What Obama will talk about — or should we say, be allowed to talk about in the unpredictable snake pit that he’s willingly venturing into — was not available at press time. What he should discuss, and probably will at some point, is the state of the economy.
The president is embarking on a mini national tour to talk about job creation. Last week he signed a multi-billion-dollar bill that provide another six months of unemployment benefits for an estimated three million unemployed Americans. But the economy is still struggling to crank back into full gear and it has many Americans scared and restless.
Why Obama would pick such a forum to make an appearance before the American people is probably perplexing to many TV viewers. But the White House says “The View” is a perfect choice to get his message out.
“Given the difficulty of reaching people in this hyperactive media environment, we look for opportunities to reach people in environments that are not traditional forums for political newsmakers,” Dan Pfeiffer, the White House communications director, said in an e-mail message. “That’s why we have been willing to have the president on Leno, Letterman and ESPN.”
He’s not alone in that assessment. Time magazine’s James Poniewozik said the women of “The View” actually have a knack for “conducting interviews that are actually newsworthy. Besides, the women’s views span the spectrum of political ideology and occasionally it is played out — sometimes at high decibels — before the viewing public, providing dramatic and often entertaining television.
The president twice appeared on the program before, once when he was first elected as a senator in 2004 and again as the leading presidential candidate in 2008. But this will mark the first time that a sitting president has ever appeared on a morning talk show.
–terry shropshire
