One reason the U.S. economy continues to struggle so long after the 2008 financial crisis is that the “never let a serious crisis go to waste” administration is exploiting the bad economy to promote its collectivist, high-tax, big-government agenda. Tactic No. 1 in this cynical strategy is to send the President around the country to make political speeches. Today, it's Manchester's turn to experience a performance from our Rock-Star-in-Chief.

The Obama administration is focused on stagecraft, not statecraft. Its policies aren't about creating jobs; they're about shifting more money and power to government. You can label something a jobs bill, but that doesn't make it one. You can label something stimulus, but that doesn't make it stimulative. You can claim that a massive restructuring of the entire health care sector is the foundation of economic recovery, but that doesn't make it true.

This is a rhetorical presidency that can survive only if it fools the people into believing things that are not true. So the President tours the country, claiming that he wants to raise taxes on “millionaires and billionaires.” But he defines “millionaire” as anyone earning $200,000 a year or more. He claims Congress won't pass a jobs bill, but the House has passed several, just not his, which isn't really a jobs bill. He denounces partisanship while accusing the other side of putting party before country. It is all smoke and mirrors all the time.

Meanwhile, the President abdicates real leadership on the nation's unsustainable budget by passing the buck to a “super committee” that no one thought would actually reach a deal. In the months since the super committee began its work, the President busied himself with giving more speeches proclaiming how great his policies are rather than sitting down with all sides to work out a deal. We have a rock star President when we need a statesman.

Enjoy the concert, Manchester, but don't expect it to be anything more than that.