Please someone explain to me: Why doesn't Obama go on national TV to expose these lunatics?

[da_decider]

Why doesn't Obama go on national TV to tell people there are enough votes in House to end government shutdown but Boehner is too spineless to allow a vote?

[JaneyVee]

1. I give him like 2 more attempts at negotiations and then believe he probably will.

ETA: it would be a super plus if he actually DID use the term "lunatics" as well.

[Skinner]

2. Didn't he do that today?

[JoePhilly]

6. I was going to say the same thing. He did .. link here.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/10/03/obama-boehner-shutdown-debt-limit/2918545/

[Agschmid]

9. I'm thinking...

The OP means a national address from say the Oval Office? I agree I think he pretty much laid it all out today, and I'd hazard a guess he will do something similar at all public appearances for the short term future.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. I thought he'd already done that. I know he said something to that effect

yesterday or today.

[mucifer]

4. He does it and only the people who want to hear it can hear it.

[Agschmid]

11. Fox did not play his speech today...

Only major news network not too... They don't want you to see it.

[Tx4obama]

5. Turn on your TV. Obama has been calling for a House vote on the clean CR and he has been ...

... calling out Boehner/republicans for not allowing the vote

[JI7]

7. he did

[ecstatic]

8. Here you go:

Fast forward to 9 minutes in:

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

10. What the hell are you talking about? This president has been on the fucking television EVERY

FUCKING DAY!!! Jesus Christ, I am so tired of this shit!! This man has been everywhere, EVERY DAY!!!!

Just because you haven't seen him doesn't mean he has been there.

He has been screaming his lungs out!! MY GOD!!!!

---

ETA: Now that I've calmed down, I have to say that the president has been out there, every single day calling the Republicans out, naming names.

The polls are clearly showing that it is the Republicans who are being harmed by the shutdown.

Let's all take a deep breath and point the finger where it belongs: squarely at the Republican Party, not at the president.

Sorry for yelling.

[Nevernose]

12. This is actually my biggest criticism of Obama

Presidents used to give press conferences frequently, multiple times a week. Clinton gave press conferences almost daily.

That evil, vile motherfucker Bush stopped the practice. I thought Obama would revert back to "the way it was," but he rarely does press conferences. He really cedes the power if the bully pulpit.

Most of my criticisms are minor, though, and he's been doing very well regarding the government shut down.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

22. And it shouldn't be. If you're paying attention, this president has been screaming at the top of his

lungs every single day. The media is simply not showing his speeches. They're simply not.

Go look at the White House daily schedule. You will see all of his stops, all the speeches he has made. I swear to you, the Corporate Media has not been covering these talks at all. You have to keep watching C-SPAN to get any coverage at all.

I live in Maryland. He's been everywhere here. Just today, he was right down the street, talking to businesses, calling Republicans out to their face. It was brilliant.

This is very frustrating for me because he has been out there. The president has been out there since 2009 explaining this law. He gets very little coverage. Very little. And he's out there alone. No help from Democratic Party leadership. None.

[Douglas Carpenter]

26. President Obama doesn't agree with you about that

“I think it’s fair to say that — during the course of my presidency — I have bent over backwards to work with the Republican Party. And have purposely kept my rhetoric down,” Obama told CNBC. “I think I’m pretty well-known for being a calm guy. Sometimes people think I’m too calm. And am I exasperated? Absolutely I’m exasperated. Because this is entirely unnecessary.” -

http://washington.cbslocal.com/2013/10/03/obama-i-have-bent-over-backwards-to-work-with-the-republican-party/

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

28. I was a bit hyperbolic in my comments, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't been out there.

He absolutely has. Look at the schedule. He has. He may not be as loud and histrionic as we want him to be; he's not a combative person. But to assert that he's not been visible isn't true. It's just not.

[Nevernose]

30. I meant literally press conferences

Not speeches. When the media gets to ask him questions directly, in a competitive environment, it's different, and gets far more coverage.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

31. O.K. Far enough. I think the president is doing exactly the right thing.

[Barack_America]

13. Pretty sure I saw him on tv today saying exactly that. Nt

[BeyondGeography]

14. He has got the pacing right

If we're still playing this game in a week with the debt ceiling needing to be raised by 10/17, you'll see more than CNBC interviews with John Harwood and morning press briefings. Full hair-on-fire mode needs to be reserved for that.

[Douglas Carpenter]

15. I have been very critical of him - but I think he is pretty much doing that now

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

23. He's ALWAYS been doing that. No coverage from the Corporate Media. NONE!!

[Douglas Carpenter]

27. he sees that very differently than you do

http://washington.cbslocal.com/2013/10/03/obama-i-have-bent-over-backwards-to-work-with-the-republican-party/

“I think it’s fair to say that — during the course of my presidency — I have bent over backwards to work with the Republican Party. And have purposely kept my rhetoric down,” Obama told CNBC. “I think I’m pretty well-known for being a calm guy. Sometimes people think I’m too calm. And am I exasperated? Absolutely I’m exasperated. Because this is entirely unnecessary.”

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

29. You've already posted this and made your point. I've already responded. We disagree.

[liberal N proud]

16. If he gave a national address, the lunatics would demand time to respond

And they would have the last word!

[TheCowsCameHome]

17. How about on the front steps of the Capitol?

Point to the door and say "There lies the cause of this manufactured fiasco"

[Rex]

18. He doesn't need to, Congress passed a law that he is enforcing

that is explaining (literally) the difference between the Democratic party and the Republican party. To millions and millions of potential voters. I think the GOP brand might be going obsolete. If the current freakout that I am watching is any indication.

[kentuck]

19. Maybe FOX didn't broadcast it?

You know, if a tree falls in the forest, and nobody hears it, does it make a sound?

[CatWoman]

24. I think he's still deciding

.....

[Bluenorthwest]

20. He has and he's not mincing words either.

Specifically heard him explain that John Boehner would not allow a vote, and that if he would a clean bill would pass.

[arcane1]

21. I suspect it is because it's totally a House/Senate issue. His role is to sign what hits his desk.

Drawing justified attention to a House/Senate issue is something especially useful when a mid-term election approaches

Of course, it would also require the cooperation of National TV.

[tavernier]

25. Is there a law against the president

conducting a filibuster? Standing on the steps of the capital and telling Americans that he will stay there and advocate for them until they are released and no longer held hostage?

That would be sooo Gary Cooper/Jimmy Stewart/Gregory Peck!!

[SteveG]

32. The Debt Ceiling

is the far greater threat. I think he is waiting to pull out all the stops - prime time all networks speech from the Oval Office - on that issue if he has to.