Maddow Delights in Double Standard for Presidential Testiness

Can you believe those reporters from the New York Times, asking President Obama if he's a socialist?

MSNBC cable-show host Rachel Maddow was flummoxed by such audacity as she showed during her program Monday evening.

Early in the broadcast, Maddow said this about the pesky scribes and Obama's "steamed" response to their inquiries --

During a long New York Times interview on board Air Force One, the president was asked repeatedly, awkwardly, insistently if he's a socialist. Barack Obama, shockingly, said (pause) no. And once the interview ended, the president apparently got his version of steamed, because he called the reporters back after the interview to say more. To say not only is he not a socialist, but it was the Bush administration that bought up bank shares and pushed the huge prescription drug plan with no way to pay for it, so who's calling who what now?! (pause) OK, he didn't say the last part about who's calling, I was reading between the lines on that part. Sorry.

Imagine that, reporters "repeatedly, awkardly, insistently" asking questions of the highest public servant in the land -- as opposed to kissing his ring. How dare they.

To paraphrase my favorite line from "Dr. Strangelove" -- Gentlemen, you can't ask insistent questions here, this is the press room!

Maddow had a different take on earlier example of presidential testiness, that of George W. Bush during a press conference last April.

First, Maddow played an audio clip of Gen. David McKiernan, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, telling the BBC that "we are not winning" in parts of Afghanistan. Next up was Obama's response in that New York Times' interview to the same question -- "No," Obama said, we're not winning. Maddow followed this by playing a clip of Bush bristling after ABC News reporter Martha Raddatz repeatedly asked the same thing in April, with Maddow saying this about Bush's response --

Wow, charmed, I'm sure. The new president is not only answering that question, without all the junior high whining about the follow-ups, he's also suggesting that he might end up being open to some sort of overture toward elements of the Taliban.

Psst, just don't ask Obama if he's a socialist.

By the way, a possible "overture toward elements" of the Taliban has long been suggested by Gen. David Petraeus, the alleged traitor who turned the tide of the war we most assuredly were not losing, at least as of mid-January.