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Scratch That, Middle School

By wt

The media took Obama to task this morning for snubbing Hillary. No doubt because of my post last night on the subject here.**

Obama defended himself by saying:

I was surprised by the reports this morning. There was a photograph in The Times of me turning away. I was turning away because Claire asked me a question as Senator Kennedy was reaching forward.

Ok, let's look at the defense. Obama claims Senator Claire McCaskill "asked him a question" during the prelude to the State of the Union Address.

1. That seems like a terrible time to ask someone a question. If he had said McCaskill was saying hello or greeting me, I'd be less skeptical.

2. McCaskill is nowhere in these pictures the NYT took this morning. If she's asking him a question, to the point where he can hear her while he's turned around hanging out with Ted Kennedy, you'd think she'd at least make the frame in one of 4 pictures.

3. CNN reported in my previous post that McCaskill "tapped [Obama] on the shoulder." In Obama's account, McCaskill simply approached him from behind and asked him a question. No tap.

This seems like a bare inconsistency, and one that I think CNN probably has the better of, given that they weren't in the middle of the situation.

Ok, all of these reasons are definitely somewhat arguable. Maybe McCaskill has bad timing for questions, maybe she's out of the frames the NYT took, and maybe CNN is wrong that she tapped him on the shoulder.

4. But Obama's campaign manager, David Axelrod, screwed the pooch. He acknowledged, probably without realizing Obama would have his own excuse, that Obama turned away from Clinton intentionally.

"No, I don't think he snubbed her at all," Axelrod said. "First of all, they acknowledged each other as they entered the chamber.

But I think he knew that Senator Kennedy and Senator Clinton were friends. This was obviously an awkward day from that standpoint, and I don't think he wanted to stand there while Senator Kennedy was greeting Senator Clinton. And I think that was an appropriate sentiment.

Booyah. Sorry Obama. Stay away from the politics of old school.

**I'm kidding that my posts influence the news cycle. Not just yet. But it is strange that EU is getting so many hits lately (1800 in the last week) and yet so few comments. Adam Nagourney, is that you?

Full post as published by Expressio Unius on January 29, 2008 (boomark / email).