My Personal Side

By Craig Hastings
Last week I told all of you it’s time to get over the 2020 election and move on with a smile, it’s going to be alright. What a difference a week makes. Earlier today I heard “Executive Order Joe” signed an executive order to immediately stop the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline! Yes, this same pipeline that had been stalled for a decade until President Trump stepped in and blasted his way through all of the environmental regulations that had been being used as cover to delay construction. The result, 11,000 jobs, good jobs, created. More importantly, 11,000 families would now get their chance to live the American dream. Everything positive and nothing negative about this pipeline unless you didn’t like to see the trenching it takes to lay this piping underground. Amazingly a whole bunch of people in the area and even out of the area objected. Activists rallied to stop the pipeline touting concerns of the end product being used to create products that ultimately pollute the air and the waste products further polluting the ground and water environments. Of course their arguments and concerns are a crock. If the oil needed for refinement here in the United States doesn’t come from Canada it will come from somewhere. One way or another the same amount of crude oil will be refined and distributed for its final use and destination. Environment saved from stopping construction of the pipeline…none!

But ol’ President Joe promised in his campaign rhetoric that he would indeed, and right away, sign an executive order halting the construction. And he did. President Biden must have made a decision that these workers and their families didn’t have a place in his “United We Stand” movement that he promised before the election and continually ever since. This man can not be making these calls himself. I laughed when it was first reported that all of these record breaking Executive Orders had already been prepared prior to election day. Additionally, “Come on man” Joe may not have participated much in the design and drafting of any of the orders that would be put in front of him to sign. All part of the preplanned and bogus democratic primary. No one really believed Joe out performed everyone of the other twenty plus democratic candidates in any of the debates right? You do remember the night, on stage and in front of the world, he told all of us to learn and stay informed by turning on the record player before we put our kids to bed. Amazingly, none of the mainstream media said a word about the bumbling babble that came from Joe’s mouth that night and many others. But neither did any of his giggling competitors! Had I been one of those people on stage that night I’d of been all over that s— the moment the first media mic was put in my face! Me to reporter; “You heard that right?” “Joe Biden thinks Americans use record players to get their news and world information!” WTH, how does he think that would work!? I’ll bet if you ask Joe how he would detonate a nuclear bomb if he ever had too he might tell you… Come on man, everybody knows you just light the damn fuse! CNN reporter to Joe; “Well Mr. Biden, what’s the key and code books for that a President is required to have by his side 24/7 in case of an attack on America?” Well…Mr. CNN reporter, the key is to a lock for a kitchen drawer where we keep the matches and those big code books. Those books tell me which fuse to light first and the order I light the remaining fuses. In those books are clear instructions on how to blow the matches out and safely dispose of them. Come on man, everybody knows this stuff! None of this mattered because Joe was the chosen one clear back in 2016 the moment Donald Trump was elected President. All of the rest of the candidates were given permission to play in the sandbox along with Joe to add some youthful enthusiasm to an otherwise dull and boring campaign.

So what happened next was disgraceful if not comical. The President didn’t want to have to take pointed questions from reporters demanding to know why he may have just crushed the lives of 11,000 American workers with the stroke of his pen. (By now I would have expected he was using a rubber stamp with so many signings) These men and women inclusive of their families, in a moment’s notice and in front of all of America to witness, had their jobs eliminated! Next President Biden does what all questionable leaders do at time of crisis, he passed the buck. I’m sure the conversation went something like this… Come on man! You’re not putting this on me! This was that ABC woman’s idea or is she called CBC or AOC or some damn thing like that! Isn’t this about her Green New something or other crap about the environment and you know the deal, listen to your record player! Get me out of here and get that dog out of my way before I fall and break my other ankle! Kerry, you got me into this so now this mess is on you! You like tall green trees and bathing in pond water so you go deal with those reporters! So John Kerry, one of the most despised politicians on earth and always ready to jump in front of a camera says to the President; I got this brother. Go take a nap and when you wake up all will be well in the world. 

John Kerry steps to the podium and takes the question. Remember now that this is the same John Kerry reportedly worth somewhere near $250 million dollars. Here’s how I understood him. Mr. Kerry, what are all of these 11,000 men and women going to do now that they are out of work? They have no way to pay their bills or feed their families. They’ve been put out of work without any notice. Is there a plan Mr. Kerry? Kerry might respond; Well of course the President has a plan. The plan is that we will put these people to work building solar panels. WTH! So Mr. Kerry, the President has a place and a date in his plan that will send these 11,000 people to another location to build solar panels? Will they work the same amount of time it would take to finish the pipeline and at the same rate of pay Mr. Kerry? Kerry; Errr, duhhh, hmmm, blaaa, cough twice, clear throat same, and finally, get ready…. We’ll get back to ya on the specifics at a later date.

Imagine you’re one of the 11,000 workers just laid off of a job that’s paying you probably $100,000 a year. Full benefits included making life for you and yours the great American dream. Then along comes a multi-millionaire frail and grumpy old man that has to be led around by his handlers and with the stroke of his pen wipes your dreams away because he made a campaign promise. Not that he really believes closing down construction is the right thing to do mind you but, a promise is a promise and this guy is just too weak to turn on his word and stand up for what he believes is right. I can’t begin to understand how devastating this must be. I’ve had three jobs my entire life and when I left the other two it was my choice and I had plenty of time to consider my decision. I feel for these families, I really do. How could this President do something so cruel, so political, and so wrong to so many people and their families. Well the answer is; a man or woman in their right frame of mind wouldn’t have done this, period.

(The views and opinions expressed in the submitted columns are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of The Journal.)