"Our whole philosophy is one of transparency.” Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor, Barack Obama
January 15, 2014
By: Linda Case Gibbons
It’s a method used mostly by teen-aged boys, but one that’s been pretty successful for the government, too.
When invoking the "DYFTS” method, some of the key words to remember are, "I didn’t know,” "I didn’t do it,” and "Huh?”
Sophisticates might use phrases such as, "You know as much as I do, Bob,” or "I read it in the newspaper the same time you did, Ed,” or "I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”
But when words fail, the best "Distancing Device” is to say nothing, disappear and hope whatever’s going wrong will blow over.
"Distancing” was used just this week by President Obama in his National Security Agency speech.
In his address, the president distanced himself from the NSA Scandal by, no, not reversing taps on your phones, etc., etc. No, he’s still doing that, but he’s dumping the files onto a third party, so you won’t have government intrusion, just intrusion by an as yet unnamed third party.
Apparently he'll put down the pen, hang up the phone and work with Congress now, I guess. But no matter what, he made it clear he sure as heck doesn’t want those files anywhere near him!
In his address Obama brought out a very good point, how we should be reassured and trust him again because of the changes he has planned for the NSA. "After all,” he said, "the folks at NSA and other intelligence agencies are our neighbors. They’re our friends and family…”
I’ve always thought that.
Now some cynics might doubt the "Distancing” method, but I say, nay, nay.
Sure, it’s true the method may have been less than successful with Bill Clinton, I admit. Richard Nixon, too, for that matter. But here’s where I think they went wrong.
If your scandals are starting to pile up, as they are with Obama, and if you have other "stuff” out there that you want to downplay, you have to do some damage control.
The best way is to appoint people you know, people you like, to do the damage control for you.
For instance, appoint a political supporter, like Department of Justice trial attorney Barbara Bosserman. Put her on the DOJ probe into the IRS’s targeting of conservative advocacy groups. Heck, why not? If she liked you well enough to give you $6,500 in campaign contributions, why wouldn’t she be the best man for the job?
And then you could appoint a political operative like John Podesta to investigate the NSA’s electronic spying programs. After all, the program is carried out by your "friends and neighbors.” I think John would be perfect.
Or how about former DOJ attorney, Thomas Perez?
You remember Perez. Now the Secretary of Labor, he’s the guy who hounded Sheriff Joe Arpaio for three years while he was assistant attorney general in the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division.
Perez came up empty on any wrongdoing on Arpaio’s part, true, but you have to hand it him. He was tenacious even though, granted, he did waste a lot of taxpayer money on what, granted, looked like a witch hunt against Arpaio.
But even still, I can see him as a valuable Obama amnesty advocate in his current role, can't you? Who wouldn't like a guy like that on your side?
If you encounter pushback about these appointments, if there are protests of "dirty pool,” remember your comeback is, "As you know, we do not and cannot inquire into a person’s politics when making a government appointment.”
And act insulted when you say it.
This tact is sure fire. It distracts from the important things that are going on elsewhere, things which you would rather not have people focusing upon.
Like the "War on Coal” that is being waged by Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency.
Ten thousand coal miners, 50,000 support workers and people whose jobs depend on coal mining are now unemployed across the coalfields of West Virginia and Kentucky, according to retired coal miner Roger Horton. He testified before Congress last October.
The jobs are gone. It is a monumental loss which Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) describes as a "depression” in Appalachia.
Now you may say, "Aw, that’s too bad,” not realizing that Obama’s other, other promise was that electricity would skyrocket under his guidance during his administration. It will. Coal fuels our electricity.
That’s the one promise Obama did keep.
And then there’s the "stuff” we saw coming, but now there’s a study confirming it: That Obamacare doesn’t decrease the number of Americans who are uninsured, instead it is a "ridiculously expensive taxpayer-funded shell game.”
How's it work? Your insurance gets cancelled, you re-enroll on the exchanges and get a more expensive premium with a higher deductible. And don’t forget. You already had insurance.
Benghazi is still in limbo, but in case you missed the report released by the Senate Intelligence Committee this week, blame was placed squarely on the State Department and the conclusion was that the attack could have been prevented.
It is being sold as a "bipartisan” report, said to be "tough on the State Department,” but curiously it never mentions Obama in the 450-page report. Hillary maybe once.
And the "why’s” and the "who-did-its,” well, let’s just say Sean Smith’s mother, Patricia, still doesn’t know how her son died and neither do we.
The Intelligence Committee also didn’t feel it was necessary to pin down where Hillary and Obama were throughout the events in Benghazi. They did take the "State Department” to task in the report, but not the "Secretary of State.”
In the end, no blame was cast on anyone that matters.
Maybe it’s because Benghazi is what Obama called one of the "phony conspiracies dreamed up and pursued by political enemies” along with the IRS and NSA Scandals.
Yeah, that’s probably it.
But the DYFTS method works. It’s all good for Obama and the elections in 2014 and for Hillary in 2016, but then again, why wouldn’t it be? Obama's media is always in the wings, ready to help out after all else has been tried.
So next time you’re in a tight spot and you’ve done what you really shouldn’t have done, invoke the "Distance Yourself from the Stench” method.
It works for our president and Hillary all the time.
Hold the line, America.