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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Emergency services Jacksonville man who summited Everest will help in Nepal relief efforts Since You Asked: Lost Creek outflows are as low as they can go 'Stolen' wheelchair actually traded by owner, police say Two seats contested on Central Point School Board Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services Jacksonville man who summited Everest will help in Nepal relief efforts 'Stolen' wheelchair actually traded by owner, police say That smoke in Ashland hills likely from underburn Fourth Kairos employee arrested in Grants Pass Politics and Elections Earthquakes hit regularly in Medford (Oklahoma, that is) Medford School Board, Position 6: Curt Ankerberg vs. Janet Lightheart Arthur I. Cyr: Cuba’s enduring challenge to American foreign policy – and American politics Gov. Brown touts need for transportation funding in talk to Medford chamber Kent Bush: Clinton 2.0 is neither new nor improved Education Two seats contested on Central Point School Board Neal Simon: This is a test Four candidates run for two Eagle Point School Board slots Ashland students reach out to help pets in need Ruch students hold Dash for Diapers Environment Earthquakes hit regularly in Medford (Oklahoma, that is) Residents say armed mine supporters sully Josephine County's reputation Armed protesters gather at Medford BLM office over Sugar Pine Mine dispute Jackson County's wildlife services agent seen as both killer and savior Biomass technology: Creating products out of former waste State News Fixit tag for Portland's noted Portland Building: $175 million Fee targets rail cars that haul oil, other flammables Boyfriend of psychic sentenced in con of Oregon timber heir Oregon judge goes light on repeat drunk-driving offender Obama to talk trade in visit to Oregon, Nike Nation - World There's a $10 million precious stone hidden in plain sight at Grand Central Tsarnaev convicted on all charges in Boston Marathon bombing Obituaries Alice Irenia (McFall) Calkins Dennis Dean Ekwall Greg Ansok Thomas H. Love Jr. Death Notices Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable Sports Latest Stories Yreka's late homer sinks Eagles Clippers top Spurs, force Game 7 Despite suitors, Titans were all in with Mariota Ravens visit area where protests started Fowler wins to secure weekend spot Varsity 541 College Sports National champ SOU's spring game is tonight Oregon coaches, players ready to ‘split up and play’ Donahue, Beavers down USC at home King's single lifts OSU over No. 10 USC Emmert, Silver not on same page with one-and-dones Pro Sports Clippers top Spurs, force Game 7 Despite suitors, Titans were all in with Mariota Ravens visit area where protests started Fowler wins to secure weekend spot Will fight live up to hype? History gives a clue Community Sports Bailey picks up modified win Wilson delivers in return of local boxing Palmer breezes to second straight men’s title Business Latest Stories Never enough: New Starbucks proposed on Barnett Road in Medford Comcast deal dropped along with Pac-12 1-800Flowers.com reports $10.5 million loss in third quarter Jackson County debt-ridden homeowners have an option Cars We Remember: Mr. Hot Rod’s 1966 Chevelle 396 Real Estate News Never enough: New Starbucks proposed on Barnett Road in Medford Jackson County debt-ridden homeowners have an option New home in an old house Naumes plans custom-crush winery in former packing house GREEN ACRES: Southern Oregon provides escape from the maddening crowd People In Business Transportation Erickson finds room to work at Medford airport Lithia Motors nets $40.7 million in first quarter Lithia Motors reports second-best quarter ever Business briefs Medford airport's record run continues Agriculture 1-800Flowers.com reports $10.5 million loss in third quarter Naumes plans custom-crush winery in former packing house New bosses take charge at Harry & David Dancin Vineyards covers up Opinion Latest Our View: Bill gives ex-convicts a glimmer of hope Letters to the Editor, May 1 Michael Gerson: A pastor's faith in Baltimore Granlund cartoon: End of the Vietnam war Clive McFarlane: Baltimore reaps the whirlwind Editorials Our View: Bill gives ex-convicts a glimmer of hope Our View: Medical marijuana market not at risk Our View: Don't wait on public records reform Our View: Yes to faster speeds, no to lane splitting Our View: Sensation and sensibility: a balancing act Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, May 1 