Guess who doesn't know how to live without a teleprompter? The...uh...One? You guessed it.
Most of us already knew this was coming. It's great that a "drive-by" media outlet finally picked up on it.
via Politico:
President Barack Obama doesn’t go anywhere without his TelePrompter.
The textbook-sized panes of glass holding the president’s prepared remarks follow him wherever he speaks.
Resting on top of a tall, narrow pole, they flank his podium during speeches in the White House’s stately parlors. They stood next to him on the floor of a manufacturing plant in Indiana as he pitched his economic stimulus plan. They traveled to the Department of Transportation this week and were in the Capitol Rotunda last month when he paid tribute to Abraham Lincoln in six-minute prepared remarks.
Obama’s reliance on the teleprompter is unusual — not only because he is famous for his oratory, but because no other president has used one so consistently and at so many events, large and small.
Really no surprise here, folks. He couldn't give an extemporaneous speech to save his life.
After the teleprompter malfunctioned a few times last summer and Obama delivered some less-than-soaring speeches, reports surfaced that he was training to wean himself off of the device while on vacation in Hawaii. But no such luck...
“It’s just something presidents haven’t done,” said Martha Joynt Kumar, a presidential historian who has held court in the White House since December 1975. “It’s jarring to the eye. In a way, it stands in the middle between the audience and the president because his eye is on the teleprompter.”
Just how much of a crutch the teleprompter has become for Obama was on sharp display during his latest commerce secretary announcement. The president spoke from a teleprompter in the ornate Indian Treaty Room for a few minutes. Then Gov. Gary Locke stepped to the podium and pulled out a piece of paper for reference.
Ok, that's not awkward or unprofessional at all, President Obama. How would people react if Sarah Palin or another Republican had endured the same circumstance?
The president’s teleprompter also elicited some uncomfortable laughter after he announced Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as his choice for Health and Human Services secretary. “Kathy,” Obama said, turning the podium over to Sebelius, who waited at the microphone for an awkward few seconds while the teleprompters were lowered to the floor and the television cameras rolled.
Obama has relied on a teleprompter through even the shortest announcements and when repeating the same lines on his economic stimulus plan that he's been saying for months — whereas past presidents have mostly worked off of notes on the podium except during major speeches, such as the State of the Union.
It's like the President doesn't retain anything he's said time and again. How can this be? I think it's because he doesn't really mean what he's saying, or else he wouldn't need the crutch of a prompter to remind him what he wants to say. If you know and believe in something (large, national speeches aside), it shouldn't be that difficult to do so without the use of a prompter.
The man couldn't even announce cabinet picks without the contraption. How the heck do we expect him to lead the United States of America?
The White House says Obama’s point of reference is insignificant.
"Whether one uses note cards or a teleprompter, the American people are a lot more concerned about the plans relayed than the method of delivery. This is not always true of the media," said Bill Burton, deputy press secretary.
Not so sure Bill's right on this one. I find the teleprompter very distracting if I see it, and I don't like it when politicians don't look into the lens of the camera at the American people, but rather methodically gaze from left to right.
Here's a photo of the Sarah Palin rally I attended in Richmond last year. As you can see, the stupid prompter was in my view the whole time. Annoying? Yes.
Can Sarah Palin pull off a wail of a speech without a prompter? Definitely (as evidenced at the RNC when her prompter supposedly failed on occasion):
In a break from his routine, Obama did not use a teleprompter during his pre-Inauguration speech at a factory in Bedford Heights, Ohio — and his delivery seemed to suffer. He paused too long at parts. He accentuated the wrong words. And overall he sounded hesitant and halting as he spoke from the prepared remarks on the podium...
But be it extra precaution, style or a mental crutch, Obama has shown in the past that he needs the teleprompter. And while he still has his prepared remarks placed on the podium in a leather folder, the White House has shown no sign of trying to wean him off of it.
Wow. Yes, it is a mental crutch. No question about it. We've all seen what it looks and sounds like when Obama has no prompter...it goes something like this:
Or this:
h/t to Ed Morrisey at Hot Air
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8 comments:
Where's the teleprompter in the Sarah's pic? I can't see it.
One thing I've noticed since the campain, is that at times when Obama is looking at someone in an interview situation and the question is a little trying or when he seems to not want to answer the question his eyelids start to open and shut quickly.
promachus,
see the black pole in front of the podium? that's it...the glass screen wasn't in the shot, but believe me, it was there. haha!
M,
I know! I noticed that during in the debates too actually.
No differing views allowed...it makes Obama think too much about things.
Great post, everytime I watch that speech I get goose bumps and become quite emotional, as I am in awe of her!!!
I crossposted w/ attribution, take care
You nailed it - his beliefs aren't strongly held.
Alternatively, my son suggests "his brain is empty."
Great post.
Adding you to my 'elite' blog list. Sorry, should have done it before.
Jill
The media have always swooned about what a great orator he is, but that's BS. I remember when Gov. Palin made her great acceptance speech, the 0bama camp blasted her for using a speech writer. 0bama and company would be funny if they weren't in control of the country, which is really really sad.
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