The People Vs. Barack Obama

by Ben Shapiro

  18. “Privacy Scandal: NSA Can Spy on Smart Phone Data,” Spiegel.de, September 7, 2013, http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/privacy-scandal-nsa-can-spy-on-smart-phone-data-a-920971.html.

  19. Emma Roller, “This Is What Section 215 of the Patriot Act Does,” Slate.com, June 7, 2013, http://www.slate.com/blogs/weigel/2013/06/07/nsa_prism_scandal_what_patriot_act_section_215_does.html.

  20. Barton Gellman, Aaron Blake, and Greg Miller, “Edward Snowden Comes Forward as Source of NSA Leaks,” WashingtonPost.com, June 9, 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/intelligence-leaders-push-back-on-leakers-media/2013/06/09/fff80160-d122-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_story.html.

  21. Glenn Greenwald and Ewen MacAskill, “Boundless Informant: The NSA’s Secret Tool to Track Global Surveillance Data,” TheGuardian.com, June 11, 2013, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/08/nsa-boundless-informant-global-datamining.

  22. Dan Roberts and Spencer Ackerman, “Obama Defiant over NSA Revelations Ahead of Summit with Chinese Premier,” TheGuardian.com, June 7, 2013, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/07/obama-nsa-revelations-chinese-summit.

  23. Mary Bruce, “Obama: ‘Nobody Is Listening to Your Phone Calls,’ ” ABCNews.com, June 7, 2013, http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/06/obama-nobody-is-listening-to-your-phone-calls/.

  24. Amy Davidson, “The NSA’s Dirty Dishes: Obama’s Press Conference,” NewYorker.com, August 9, 2013, http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2013/08/nsa-dirty-dishes-obama-press-conference.html.

  25. Greenwald, “On Prism, Partisanship, and Propaganda.”

  26. Jonathan Easley, “Obama Tells Leno: ‘We Don’t Have a Domestic Spying Program,’ ” TheHill.com, August 6, 2013, http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/315871-obama-we-dont-have-a-domestic-spying-program.

  27. “Transcript: President Obama’s News Conference,” NPR.org, August 9, 2013, http://www.npr.org/2013/08/09/210574114/transcript-president-obamas-news-conference.

  28. Barton Gellman, “NSA Broke Privacy Rules Thousands of Times per Year, Audit Finds,” Washington Post, August 15, 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-broke-privacy-rules-thousands-of-times-per-year-audit-finds/2013/08/15/3310e554-05ca-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_print.html.

  29. Mark Hosenball and Tabassum Zakaria, “NSA Collected 56,000 Emails by Americans a Year: Documents,” Reuters.com, August 21, 2013, http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/22/us-usa-security-nsa-idUSBRE97K14Y20130822.

  30. “Obama: NSA ‘Inadvertently, Accidentally’ Pulled Emails of Americans,” CBSLocal.com, August 23, 2013, http://washington.cbslocal.com/2013/08/23/obama-nsa-inadvertently-accidentally-pulled-emails-of-americans/.

  31. Kimberly Dozier, “NSA Admits Rare Willful Surveillance Violations,” Associated Press, August 23, 2013, http://news.yahoo.com/nsa-admits-rare-willful-surveillance-violations-211422017.html.

  32. Niels Lesniewski, “NSA Violations ‘Just the Tip of a Larger Iceberg,’ Say Wyden, Udall,” RollCall.com, August 16, 2013, http://blogs.rollcall.com/wgdb/nsa-violations-just-the-tip-of-a-larger-iceberg-say-wyden-udall/.

  33. Carol Leonnig, “Court: Ability to Police U.S. Spying Program Limited,” Washington Post, August 15, 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/court-ability-to-police-us-spying-program-limited/2013/08/15/4a8c8c44-05cd-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html.

  34. Mark Hosenball and Tabassum Zakaria, “NSA Collected 56,000 Emails by Americans a Year: Documents.”

  35. Adam Serwer, “NSA Violated the Law and Misled Its Court Chaperone,” MSNBC.com, August 22, 2013, http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/08/22/nsa-violated-the-law-misled-its-secret-court-chaperone/.

