Envy, Entitlement, and Taxes

President Obama held a news conference Tuesday. That’s the last fact I can report. It was so full of obfuscations and outright lies it is difficult to know where to begin.

Of all the laughers, this may have been among the biggest: the president positioned himself as a teller of hard truths. He denigrated Republicans who insist on no new taxes as people “trying to satisfy their base or get on cable news.” That means Fox, not MSNBC. He even took a swipe at Congress for taking frequent recesses while he claimed to be working nonstop on the economy and war and Osama bin Laden.

Have you finished laughing? Since taking office, this president has played 75 rounds of golf. He frequently leaves town on holidays or to make speeches as part of his re-election campaign. He’s selling access to himself to donors. He makes numerous speeches each day. He appeals to his left-wing base. And his renewed class warfare is like a summer TV rerun. Democrats have nothing to offer other than envy, entitlement and taxes.

No wonder his approval numbers are below 50 percent.

Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.