reality.

Worse yet, not only does President Obama know it, he acted on it throughout his first term!

Here is my article published on 10/15/2014: President Obama and War. Below is an excerpt:

President Obama was no different from any other American President throughout his first term, insofar as his focus on “getting re-elected ad nauseam”. He just did it more unabashedly than any of his predecessors! Specifically, here is the most prominent example: with the 2012 re-election in mind, President Obama did two big things with regard to the Iraq War:

1. Soon after taking office in 2009, he fixed a troop withdrawal date of December 2011, based on his re-election calendar, rather than the reality in Iraq for the three years from the beginning of 2009 to the end of 2011!
2. Although unusual, he kept his word.

Largely because of that, he was re-elected in 2012, mission accomplished!

……

In short, President Obama recklessly pulled all American troops out of Iraq too soon. Because of that, Iraq has become so chaotic that we are back in there now and must remain there for the foreseeable future! In other words, President Bush’s un-accomplished mission was prematurely terminated by President Obama in December 2011, and re-launched in September 2014, with President Obama’s re-election in between!

Below is another excerpt from my article cited above:

President Obama escalated the war in Afghanistan in 2009, at least partially, for the sake of his re-election. For more, read: For Obama the Road to Reelection Runs through Kabul.

3. Remark 2

With regard to America and democracy, President Obama said the following:

The experiment of democracy is not self-executing.

While America is an experiment (The U.S. vs. China: A Great Experiment vs. A Great Civilization!), democracy is not – Democracy is a proven failure throughout human history without a single example of lasting success (e.g., 200 years).

4. Discussion

Why did not former President Obama simply tell the truth in both cases?

1. Remark 1: He could not in this case, as it would hugely damage his legacy. For more, read American Presidency: Why is One-Term a Must (Version 4)?
2. Remark 2: He might not even know the truth, as most Americans nowadays confuse America and democracy as synonymous. For more, read America: It’s Democracy, Stupid!

Still wondering why America is such a confused country?

Too much misinformation and disinformation!

Still wondering why “truth in America” is such a big subject of discussion these days (Jon Meacham vs. Frank Li: Truth in America)?

All of us, including former President Obama, must strive to do our best to tell the truth, all the time, or there is no future for America!

America, reform our failing political system, as I have suggested (History 2.0 – China’s Comeback vs. America’s Decline), or become a fiddle, second to China!

5. Closing

Tell the truth, all the time, especially for our political leaders such as former President Obama!

Now, please sit back and watch the video below with two critical questions:

1. How much has America learned from Vietnam to Afghanistan?
2. How much should President Obama be heled accountable for the war in Afghanistan (For Obama the Road to Reelection Runs Through Kabul – Or So He Thinks)?

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