And while the president has preached for years about wanting to working with Congress, he's barely paid that vow empty lip service. He's done very little to actually mold anything. Hell, even his signature legislation ended up being half-baked, to mix metaphors.

This could be why he's so desperately in search of a Plan B, or in this case, plan "Dream." With health care reform stumbling along like a drunken – or just retired – NFL player, Obama's taking a shot at immigration reform. At least he's consistent, because the plan that's emerged this week appears to be as patchwork as PPACA, addressing the symptoms while ignoring the disease.

It also bears a startling resemblance to his predecessor's immigration plan, so I have no idea what in the world makes him think the GOP would be OK with it after they rejected the same proposal from one of their own.

(Which makes me think that Obama's a pale imitation of either Clinton or W. Except that he doesn't possess half the conviction of either of them. Obama hedges just enough so that the progressives are just as pissed off at him as the conservatives.)

And then we get the news that the administration's been cooking the books, Chicago-style, adding in dental numbers to the total. Of course, it's blamed on yet another accident, but these accumulating screw-ups are getting harder and harder to buy.

Now, a week later, right before the holiday dip in national attention, HHS Secretary Burwell demands an investigation.

"As public servants, we must constantly work to earn the trust of those we serve," Burwell wrote in a memo to her senior staff – as reported by Bloomberg, which snagged a copy of it. "That trust is built on our commitment to transparency, ownership, accountability and accuracy, and being forthcoming about where we can do better."

Sound familiar? It should.

Obama promised as much the day after he first took the job.

"We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration," he wrote in an early memo. "Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government."

Which doesn't bode well for Burwell's echoed vow. It could be argued that in addition to deporting more illegals than his predecessor – and in turn alienating his base – Obama's administration has actually turned out to be far more opaque than Bush's.

Churchill once said, "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."

Few understand that better than this administration.