Obama has built his presidency on the back of an adoring MSM, who have been happy to let him make completely contradictory statements within short time frames, and give non-answers to serious questions.
Not for much longer. The AP actually fact checked his latest speech and found it wanting.
OBAMA: “We already have rough agreement” on some aspects of what a health care overhaul should involve, and one is: “It will keep government out of health care decisions, giving you the option to keep your insurance if you’re happy with it.”
THE FACTS: In House legislation, a commission appointed by the government would determine what is and isn’t covered by insurance plans offered in a new purchasing pool, including a plan sponsored by the government. The bill also holds out the possibility that, over time, those standards could be imposed on all private insurance plans, not just the ones in the pool.
…
OBAMA: “You haven’t seen me out there blaming the Republicans.”
THE FACTS: Obama did so in his opening statement, saying, “I’ve heard that one Republican strategist told his party that even though they may want to compromise, it’s better politics to ‘go for the kill.’ Another Republican senator said that defeating health reform is about ‘breaking’ me.”
That second point is interesting, because Obama has been blaming Republicans for pretty much everything. If the media aren’t going to let him do that anymore, he’s in big trouble.
Also, it seems that he was pretty awful when it came to answering questions. I don’t think Bush was ever as bad as this.
Pres. Obama’s fourth prime-time news conference (and fifth overall) was truly craptastic. I am no Obama fan, but when Larry Sabato, Howard Fineman and assorted mopes at MSNBC are unenthused, it’s safe to say it was craptastic.
NBC and ABC, Howard Kurtz, The Hill, and Ed Morrissey were among the many to note that Pres. Obama held a news conference without making news.
This left the president filibustering on every answer, and every answer followed the same general pattern. Pres. Obama tended to begin with a non-answer — boilerplate talking points about the healthcare issue. Even the Associated Press is fact-checking his pablum now. And public support for healthcare reform has been eroding while he has been making them these past weeks. Once some bit of boilerplate was spit out, the president would grope toward some sort of answer responsive to the question, but end up saying something unhelpful to his own cause, most notably his accusation that greedy doctors want to remove your tonsils.
…Pres. Obama’s rambling non-answer to [the first] question, which went on for minute after agonizing minute, speaks volumes. Political junkies know why Obama does not have an answer to this question. Obama never offered much in the way of a detailed healthcare proposal, because the White House decided that offering an actual draft bill was one of the things that sunk the Clintons’ attempt to take over our healthcare in 1993-94. It is also an approach reinforced by Obama’s career, in which he has been greatly rewarded for frequently voting “present.”
However, what the non-answer conveys to the casual viewer is a lack of leadership. It paints a portrait of a man banging the podium, telling Congress to act, while offering little to nothing himself. It is the picture of someone who talks about the “fierce urgency of now,” but only talks about it.
This is the real problem behind the criticism that Obama did not make any news last night. With healthcare reform hitting obstacles in Congress, the expectation was that Obama would say or do something to advance the ball down the field, but it did not happen. Pres. Obama was in campaign mode, but it was still the campaign of a candidate who wants the job — describing the problem, while avoiding the tough realities of a solution. Pres. Obama now has the job, and looks like he isn’t doing it.
Something should go here, maybe later. 