In addition to the stimulus package, there was a variety of nonsense discussed during Obama's first official presidential news conference that of worthy of note.
This was the first presidential news conference to which The Huffington Post was invited, at least to ask a question, and one would hope, however vainly, that they might ask something pertinent and perhaps a little less partisan than whether or not Obama would support charging past Bush Administration officials with crimes.
Not a very good first impression to leave the general public, but anyway, here it is-
STEIN: Thank you, Mr. President. Today, Senator Patrick Leahy announced that he wants to set up a truth and reconciliation committee to investigate the misdeeds of the Bush administration. He said that, before you turn the page, you have to read the page first.
Do you agree with such a proposal? And are you willing to rule out right here and now any prosecution of Bush administration officials?
Obama's response was non-specific, and about as moderate an answer as you could hope for under the circumstances. The basic gist of his reply?
My view is also that nobody's above the law and, if there are clear instances of wrongdoing, that people should be prosecuted just like any ordinary citizen.
Note how he specified "clear instances of wrongdoing". That won't set too well with a large segment of the Post's readers, who would probably prefer to pour over every document and public utterance with a fine-toothed comb in order to ferret out any slight hint of objectionable actions with the aim to conduct as partisan a witch hunt as possible. Nor would they content themselves with a handful of high-level officials.
That this question is based on a proposed Judiciary Committee investigation by Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy makes it all the more ominous, precisely because the page has been read-and read, and read, and read, and read-for the last roughly five years, at least. What else is there to know? If there is something actionable, it should already be on the table. Make the case now or shut up about it. Don't try to be dragging the country through yet another extended public character assassination ritual.
The Huffington Post had a golden opportunity to make an impression on behalf of the blogosphere that it has grown into a serious facet of the world of actual journalism. Instead, it doubtless left many the impression of a spoiled child that should have been left outside to play while the grown-ups endeavored to conduct adult business.
Unfortunately, many of the adults came across no better, and certainly no more mature.
Perhaps the most foolish question asked was about lifting the ban on the showing of coffins as they returned to the states, of soldiers killed in the Iraq and Afghan wars. Many, such as HuffPo, want to assert that this is showing respect to the fallen heroes.
Hell, why stop at just showing the coffins as they arrive? Why the hell not just open the damn things up and give everybody a good look inside? That would really impress people, once they got a good look at just how horrible a sacrifice these brave soldiers made for their country. Who cares what the families think? There's surely no way it would inflame passions further against the wars, would it?
Of course, no assessment of the drivel that was spewed during the course of this press conference could possible be complete without a recounting of the contribution by Helen Thomas.
She first asked a question about the "so-called terrorists" that dart back-and-forth between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The framing of this question tells me all I need to know about her mindset, but the really loaded question involved which Middle Eastern nations Obama knew of that actually possessed nuclear weapons.
The correct answer, of course, would have been "the only one that really needs them", but Obama skirted around the obvious inflammatory, and actually accusatory question with admirable skill.
All in all, Obama handled himself pretty well throughout all this bilge, and actually made somewhat of a good case for his stimulus package, though I am still not convinced that it is anything but a political stunt designed to buy and shore up support.
Hopefully, the Huffington Post, Helen Thomas, and others of their ilk will be just as harsh and demanding as to the truth and veracity of these and other such Obama Administration policies as they have been those of the Bush Administration, but I seriously have my doubts.
