Is that possible? Is it bad? I’m not sure how I feel about the President’s appearance on “The Tonight Show.” Part of me thinks it’s campaigning 2.0 while another part of me thinks that it’s an effective way to reach the people, albeit a small percentage of them. Perhaps it’s best understood as the Times described it: “a fire side chat for the flat screen age.” All of this aside, the President is still slated for a prime time address this coming Tuesday, which makes a visit with Leno seem all the more unnecessary.
Here’s the video of the full interview (transcript here):
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And yes, there was a gaffe when he compared his bowling score of 129 to the Special Olympics and, yes, they were already doing damage control by the time they were on Air Force One.
The Times has some ridiculously soft-ball articles covering the interview; the Fox News article is a recommended companion (although the fact that they put the Special Olympics thing in the title is a bit over-the-top).
More:
“For Obama, Talk About The Economy Goes Into Late Night” (NYT)
“Seeking Everyman, Obama Does Leno” (NYT)
“Obama on ‘Tonight Show’ Discusses Economy, Makes Special Olympics Joke” (Fox News)
“Transcript: Obama On “The Tonight Show” (NYT)
Posted by Mark 
Play Happy. 