  36. Eric Lichtblau and Michael S. Schmidt, “Other Agencies Clamor for Data NSA Compiles,” NYTimes.com, August 3, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/04/us/other-agencies-clamor-for-data-nsa-compiles.html.?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=2&.

  37. Scott Shane and Colin Moynihan, “Drug Agents Use Vast Phone Trove, Eclipsing NSA’s,” NYTimes.com, September 1, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/02/us/drug-agents-use-vast-phone-trove-eclipsing-nsas.html.?pagewanted=all.

  38. Sam Sacks, “Obama’s NSA Review Board Proving the Cynics Right,” RT.com, August 27, 2013, http://rt.com/op-edge/obama-nsa-high-level-group-064/.

  39. Tom Kludt, “Greenwald: Snowden Charges Show Obama’s ‘Vindictive Mentality,’ ” TalkingPointsMemo.com, June 22, 2013, http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/greenwald-snowden-charges-show-obamas-vindictive-mentality.

  40. “Kerry: NSA Leaker Snowden ‘Betrayed His Country,’ ” UPI.com, June 25, 2013, http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2013/06/25/Kerry-NSA-leaker-Snowden-betrayed-his-country/UPI-48331372174535/.

  41. Nancy Benac, “Obama Recasts Edward Snowden as ‘Hacker’ in Effort to Downplay Him,” Associated Press, June 28, 2013, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/28/obama-edward-snowden-hacker_n_3515562.html.

  42. Jonathan Weisman, “Boehner Calls Snowden a Traitor,” NYTimes.com, June 11, 2013, http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/11/boehner-calls-snowden-a-traitor/?_r=0.

  43. “Cheney Defends NSA Programs, Says Snowden a ‘Traitor,’ Obama ‘Lacks Credibility,’ ” FoxNews.com, June 16, 2013, http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/06/16/cheney-defends-us-surveillance-programs-says-snowden-traitor-obama-lacks/.

  44. Jeremy Herb and Justin Sink, “Sen. Feinstein Calls Snowden’s NSA Leaks an ‘Act of Treason,’ ” TheHill.com, June 10, 2013, http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-and-strategy/304573-sen-feinstein-snowdens-leaks-are-treason.

  45. Davidson, “The NSA’s Dirty Dishes: Obama’s Press Conference.”

  46. Emily Bazelon, “Is Edward Snowden a Traitor?,” Slate.com, June 11, 2013, http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2013/06/edward_snowden_and_daniel_ellsberg_is_the_nsa_leaker_a_traitor.html.

  47. Aubrey Bloomfield, “6 Worst Reactions to Edward Snowden’s NSA Leaks,” PolicyMic.com, http://www.policymic.com/articles/48143/6-worst-reactions-to-edward-snowden-s-nsa-leaks.

  48. Lucia Graves, “Mike Rogers: Glenn Greenwald ‘Doesn’t Have a Clue’ About NSA Surveillance,” HuffingtonPost.com, June 9, 2013, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/09/mike-rogers-glenn-greenwald_n_3411864.html.

  49. “Glenn Greenwald’s Partner Detained at Heathrow Airport for NineHours,” TheGuardian.com, August 18, 2013, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/18/glenn-greenwald-guardian-partner-detained-heathrow.

  50. Natasha Lennard, “U.S. Knew in Advance About Greenwald Partner’s Detention,” Salon.com, August 19, 2013, http://www.salon.com/2013/08/19/u_s_knew_in_advance_about_greenwalds_partner_detention/.

  51. Kyle Stock, “A Federal Top-Secret Club That’s Not Very Secret or Federal,” Businessweek.com, June 10, 2013, http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-10/a-federal-top-secret-club-thats-not-very-secret-or-federal.

  52. Nicole Blake Johnson, “Agencies Struggle to Launch Insider Threat Program,” FederalTimes.com, September 3, 2013, http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20130903/IT01/309030002/Agencies-struggle-launch-insider-threat-programs.

  53. Cheryl K. Chumley, “CIA finds 1 in 5 Flagged Job Applicants Come from Hamas, Hezbollah, al Qaeda,” WashingtonTimes.com, September 2, 2013, http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/sep/2/cia-finds-1-5-job-applicants-hail-hamas-hezbollah-/.

