InnerSelf

Why Does The Right Show Disrespect Towards President Obama?

Many of us can hardly believe the disrespect that is sometimes shown to President Obama. Not only has he been portrayed as un-American, but even as "not-an-American". Even after having displayed his long-form birth certificate for the public to see, someone still filed a lawsuit claiming he was not an American citizen and requested he appear in court.

I understand how an individual could be passionate enough to show disrespect to the man holding the office, but respect is due to the position of President itself. In the last four years, President Obama has had a finger wagged in his face, had "you lie" shouted to him on the house floor during a State of the Union address, and he has been depicted as a monkey.

Sometimes The Left Was Over The Top

True the left was highly critical of Bush, both in private and in public. And sometimes they were over the top. Frankly I always cringed when I saw Bush portrayed as Alfred E. Newman. But even that is not as offensive as Obama as a monkey. One insulted a man's intelligence, the other reeks of racial slur.

Several years ago, in a fit of frustration while driving down Pennsylvania Avenue, I gave the middle finger to the White House while Bush was in residence. But disagreeing with Obama's health plan is miles apart from disagreeing with Bush's foreign policy. One involves a bit of money and the other involves many lives and large sums of money spent on destruction and war. One tried to rule like a dictator while the other is too accommodating. But in the end both men deserve respect while in office as the President. I respect Bush the President, but I disrespect Bush the man.

So yes, while I gave Bush the finger in the privacy of my car with its shaded windows as a way to vent my frustration at the situation in Iraq, I would not have done so in public. In the end, the office holder deserves our respect but not our acceptance of disagreeable policy.

A Billion Dollars Will Be Spent To Tell A Lie

There is no doubt in my mind that after the Republican nominee is decided, this election will see the nastiest presidential campaign in history. A billion dollars will be spent to tell a lie that portrays President Obama as everything he is not. It is not about race. It is not about power. It is not even about politics. It is about money. Because it is about money, the powers seeking his removal from office will do everything they can to hurl their pack of snarling authoritative followers against his campaign for re-election. It will bring much disrespect from abroad and also from within the US.

We may not be able to stop it this time, but perhaps it will bring such ill will that future campaigns will think twice before initiating a scorched earth campaign. 

Bill Maher gives his take on why conservatives show disrespect