Obama The Figurehead - The New GOP Talking Point

There's nothing like politicians from opposite sides working together for the good of the country to avoid economic disaster. And this is nothing like it.

Yesterday, we heard pissant Lindsey Graham accuse President Obama of being "AWOL" on this recovery bill. Yes, the same President Obama who invited leaders of both the Democratic and Republican parties to the White House to talk about the stimulus bill; the same President Obama who personally met with House Republicans and Senate Republicans a week ago; the same President Obama who hosted a White House cocktail party and invited leaders of both parties to attend to discuss the recovery bill; the same President Obama that had a Super Bowl party (that McCain refused to attend) to discuss the stimulus; the same President Obama who called individual Senators to speak about the stimulus. That President Obama is now being called AWOL in the eyes of obstructionist Lindsey Graham.

It now seems that this was the opening salvo in the GOP propaganda powder room. Newt "Contract On America" Gingrich was on the Today Show this morning and said, "Why isn't he calling bipartisan leadership meetings in the White House to work out the details instead of making partisan speeches in front of a partisan audience attacking the people whose votes he's gonna need?" Yeah, Gingrich said that. I suppose Newt Gingrich was either AWOL or in a coma these past two weeks. And the irony of the "partisan speech in front of a partisan audience" line really made me laugh out loud.

Steve Thomma fell for it hook, line and sinker. Being interviewed by Nora O'Donnell this morning, the McClatchy reporter's response to Gingrich's statement was, "He's met with them, had lunch with them...we don't know if he's negotiated." Does Thomma think that Obama would have lunch with these idiots for the pleasure of it?

Thomma goes on to say that he doesn't know if Obama is "hands on" or if he's a "big picture -chairman of the board type" like Reagan was. Where did he get this opinion? At a luncheon with... Newt Gingrich. He continued with the GOP talking points about Obama needing to compromise and take spending out of the bill in favor of more balance between spending and tax cuts to gain Republican support. I guess Thomma was on vacation for the last two weeks as well.... or maybe sitting at another GOP luncheon.

So look for the new Republican talking point. Obama is just a figurehead who is AWOL when it comes to negotiating the specifics in the recovery bill. Because we all know it's more important to invent talking points and obstruct than it is to actually help the hundreds of thousand of Americans losing their jobs every month.