The trope that Bush and the Republicans have been the roadblock to everything has been carried to its most absurd lengths now; Obama claims this adversarial relationship existed over the past few years between business and the Republicans in the White House, as Michael Scherer of Time points out in quoting the president:

But it's not going to come easily and it is going to require a level of cooperation and a willingness to work strategically together that we have not seen over the last several years. And frankly, this town and the way the political dialogue is structured right now is not conducive to what we need to do to be globally competitive. And all of you are leaders in your communities -- in the business sector and the labor sector, in academia, we even have a few pundits here -- it is important to understand what's at stake and that we can't keep on playing games.

Obama and the Democrats constrain growth by tax and spend policies; pro-union regulations and appointments; EPA rules; Cap and Trade prospects; increase in capital gains taxes; card check possibility; and vastly increased health care costs imposed on businesses.

Does this masterful orator (who has helped two sectors of the economy - the sale of teleprompters and gold speculation - ever listen to himself or remember anything he has done or said?