By Francis Nash
President Barack Obama stunned the world last week after issuing an executive order postponing 2010 for the foreseeable future. Citing a long list of unresolved national crises, Obama announced in an impromptu press conference that “…it would be unwise to proceed into the next year at this point in time.”
He continued, “Sagging economic conditions, rampant H1N1 outbreaks, and the lackluster performance of Derrick Rose during his second season have forced us to reconsider our shift into the next decade.”
Activist groups are joining conservative members of Congress in condemning the president’s recent announcement that he will keep the nation in 2009. “It is clear that your administration has no clear exit strategy for 2009,” documentary filmmaker Michael Moore said in an open letter to Obama posted on his Web Site. “For the sake of your presidency, and the future of our nation, please let us proceed into the next decade.”
While many such protestors are urging the government to rethink a pushback of the new year, the plan is apparently set in stone, with Obama having issued his final orders to calendar manufacturers last Thursday. The White House is trying to assure both sides of the debate, offering several extra months to the year while simultaneously placing renewed emphasis on an exit strategy.
“I am committed to developing a timetable to proceed into 2010 in the most expeditious way possible,” the President assured the American public. “My administration is working closely with world leaders, with the goal of the safe and orderly deployment of the new year.”
This move, however, does make financial sense as our national debt is compounded daily and doesn’t grow as long