  54. Brett Logiurato, “GOP Congressman: The Government’s Phone Tracking Has Stopped a Terrorist Attack in the U.S. in ‘the Last Few Years,’ ” BusinessInsider.com, June 6, 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/mike-rogers-nsa-phone-tracking-obama-terrorist-attack-2013-6.

  55. Tim Mak and Burgess Everett, “Dianne Feinstein on NSA: ‘It’s Called Protecting America,’ ” Politico.com, June 6, 2013, http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/dianne-feinstein-on-nsa-its-called-protecting-america-92340.html.

  56. Tal Kopan, “Lindsey Graham ‘Glad’ NSA Tracking Phones,” Politico.com, June 6, 2013, http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/lindsey-graham-nsa-tracking-phones-92330.html.?hp=l1.


  57. Chris Moody, “Lindsey Graham: ‘If I Thought Censoring the Mail Was Necessary, I Would Suggest It,’ ” Yahoo.com, June 11, 2013, http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/lindsey-graham-thought-censoring-mail-necessary-suggest-182932835.html.

  58. Scott Shane, “Phone Calls Discussing Jihad Prompted Russian Warning on Tsarnaev,” NYTimes.com, April 27, 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/us/jihad-discussions-led-to-warning-on-tamerlan-tsarnaev.html.

  59. “Russian Official: U.S. ‘Ignored Boston Bombers Warning,’ ” Associated Press, June 4, 2013, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/russian-official-us-ignored-boston-bombers-warning-8644560.html.

  60. Josh Gerstein, “FBI Knew Earlier of Boston Bombing Suspect,” Politico.com, June 15, 2013, http://www.politico.com/blogs/under-the-radar/2013/06/fbi-knew-earlier-of-boston-bombing-suspect-166313.html.

  61. Brendan Sasso, “NRA Joins ACLU Lawsuit, Claims NSA Starting ‘Gun Registry,’ ” TheHill.com, September 4, 2013, http://thehill.com/blogs/hillicon-valley/technology/320357-nra-claims-nsa-illegally-created-a-gun-database.

  62. Glenn Kessler, “James Clapper’s ‘Least Untruthful’ Statement to the Senate,” WashingtonPost.com, June 12, 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/james-clappers-least-untruthful-statement-to-the-senate/2013/06/11/e50677a8-d2d8-11e2-a73e-826d299ff459_blog.html.

  63. Bruce, “Obama: ‘Nobody Is Listening to Your Phone Calls.’ ”

  64. “NSA Spying on Americans is Illegal,” ACLU.org, December 29, 2005, https://www.aclu.org/technology-and-liberty/nsa-spying-americans-illegal.

  65. Ellen Nakashima and Ann E. Marimow, “Judge: NSA’s Collecting of Phone Records is Probably Unconstitutional,” WashingtonPost.com, December 16, 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/judge-nsas-collecting-of-phone-records-is-likely-unconstitutional/2013/12/16/6e098eda-6688-11e3-a0b9-249bbb34602c_story.html.

  66. Steven Nelson, “Judge Orders NSA to Stop Collecting Phone Records,” USNews.com, December 16, 2013, http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/12/16/judge-orders-nsa-to-stop-collecting-phone-records.

  Count 6: Bribery

  1. “Executive Order,” White House Office of the Press Secretary, January 21, 2009, http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/ethics-commitments-executive-branch-personnel.

  2. Angie Drobnic Holan, “Waiver for Former Defense Lobbyist Moves the Needle,” Politifact.com, January 23, 2009, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/obameter/promise/240/tougher-rules-against-revolving-door-for-lobbyists/.

  3. Angie Drobnic Holan, “Defense, Treasury Appointees Have Conflicts,” Politifact.com, February 5, 2009, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/obameter/promise/240/tougher-rules-against-revolving-door-for-lobbyists/.

  4. Angie Drobnic Holan, “Former Lobbyist in the White House? It’s Okay if They Say It’s Okay,” Politifact.com, March 17, 2009, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/promises/obameter/promise/240/tougher-rules-against-revolving-door-for-lobbyists/.