Letters to the Editor, April 30 Letters to the Editor, April 29 Letters to the Editor, April 28 Letters to the Editor, April 27 Columns Michael Gerson: A pastor's faith in Baltimore George Will: What stands in Lindsey Graham's way Dana Milbank: Billionaire politics Kathleen Parker: Comedy, tragedy and fear of free speech Michael Gerson: Weighing the baggage Hillary brings Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Uniting to restore our sovereignty to we, the people Guest Opinion: This Earth Day, we celebrate the Northwest Forest Plan The Medford School Board was wrong: 'American Pageant' is a political agenda, not history The Medford School Board was right: 'American Pageant' is a fine book, and the board did its homework Guest Opinion: Removing barriers to walking, biking benefits everyone Lifestyle Latest stories Religion Briefs: Friday, May 1 Fishing Report: Friday, May 1 Hike of the Week: Black Butte Trail in the Siskiyou Wilderness Go with the (low) flow Get Out: Friday, May 1 Food Andrea Honaker: Mexican-inspired dips for Cinco de Mayo Page H. Onorato: Enjoying good food just for the fun of it Page H. Onorato: Food items appear in the funnies Community blog: Variations on potato patties please brunch palates Food for Thought: Grill up a storm as the weather gets warm Home and Garden Betty Montgomery: You can have a variety of ferns in your garden Clean out household chemicals Friday and Saturday Dear Monty: 10 tips to avoid tenant complaints Home Help: Upgrade your entryway with simple DIY projects Costa Living: Basking in flower power Health Health Watch: Pack your pantry with healthy items HealthStyle: It’s all in the family dinner 'Game changer' for heart patients Health Watch: Tips for protecting your eyes Dr. Jeff Hersh: Could severe cramping mean endometriosis? Hiking Biking Faith Religion Briefs: Friday, May 1 Religion Briefs: Friday, April 24 Religion Briefs: Friday, April 17 Religion briefs: Friday, April 10 Religion briefs: Friday, April 3 Milestones and Achievements ENGAGEMENT: Sellers-James Witham's birthday bash draws hundreds for 1950s prices Charlesworth-Murphy Drizzle doesn't dampen Pear Blossom Parade spirit New Arrivals: Sunday, April 12 Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Live Music in Local Clubs Firefall tonight at the Craterian Theater in Medford Trio Brasileiro plays Old Siskiyou Barn Master Gardener Spring Fair at The Expo Randall Theatre stages 'Little Shop of Horrors' Theater Randall Theatre stages 'Little Shop of Horrors' 'Much Ado' at SOU Thanks for the Memories stages 'Company' one night only Camelot Theatre presents 'Arsenic and Old Lace' 'Secret Love' playwright Stan Lai appears in Ashland Music Live Music in Local Clubs Firefall tonight at the Craterian Theater in Medford Trio Brasileiro plays Old Siskiyou Barn Interview: Offspring plays hits new and old on tour Maria Muldaur at the Unitarian Fellowship Community Events Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Master Gardener Spring Fair at The Expo A Taste of Ashland pairs food and wine at galleries Rogue Valley Earth Day 2015 Foreign language film festival set at SOU Movies Movie review: ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ knows how to party (No heading) Catching up with the Avengers Interview: Sofia Vergara talks ‘Hot Pursuit’ Quick Flicks: ‘Cinderella,’ ‘Insurgent’ and more Dining Taqueria Picaro offers casual Mexican cuisine Set a table from your local farmers market Let's do brunch! Restaurant inspections: April 26, 2015 Island Grindz serves up Hawaiian specialties Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obits Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Special Sections Business Services NEWS NOW Our View: Bill gives ex-convicts a glimmer of hope ... Fishing Report: Friday, May 1 ... Since You Asked: Lost Creek outflows are as low as they can go ... Our View: Bill gives ex-convicts a glimmer of hope ... Fishing Report: Friday, May 1 ... Since You Asked: Lost Creek outflows are as low as they can go ... ANOTHER VIEW Dana Milbank: The 'dictator' is a bystander Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Oct. 30, 2014 at 12:01 AM Posted Oct. 30, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Social News In July, when House Republicans voted to sue the president, they spoke of the urgent need to stop "tyranny" at the other end of Pennsylvania Ave. "Our freedom is in peril," warned Rep. Tom Rice of South Carolina, the man behind the lawsuit. "We cannot stand by and watch the president shred our Constitution." Well, it