海角大神

Obama's TV blitz hits everything from healthcare to baseball

Sunday was just a warm-up for a week full of presidential public appearances - everything from Letterman to the United Nations. Some suggest he's making up for lost time.

President Obama these days brings to mind 鈥�Being John Malkovich.鈥� That鈥檚 Spike Jonze鈥檚 weird 1999 film in which Malkovich the actor and title character appears in multiple incarnations, sometimes simultaneously. It鈥檚 a hilarious bad dream.

OK, so the president hasn鈥檛 actually gotten that strange (although some of his tea partying opponents may disagree). But it seems as if the man has cloned himself.

He鈥檚 all over the place: Speeches, town hall cheerleading sessions, radio/YouTube broadcasts. And today he set the Olympic record for appearances on the Sunday morning TV talkfests.

Talk about a glutton for punishment! Having to explain and and (and and ) the details of your plan for healthcare reform. Not to mention racism in America today just because Banquo鈥檚 ghost 鈥� no, Jimmy Carter 鈥� brought it up days ago.

In fact, Obama covered a in responding to questions from his TV interrogators. Everything from Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden to North Korea and swine flu to the baseball playoffs. (He loves the White Sox but had about the Cardinals and the Yankees.)

But reforming healthcare in the United States was his . And despite the lack of congressional bipartisanship on any of the proposals on Capitol Hill, he says he鈥檚 still optimistic that a bill can be passed.

鈥淸T]here are a whole bunch of details that still have to get worked out,鈥� Obama . 鈥淏ut what I鈥檒l say is, is that right now I鈥檓 pleased that, basically, we鈥檝e got 80 percent agreement, we鈥檝e got to really work on that next 20 percent over the last few weeks.鈥�

And he rejected Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell鈥檚 assertion that Obama鈥檚 conservative opponents were 鈥渨inning the healthcare debate.鈥�

鈥淲ell, you know ... they were saying they were winning during the election, too,鈥� he said.

Some have suggested that Obama is all over the place now, scrambling to take control of healthcare (and other issues) because he waited too long while his opponents ranted about 鈥渄eath panels鈥� and a 鈥済overnment takeover.鈥�

鈥淭he inmates took over the asylum, trivializing and poisoning the national discourse while the president bided his time,鈥� New York Times columnist last week in a piece headlined 鈥淥bama鈥檚 Squandered Summer.鈥�

Others suggest that 鈥渢he very public offensive could be a perfect prescription for his top domestic priority.鈥�

"Their best card is Obama himself and his ability to sway a crowd,鈥� Dan Amundson, research director at George Mason University's Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington, "The big trick for them will be to make sure the message and the points stay consistent without becoming sort of the canned speech.鈥�

In any case, Sunday is just a warm-up for a week full of presidential public appearances.

Obama will give a speech on the economy at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, NY. It鈥檒l also give him a chance to tout his 10-year plan for investing $12 billion in such schools. Then there鈥檒l be , where the world will be looking for American leadership.

Before that, Obama will exchange witticisms with . Because of the scheduling conflict Monday night, he won鈥檛 be able to appear on the season opener of 鈥�Dancing With The Stars鈥� (as former House Republican Leader Tom 鈥淭he Hammer鈥� Delay is doing), nor can he sing in 鈥淭osca鈥� as the Metropolitan Opera opens its season.

Oh, well. The guy can鈥檛 do everything.

-----

Follow us on .