Great moments in cognitive dissonance, courtesy of the other Roger Simon, who writes for Politico — and says stuff like this on Sunday talk shows:
HOWARD KURTZ, HOST: So is the press starting to sour on the stalemate in Libya?
Joining us now here in Washington, Roger Simon, chief political columnist for Politico; Dana Milbank, columnist for “The Washington Post,” and in San Francisco, Debra Saunders, a columnist for “The San Francisco Chronicle.”
AdvertisementRoger Simon, are the journalists and the anchors we just saw now aggressively challenging and acting openly skeptical about the Obama policy in Libya?
ROGER SIMON, CHIEF POLITICAL COLUMNIST, POLITICO: Yes, and that’s a good thing. We’re supposed to be openly skeptical.
The bloom isn’t entirely off the rose between Obama and the press, but reporters are starting to concentrate more than ever on what he says rather than how he says it. We will stipulate that he’s the greatest orator of modern times, but now we’re looking beyond that in every speech for what he’s actually telling us.
As Noel Sheppard responds, “Really?” Obama’s a better orator “than Martin Luther King, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt?”
Some rubes simply aren’t yet ready to self-identify.
As the Great Emancipator said:
The other Roger Simon is obviously in the first group.
“now we’re looking beyond that in every speech for what he’s actually telling us.”
Now?? Now??????
Great oratory is not just a function of a sonorous voice, skilled modulation and careful pacing. It is, above all, about content, and here Obama fails miserably. His speeches have been reduced to cliches – and they’re not even true cliches, just mendacious bullet points. Listening to Obama give a speech is like listening to someone playing Chopsticks on a grand piano.
Never in decades of life, until now, have I appreciated the brilliance of the story learned as child: ‘The Emperors New Clothes’.
“We will stipulate that he’s the greatest orator of modern times.”
YOU will stipulate?? Stipulate away, not only are you out of your mind, but many of us have been telling you you were out of your mind ever since Obama showed up. For the record, I was standing in Mr. Lincoln’s shadow on inauguration day. I do remember Obama’s voice echoing off the monuments. Nice voice, cool effect. I can’t remember one g–d— thing he said that was remotely memorable or even interesting. His ‘Beer Summit’ and Gabrielle Giffords speeches were above his par, and other than that……. what???? When where all these “greatest orations” and Demosthenes come to life? When??? Where????
Simon will continue to “stipulate” to his fantasies. Obviously he and his ilk have created a utterly non-existant Obama fantasy, and are convinced it will be real by virtue of their saying it, and saying it, and saying it. (I tried that with my Megyn Kelly fantasy, it didn’t work.)
Hans Chritian Andersen nailed it, chapter and verse. Maybe he didn’t quite catch the ability of the Emperors devotees to jam their fingers in their ears against a legion of forthright little boys, and scream “LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA THE CLOTHES ARE WONDERFUL LA LA LA LA LA LA!!!!!”…. but other than that, he nailed it cold. Almost two centuries ago.
And as to today’s “geniuses”…..yet again, I am laughing at the superior intellect.
In Obama’s case, the clothes have no emperor.
As with the difference between the True Believer left and the situational ones — who know what they’re saying is crap but do it to fire up the troops and maintain power — it would be interesting to hear some of the liberal pundits when the mikes are off say what they really think of Obama.
In the case of Politico’s Roger Simon, my guess is he knows Obama’s basically President Barney Fife mixed with the work eithic of Lindsey Lohan, but felt obligated/peer pressured into that “Greatest Orator of All Time” line to prove to others in his D.C. circle that he’s not a heretic for his other mild criticisms of the president. As for someone like E.J. Dionne or Paul Krugman on “Meet the Press”, they really are Franz Liebkin climbing on the stage in New York and berating the audience for laughing at Franz’s hero.