  5. Brian Ross and Rhonda Schwartz, “The Rezko Connection: Obama’s Achilles Heel?,” ABCNews.com, January 10, 2008, http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/rezko-connection-obamas-achilles-heel/story?id=4111483.

  6. Larry Bell, “Chicago Corruption Trials and the Sounds of Silence,” AmericanThinker.com, December 2, 2011, http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/12/chicago_corruption_trials_and_the_sounds_of_silence.html.

  7. D’Angelo Gore, “Michelle Obama’s Salary,” FactCheck.org, May 17, 2009, http://www.factcheck.org/2009/05/michelle-obamas-salary/.

  8. Lynn Sweet, “Sweet Scoop: Obama, After Initial Refusal, Releases All Earmark Requests,” SunTimes.com, March 13, 2008, http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2008/03/sweet_scoop_obama_after_initia.html.

  9. Gore, “Michelle Obama’s Salary.”

  10. Bruce Japsen, “University of Chicago Hospital to Trim 7% of Budget,” ChicagoTribune.com, January 10, 2009, http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2009-01-10/news/0901090286_1_new-pavilion-trim-first-lady-michelle-obama.

  11. Joe Stephens, “Obama’s Lawyer Connected to Controversial Program,” Washingtonpost.com, January 9, 2009, http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/01/first-ladys-lawyer-helped-with.html.?wprss=the-trail.

  12. Ed Morrissey, “Jeremiah Wright Claims Obama Ally Offered $150,000 Bribe in 2008 to Shut Up,” HotAir.com, May 13, 2012, http://hotair.com/archives/2012/05/13/jeremiah-wright-claims-obama-ally-offered-150000-bribe-in-2008-to-shut-up/.

  13. Jeff Poor, “Book Says U. of Chicago Medical Center VP Bribed Jeremiah Wright,” DailyCaller.com, May 14, 2012, http://dailycaller.com/2012/05/14/book-reveals-obama-ally-who-bribed-jeremiah-wright-to-stay-quiet/.

  14. “HHS Sends $6 Million to Program Run by Obama Buddy,” InvestmentWatchBlog.com, May 14, 2012, http://investmentwatchblog.com/hhs-sends-6-million-to-program-run-by-obama-buddy/#.T7G3mu0Tvx4.

  15. “2008: Unions Spent $400 Million to Elect Obama,” Politifact.com, February 24, 2011, http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/mar/15/republican-national-committee-republican/rnc-said-unions-raised-400-million-obama-2008/.

  16. “Mallory Factor Exposes Big Labor’s War on America,” FrontPageMag.com, March 4, 2013, http://frontpagemag.com/2013/frontpagemag-com/mallory-factor-exposes-big-labors-war-on-america/.

  17. Newt Gingrich, “Once, We Would Have Called It a Scandal,” HumanEvents.com, June 10, 2009, http://www.humanevents.com/2009/06/10/once-we-would-have-called-it-a-scandal/.

  18. Jeff Poor, “UAW Gave $1 Million+ to Pro-Bailout Congressmen; Media Focus on Anti-Bailout Interests,” Newsbusters.org, December 15, 2008, http://newsbusters.org/blogs/jeff-poor/2008/12/15/uaw-gave-1-million-pro-bailout-congressmen-media-focus-anti-bailout-inter.

  19. Kris Maher, “SEIU Campaign Spending Pays Political Dividends,” WSJ.com, May 16, 2009, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124243785248026055.html.

  20. Barack Obama, “Remarks to the United Auto Workers Conference in Dubuque, Iowa,” American Presidency Project, November 13, 2007, http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=77020.

  21. John Tamny, “The Unions Didn’t Bankrupt Detroit, but Great American Cars Did,” Forbes.com, July 21, 2013, http://www.forbes.com/sites/johntamny/2013/07/21/the-unions-didnt-bankrupt-detroit-but-great-american-cars-did/.

  22. Kevin Hassett, “Auto Union Drove GM to Trouble,” Marketplace.org, March 30, 2009, http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/auto-union-drove-gm-trouble.

