It was an absolutely beautiful Saturday morning as I did my normal weekend five-mile run. The sunrise over Lake Ray Hubbard here in Garland and Rowlett, Texas, was serene. As I ran along, it suddenly hit me how best to characterize the recent balloon tomfoolery of the Biden administration. It reminded me of Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife of Mayberry RFD. Yes, I am dating myself, but many of you recall the character portrayed by actor-comedian Don Knotts on the “The Andy Griffith Show.” We all still laugh at the reruns of that classic, but to think that it mirrors the strategy of the Biden administration is quite terrifying.

Here we had a Communist Chinese spy balloon freely traverse across the entire United States, and even took time to hover over sensitive military installations. We looked like Deputy Fife bumbling around trying to figure out what to do, and at the final moment before the episode ended, the balloon gets shot down…long after completing its intelligence surveillance mission.

Then, in true Barney Fife manner, we just started shooting at every doggone thing in the sky. I can almost hear ol’ Deputy Fife say to Sheriff Andy, “Well, Andy, there ain’t ever gonna be anymore balloons flying over Mayberry. I went out and shot at everything I saw in the sky!” Yes, comical, but in this case, reality reflected a sitcom. Just like with a trigger-happy Barney Fife, so did the Biden administration commence shooting any and every thing…without any clear explanation. One major difference is that bullets from Deputy Fife’s revolver do not cost the American taxpayer $400K. This version of Kabuki theater was so laughable that a dear friend of mine in Boca Raton told me he canceled the hot air balloon ride he had scheduled for his wife on Valentine’s Day.

Just think, we have members of the progressive socialist leftist Democrat Party who actually made one of the most absurd, and delusional, assertions ever, and that is saying a lot. Yes, there are Democrats who said that this balloon, “Charlie Foxtrot,” has caused embarrassment for the ChiComs. Really? If anything, this has only emboldened the ChiComs, as well as Russia. All of a sudden, we have countless encounters with Russian aircraft treading extremely close to our airspace. The Iranians, who are supplying kamikaze drones to Russia, are awaiting the Biden administration’s resumption of the Iranian nuclear agreement. And, thanks to the Barney Fife national security policy of this current administration, Afghanistan is once again a thriving haven and sanctuary for Islamic jihadism. Those five senior members of the Taliban who were released from GITMO by the national security policy of George Jefferson, meaning Barack Obama, are now back in power.

Our military is more focused on proper pronoun usage and gender dysphoria. As a result, well, China is outpacing our Navy surface fleet and we have a grounding order on our KC-135 strategic refueling aircraft because of a defect in a tail wing part.

The American border has more holes in it than Swiss cheese to the detriment of millions illegally pouring into our country. As well, thanks to the national security policy of Barney Fife, we are experiencing a chemical warfare attack from the ChiComs by way of fentanyl. See, Deputy Fife carried a gun, but no one lived in fear of him actually using it with any purposeful intent or deadly accuracy. So it is with this Biden administration ordering the shooting down of hobby balloons while terrorists and “got-aways” invade our Republic and the narco-criminal terrorist group, the Mexican cartels, have firm operational control of our southern border. Not to mention, we are now seeing a spike in illegal crossings of our northern border.

When the enemies of America, and our allies, watch the news and see our current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania, they do not see American strength, resolve, will, determination, and courage. At best they see a crotchety curmudgeon sitting on the front porch yelling at the neighborhood kids to stay away from his front yard. At worst, they see Mayberry Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife, and the foreign and national security policies reinforce that image.

Say what you wish, Barney Fife was a lovable enough character because he held no malicious intent in his heart. This is where there is a complete departure between Biden and Barney, the former is intentionally bringing about harm and danger upon the American people. I mean really, what “president” would refuse to go and visit the people of East Palestine, Ohio, who are victims of a tragic chemical attack due to a train derailment, or visit with those in Texas and Arizona living in fear and terror along the southern border because of his failures? Why not utter a word about the rancher, George Alan Kelly, who has been charged, wrongly, with premeditated murder of a repeat offender illegal immigrant he found dead on his property?

“The Andy Griffith Show” opened up with that famous whistling theme tune that everyone remembers. Joe Biden and his national security policy of Barney Fife, along with his leftist minions, are whistling past the graveyard, where sadly many Americans find themselves, thanks to criminal illegal immigrants, fentanyl, the release of violent felons and criminals back onto our streets, and Islamic jihadists in Afghanistan.

Steadfast and Loyal.

This article first appeared at Townhall.com