Streetwise Professor

Remember how Obama said that “empathy” was one of his primary criteria for selecting a Supreme Court justice?

Here’s Mr. Empathy in action:

Maybe empathy is only required of wise Latinas.

Will he get off the eight miles a gallon thing already? Sheesh. That’s poised to become the New Slurpee Line that he beats to death.  If he keeps it up, he’s going to have to pay Scott Miller royalties.

According to EPA numbers, the only automobile that operates at 8 MPG even in the city is a Bugatti Veyron, which sells for $1.7 million.  So I don’t think that’s what Obama is talking about.  The next worst mileage is for Aston Martins, Bentleys, and Rolls-Royces–at 11 MPG city.  Again, I don’t think that’s what Obama’s talking about.

He mentioned SUVs.  The lowest mileage–city–are for Chevy Suburbans, at 10 MPG.  They get 15 highway, almost twice 8 MPG.

So maybe he means old clunkers.  But even very few old clunkers get 8 MPG.  In high school I had a ’66 Buick Wildcat with a 425 cubic inch V8.  When you floored it, two things happened:  you were thrown back into your seat by the acceleration, and you could see the needle on the gas gauge decline noticeably.  And it got more than 8 MPG.

And if he did mean old clunkers, what could you get if you traded it in?  If you’re driving something like that, it’s not out of choice–it’s out of necessity.  So telling somebody like that to buy a new car is pretty heartless.

Bill Clinton knew that faking empathy (“I feel your pain”) was politically smart and, well, civil.  Insulting people (especially one who was quite likely chosen as a likely Obama supporter to ask him a question), and completely stepping in it (“even if you have a big family, it can’t be that big.  Ten kids?” . . . awkward pause) is just off-putting and declasse.

As for the substance of Obama’s energy remarks in response to the question, it was a typical melange of the sensible (oil is a world market; supply can’t be increased today) and the idiotic (we only have two percent proven reserves, etc.).  Unfortunately, when it comes to policy, idiocy is in driver’s seat.

To reprise Scott Miller from “Eight Miles a Gallon”: “Gonna invent a big engine, make it run on bullshit, put it in a chassis, buddy it will ever quit.”   Hey, if somebody could do that, Obama could provide the BS and make the US energy self-sufficient for years to come.

There’s actually an Obama two-fer here: “Invent a big engine, make it run on bullshit, put it on a train track . . .” But is it high speed rail?