  23. Doug Altner, “What Explains GM’s Problems With the UAW?,” Forbes.com, May 20, 2013, http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/05/20/what-explains-gms-problems-with-the-uaw/.

  24. Todd Zywicki, “The Auto Bailout and the Rule of Law,” NationalAffairs.com, Spring 2011, http://www.nationalaffairs.com/publications/detail/the-auto-bailout-and-the-rule-of-law.

  25. Associated Press, “Report: Obama Sparked GM Bankruptcy,” SanduskyRegister.com, August 17, 2013, http://www.sanduskyregister.com/article/4435371.

  26. Rory Cooper, “Meet GM’s Bondholders: Chris Crowe,” Heritage.org, May 18, 2009, http://blog.heritage.org/2009/05/18/meet-gms-bondholders-chris-crowe/.

  27. Porter Stansberry, “GM and the Truth About One of America’s Biggest Bankruptcies,” DailyWealth.com, June 21, 2012, http://www.dailywealth.com/2125/gm-americas-biggest-bankruptcy.

  28. Barbara Hollingsworth, “U.S. Taxpayers Still Down $19.1B from Obama’s General Motors Bailout,” CNSNews.com, August 21, 2013, http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/us-taxpayers-still-down-191b-obamas-general-motors-bailout.

  29. Patrice Hill, “GM’s Union Recovering After Stock Sale,” WashingtonTimes.com, November 25, 2010, http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/nov/25/gms-union-on-road-to-recovery-after-stock-sale/?page=1.

  30. Zywicki, “The Auto Bailout and the Rule of Law.”

  31. Eamon Javers, “Obama Picks a Fight with ‘Speculators,’ ” Politico.com, April 30, 2009, http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0409/21935.html.

  32. Christopher Jensen, “Chrysler Bankruptcy and Product Liabil
ity,” NYTimes.com, May 20, 2009, http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/20/chrysler-bankruptcy-and-product-liability/.

  33. Andrew Seidman, “Obama Administration Favored Union Worker Pensions in GM Bailout, House Republicans Say,” Los Angeles Times, June 23, 2011, http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun/23/business/la-fi-gm-bailout-review-20110623.

  34. Zywicki, “The Auto Bailout and the Rule of Law.”

  35. Hollingsworth, “U.S. Taxpayers Still Down $19.1B from Obama’s General Motors Bailout.”

  36. James Sherk and Todd Zywicki, “Sherk and Zywicki: Obama’s United Auto Workers Bailout,” WSJ.com, June 13, 2012, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303768104577462650268680454.html.

  37. Lynn Sweet, “Sweet Column: Obama Cheered at SEIU, Union Weighing Whether to Endorse,” SunTimes.com, September 18, 2007, http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2007/09/sweet_column_obama_cheered_at.html.

  38. Susan Davis, “SEIU’s Stern Tops White House Visitor List,” WSJ.com, October 30, 2009, http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2009/10/30/seius-stern-tops-white-house-visitor-list/.

  39. Maher, “SEIU Campaign Spending Pays Political Dividends.”

  40. “President Obama Announces Recess Appointments to Key Administration Positions,” White House Office of the Press Secretary, March 27, 2010, http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/president-obama-announces-recess-appointments-key-administration-positions.

  41. “NLRB Office of Public Affairs—News Releases—a/k/a ‘Bias Scorecard,’ ” NRTW.org, August 30, 2013, http://www.nrtw.org/en/nlrb-watch/nlrbs-bias-scorecard.

  42. Steven Greenhouse, “Labor Board Drops Case Against Boeing,” NYTimes.com, December 9, 2011, http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/10/business/labor-board-drops-case-against-boeing.html.

  43. “Lafe Solomon ‘Did What IAM Bosses Told Him To,’ ” NRTWC.org, January 3, 2012, http://nrtwc.org/lafe-solomon-did-what-iam-bosses-told-him-to-2/.

  44. Kevin Bogardus, “For NLRB lawyer Lafe Solomon, Boeing Action Was No Laughing Matter,” TheHill.com, February 3, 2012, http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/208459-for-nlrb-lawyer-boeing-action-no-laughing-matter-.