A Time For Choosing: Pathetic: Barack Obama Refused To Be Photographed With F-22 Fighter

Reason number 739, 612 that Sarah Palin will make a better Commander-In-Chief than Barack Obama, who recently called our brave troops "a nice photo op."

This is about as pathetic as it gets. On his recent trip to the far east, where he would not only grovel to the Chinese, but take time to be the only head of state to bow to the Japanese Emperor, Obama stopped off at Elmendorf AFB in Alaska so Air Force One could be refueled, and he could use those brave men and women as a photo op while he held what amounted to a campaign rally.

The F-22 is the pride of Elmendorf, as it should be. But you see, the Obama administration has worked very hard to kill the F-22 program. Reminds us of Jimmy Carter, when at the height of the cold war, he was cancelling advanced weapons programs right and left, so he could throw money at social engineering projects, such as the Community Re-Investment Act, that would directly lead to the huge sub-prime mortgage crash that has our economy in shambles as this is being written, and the establishment of the Department of Education, which has led to the massive decline in the quality of education in America.

So anyhow, Carter 2.0...errr....I mean Obama, is so pathetically petty he doesn’t want to be seen with the most technologically advanced fighter on the planet, a wonderful example of American technology, sophistication, and engineering prowess,... not to mention an incredibly strong symbol of America’s strength,..... because he is the one of the ones who killed it.

From Foreign Policy:

When President Obama spoke to troops at Alaska's Elmendorf Air Force Base last month, the unit there parked a shiny new F-22 fighter plane in the hangar. But according to multiple sources, White House aides demanded the plane be changed to an older F-15 fighter because they didn't want Obama speaking in front of the F-22, a controversial program he fought hard to end.

"White House aides actually made them remove the F-22-said they would not allow POTUS to be pictured with the F-22 in any way, shape, or form," one source close to the unit relayed.

Stephen Lee, a public affairs officer at Elmendorf, confirmed to The Cable that the F-22 was parked in the hangar and then was replaced by an F-15 at the White House's behest.

The airmen there took offense to the Obama aides' demand, sources told The Cable, seeing it as a slight to the folks who are operating the F-22 proudly every day. They also expressed bewilderment that the White House staff would even care so much as to make an issue out of the fact that the F-22 was placed in the hangar with the president.

A White House official, commenting on background basis, told The Cable that yes, there were discussions about which plane or planes would be in the hangar, but that they were not meant as an insult to the pilots and other personnel who work on the F-22. The official couldn't elaborate on why the White House aides felt it necessary to get involved in the matter in the first place.

The official pointed to Obama's speech to the troops that day, where he praised both the 90th Fighter Squadron, known as the "Dicemen," and the 525th Fighter Squadron, the "Bulldogs," both of which operate the F-22.

Even so, the Air Force personnel thought it odd the White House wanted to display the older plane rather than the more advanced plane that, in the eyes of its supporters, represents the latest and greatest in American aviation.

The Obama administration fought hard and successfully to cut off production of the F-22 at 187 planes, a number Defense Secretary Robert Gates endorsed but that was hundreds less than originally planned and about half of the 381 planes Air Force leadership lobbied hard for in the years preceding Obama's inauguration.

"It's one thing to be against further production; quite another to slight the folks who are flying them in the operational world," one source said, adding that "the F-15 pictured was put into service roughly around the same period when Obama graduated from college. It's vintage."

The United States has 187 F-22 Raptors defending our nation. There are thousands of brave men and women who fly and maintain them. These men and women take great pride in what they do, and rightly so. It is just beyond the pale that this little man, Obama, would go out of his way to disrespect them, all because of petty politics.

It really makes no sense whatsoever to deny these warriors a chance to show off their finest tools.

Contrast this to Commander-In-Chief Sarah Palin, whose love for the military is well known. We’ve reported on her trips to Kuwait and Kosovo, but here’s some photos of Sarah, in her role as the Alaska National Guard’s C-I-C aboard the USS Stennis during Northern Edge 2009, a joint training mission held this summer.

As you know, in Alaska, with it’s close proximity to Russia, Commander-In-Chief, for the Governor, is an actual job. Forces of the Alaska Air National Guard routinely escort Russian planes out of Alaskan air space. Not long ago, they were decorated for escorting a number of Russian "Bear" bombers back home.

Anyhow, as you can see, Sarah is quite comfortable being filmed up close and personal with our finest and bravest, as well as their equipment.

Sarah and Todd on their way to the plane that will land aboard the USS Stennis as Sarah participates in Northern Edge 2009, a joint training exercise held this summer:

Sarah and Todd landing aboard the USS Stennis:

Sarah and Todd meeting sailors on the hanger deck of the USS Stennis:

Sarah and Todd on the flight deck of the USS Stennis:

Close up of the 'Cuda on the flight deck of the USS Stennis:

Sarah in the conning tower aboard the USS Tennis getting brought up to speed on flight ops:

This one is for our buddy Devito: Sarah is doing a little weapons training during her visit to her National Guard troops in Kuwait in 2007:

You tell me, when was the last time we had a Commander-In-Chief who actively took weapons training with their troops?

What a beautiful sight an F-22 Raptor can be to those of us who cherish freedom and liberty:

Every time we think of how great it will be to have Sarah Palin as Commander-In-Chief of our armed forces, an F-22 gets it's wings! (Yeah, it's corny, but hey, it's Christmas time, and we just must get in a "Wonderful" reference somewhere!)

In the grand scheme of things, this isn’t the end of the world. Obama is doing many things a lot worse than this. But it’s just one more slap in the face to the men and women who bravely sacrifice their safety and comfort, so the rest of us can enjoy liberty and freedom. These men and women are the best our nation has to offer. And they do this voluntarily. For Obama to show himself like this is a true insult to our troops and the nation.

BTW, here’s some things Obama is NOT ashamed to be photographed doing:

All I want to know is: Does he inhale?

Two peas in a pod:

Seriously, you don't see the resemblance?

Here we see Obama at a fund raiser. His current employer, George Soros, is seen sitting in the front row, next to the stairs. He's on your right, with the jacket, blue shirt, no tie:

Here's Obama's blurb for "just another guy in the neighborhood" Bill Ayers' book. Ayer's would later return the favor by writing Obama's first book: Dreams From My Father, for him! (What? It's settled science!)