The media has been celebrating Barack Obama’s return to the political stage since his speech at the University of Illinois last Friday. But the narrative is wrong. I would argue that Obama never left the scene.

Contrary to the tradition for ex-presidents, Obama stayed in Washington, DC. Of course, progressives constantly tell us that walls protecting America are bad, but one of the first things the Obamas did after leaving the White House was build a wall around their new Washington, DC, home.

I suspect many of the things we have seen and heard from Brennan, Clapper, and Comey, whose maneuvers led to the Mueller probe, have largely been directed by Obama. The political “bombs” planted by left-wing ideologues ensconced in various agencies around this city are also his doing.

And don’t forget that the FBI probe of the Trump campaign started under Obama. That was his “insurance policy,” just in case the 2016 election did not go well.

But in this one speech, the former president reminded us why he so infuriated half the country. For example:

Obama claimed that he is responsible for the improved economic growth we have seen. That’s like a football coach with eight losing seasons being replaced and then attempting to take credit for the turnaround that occurs under a new coach!

The speech was vintage Obama, and by that I mean he referred to himself 102 times.

But the really stunning part of his speech was his attack against President Trump for “capitalizing on resentment” and for targeting “groups of people because of what they look like.”

That’s the Left’s entire strategy! Everything the Left does is based on class warfare and identity politics.

When there was a confrontation between the police and a criminal, Obama frequently inserted himself into the debate and against the police officer. I believe a big part of his legacy is the growing danger law enforcement officers now face.

The great expectation of so many Americans was that Obama would heal the country’s racial divide. In fact, he and his left-wing allies made it worse.

Republicans have opposed socialized medicine forever. But when they opposed Obamacare, it was because of racism. When Hillary Clinton lost, she and other liberal allies attacked white women.

What Obama did to divide our country is obscene. But I am glad he has gone public once again. It should remind millions of voters of why they rejected Hillary Clinton and Obama’s “third term,” and why they should reject the extreme Left this November.

Pence Speaks

Vice President Mike Pence gave some strong interviews over the weekend regarding the anonymous New York Times opinion piece. His comments reflected what I reported last week based on my observations from recent White House events that I have attended.

For example, Pence told CBS News:

“Well, the only thing that’s wrong about that narrative is everything… These accounts are very foreign to me. And I’m just not aware of instances where they’ve occurred and or where they would occur…

"I mean this president is tough. He’s demanding. He wants things yesterday. And I think it’s one of the reasons why we’ve accomplished so much in such a short period of time…

"I truly believe that whoever penned this opinion editorial should do the honorable thing and resign. I mean the truth of the matter is that the opinions that they expressed are not only deceitful and false but they’re also un-American and they represent an assault on our democracy.”

Several left-wing commentators suggested that Pence was the source of that absurd op-ed. I have talked to multiple people on his staff in the past 72 hours and they think the suggestion is so outrageous they find it humorous.

The vice president told “Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace that he would take a lie detector test “in a heartbeat” to rule out any doubt about his authorship of the op-ed.

Two Weeks

Former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos was sentenced late Friday afternoon for lying to the FBI. The media has reported that Papadopoulos was the nexus of the Trump campaign and Russian collusion. We were told that he was the trigger for the entire investigation.

And after all the hype, he was sentenced to 14 days in jail, not for colluding with Russia but for misleading an FBI agent. It is interesting how often the Mueller team announcements come late on Fridays, especially when they don’t amount to much.

Reacting to this news, President Trump tweeted, “14 days for $28 MILLION — $2 MILLION a day, No Collusion. A great day for America!” Of course, he was being sarcastic.

Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz said, “The sentence reflects the fact that the alleged lie was not particularly material to the investigation… The judge, obviously by his sentence, indicated that he was not impressed” by Mueller’s arguments.

Pro-Life America

According to a recent poll from The Hill, most Americans reject the Left’s pro-abortion extremism. Here are the results:

• Only 18% support abortion-on-demand at any time for any reason. That is the official position of the Democrat Party, and it also wants you to pay for abortions.

• 27% believe abortion should generally be permitted until the third trimester.

• 41% believe abortion should be limited to the rare cases of “rape, incest and to save the life of the mother.”

• 14% believe abortion should never be legal.

So there is an obvious pro-life majority in this poll of 54%. It goes up to 82% when it comes to banning late-term abortions, something only six congressional Democrats are willing to do.

West Whinge

In 1987, President Reagan was considering extending a personal invitation to the Soviet Union’s leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, to visit him in the United States. The decision didn’t meet with universal approval. Reagan’s idea was initially opposed by some of his advisors, including me.

I couldn’t bear the thought of the White House raising the Soviet red flag adorned with the red hammer and sickle, even though it was diplomatic protocol for visiting heads of state.

To find out how I handled my disagreement with President Ronald Reagan, click here to read my latest opinion piece at The Daily Caller.