As Beltway insiders go, Chuck Todd has a well-deserved reputation for solid reporting, keen analysis and fairness. Because of this, NBC elevated him to the White House press corps, one of the media’s top posts, earlier this year.
– Chuck Todd
Reporters who work in the White House are the ultimate media insiders. This can be troublesome because they are also the Fourth Estate’s first responders in our democracy’s defensive ring around the government.
They can become compromised, however, by being forced to choose between playing their watchdog role and protecting their access to power and information. Who can forget the White House press corps’ collective silence — even obsequiousness — in the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, when none of them dared challenge Bush on about his push to lead the country into what was clearly an unnecessary war.
Based on the inane question Chuck Todd asked at the White House news conference last night, it appears that his elevation to the media elite’s inner sanctum may already be corrupting his values, not to mention his perception of reality:
QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. President. Some have compared this financial crisis to a war. And in times of war, past presidents have called for some form of sacrifice. Some of your programs, whether for Main Street or Wall Street, have actually cushioned the blow for those that were irresponsible during this — during this economic period of prosperity or supposed prosperity that you were talking about. Why, given this new era of responsiblity that you’re asking for, why haven’t you asked for something specific that the public should be sacrificing to participate in this economic recovery?
As the Daily Beast put it, “Chuck Todd wants to know what more Obama thinks American public should be sacrificing for the sake of the economy. Because losing jobs, homes and heath insurance apparently aren’t enough.”
The president’s response to Todd’s question was measured, but it went on way too long. All he really needed to say was this part:
OBAMA: With respect to the American people, I think folks are sacrificing left and right. I mean, you’ve got a lot of parents who are cutting back on everything to make sure that their kids can still go to college. You’ve got workers who are deciding to cut an entire day — an entire day’s worth of pay so that their fellow co-workers aren’t laid off…
After his patient response to Chuck Todd’s cluelessness, it’s not surprising that Pres. Obama pushed back against CNN’s Ed Henry when he asked why it took so long for Obama to make a public statement about the AIG bonus controversy.
Obama replied, “It took us a couple of days because I like to know what I’m talking about before I speak.”
