Pat Oliphant for June 23, 2009
Transcript:
Man 1: See?! The Great Satan is meddling in our sacred election! Shoot everyone! Man 2: Do you think you appear too weak regarding Iran? And why? Man 3: C'mon - be a real red-blooded merkin and get in there and meddle in Iran, just like we always did! The Thin Line.
motivemagus: From CNN. these are not thoughtful even steps. he is responding the way he thinks America wants him to respond.
Tone check from the presser: “The normally unflappable President Obama let his cool demeanor slip Tuesday, showing signs of frustration with questions on domestic and foreign policy issues as poll numbers indicate support for his policies is slipping,” The Hill’s Sam Youngman writes. “The president snapped at reporters who echoed his critics, particularly at those who questioned his response to unrest in Iran or asked about how his proposed public insurance plan might hurt the free market.”
On Iran – that language sure sounded different.
“President Obama hardened his tone toward Iran on Tuesday, condemning the government for its crackdown against election protesters and accusing Iran’s leaders of fabricating charges against the United States,” The New York Times’ Helene Cooper and David E. Sanger report. “In his strongest comments since the crisis erupted 10 days ago, Mr. Obama used unambiguous language to assail the Iranian government during a news conference at the White House, calling himself ‘appalled and outraged by the threats, beatings and imprisonments of the past few days.’ ”
ABC’s Jake Tapper: “President Obama amped up his rhetoric about the Iranian government crackdown on protestors Tuesday afternoon, expressing concerns about the death of a young woman who’s become an icon of the protests – Neda Agha-Soltan – but also not indicating any policy shift towards the Islamic Republic.”
The AP fact-check: “President Barack Obama described himself on Tuesday as being ‘entirely consistent’ in his expressions of concern about the disputed Iranian election and the government crackdown that followed street protests. But his language clearly has gotten tougher since his first statement that the suppression of dissent was ‘of concern to me.’ ”
The Chicago Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet: “The inside story of how the White House choreographed the Huffington Post question is overwhelmed by the message Obama wanted to send out to the Iranian youths on the streets of Tehran, who are witnessing their revolution play out on the Web. Even though the Iranian government has tried to curb cell phone videos and still pictures, Twitter messages and e-mail exchanges, the social networking tools of the Internet have helped organize demonstrations and send information out to the world.”
Slate’s John Dickerson: “He escalated his rhetoric about the violence in Iran but insisted he hadn’t changed his posture. He claimed to be outside the 24-hour news cycle while simultaneously manipulating it.”