turns out they can stand by. Three months later, no lawsuit has been filed. Politico's Josh Gerstein, citing "lawyers close to the process," reported that they don't expect any legal action before the election. Apparently, the Obama dictatorship is not such a threat after all. Conservatives have, in recent weeks, done a 180 in their attack on the president. They have, for the most part, dropped their accusations that he is an out-of-control, overreaching autocrat. Instead, they are calling him a weak and passive leader, nothing more than a bystander. My colleague Charles Krauthammer captured the revised consensus when he wrote on Friday that with "a sense of disorder growing — the summer border crisis, Ferguson, the rise of the Islamic State, Ebola — the nation expects from the White House not miracles but competence. At a minimum, mere presence. An observer presidency with its bewildered-bystander pose only adds to the unease." I don't get to say this very often, so let me seize the opportunity: I agree entirely with Krauthammer. And I welcome conservatives to their new and more accurate critique of Obama. Since the second year of Obama's presidency, I have been lamenting the lack of strong leadership coming from the White House, describing Obama in June, 2010, as a "hapless bystander ... as the crises cancel his agenda and weaken his presidency." I've since described him over the years as "oddly like a spectator" and as "President Passerby." Krauthammer, like other conservatives, has frequently bemoaned this "imperial president" and Obama's "executive overreach," but he has also occasionally recognized Obama's standoffishness. "The paradox of this presidency is that this most passive bystander president is at the same time the most ideologically ambitious in decades," he wrote in December. But it isn't really a paradox. Obama's ambitious agenda was shut down after Republicans took control of the House in 2010. The executive actions he has taken since then that infuriate conservatives are actually a reflection of weakness. The orders are limited in their reach (lacking the force of statute) and duration (they will only continue beyond Obama's presidency if his successor opts to continue them). In the past, conservatives harmonized the contradictory criticism of Obama by saying he's a tyrant at home but a weakling abroad. Ebola has caused the distinction to vanish. Mitt Romney, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee, calls Obama unfocused on Ebola because the administration "couldn't run the IRS right, and it apparently is not running the CDC right. And you ask yourself: 'What is it going to take to have a president who really focuses?'" Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, a sober voice in the party, voiced his hope on CNN that the administration "would take this more seriously. ... Unfortunately, this is another example where the administration was not as engaged early on as they should have been." A less sober voice, Sarah Palin, told Fox News that the "administration's incompetency is really shining bright in this one." She added that "there is a void of leadership here." Obama the unfocused tyrant! The disengaged dictator! The man who shreds the Constitution with ... a void of leadership. Dozens of Republican lawmakers, and a few Democrats, complaining about too little action from Obama, have called for travel bans to fight Ebola, while various governors, trying to placate a panicky public, have set up quarantines that the federal government has resisted. Obama, as usual, remains dispassionate, cool, detached. "He responds in a very rational way, trying to gather facts, rely on the best expert advice, and mobilize the necessary resources," Obama confidant David Axelrod told BusinessWeek's Josh Green, who likened Obama's crisis management to a graduate seminar. "There's no doubt that there's a theatrical nature to the presidency that he resists," Axelrod said. That's very similar to the criticism recently offered by former Pentagon and CIA chief for Obama, Leon Panetta: "Too often in my view the president relies on the logic of the law professor rather than the passion of a leader." Ebola is doing many horrible things to humanity, but at least it has caused conservatives to join this consensus. Obama's flaw is not that he abuses his power, but that he uses it too little. Follow Dana Milbank on Twitter, @Milbank. MailTribune.com Writer Posted Oct. 30, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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