CHANGE SAME: White House chooses new guy to lie to you about how bad our fiscal situation is.

Congrats, Jay. Remember, answering any question about debt and sustainability is an easy three-step process. First, acknowledge in terms as vaguely as possible that we’re near a “tipping point” before quickly steering the conversation back towards, say, high-speed rail. If the press corps won’t let you get away with that, acknowledge that the White House is always willing to have a conversation about “bipartisan solutions” but take care not to suggest any actual solutions yourself. And third, needless to say, be sure to finish by touting the “savings” in ObamaCare.

And if all that fails, pretend to be offended by something a Republican said. E.g., according to Bloomberg News, Michele Bachmann responded to Obama’s absolutely shameless call for a balanced budget in the SOTU by calling it “absolutely shameless.” Highly uncivil. You never see Democrats behaving like that, do you?

The country’s in the very best of hands.