On Monday's NBC Today, 9 a.m. ET hour co-host Willie Geist actually tried to spin top Democratic Party surrogates like Michelle Obama and Bill Clinton mispronouncing the name of Iowa Senate candidate Bruce Braley as a boost to Braley's campaign: "But now he's getting a lot of name recognition. Maybe it was like evil genius move, who knows?"
So his biggest supporters not knowing his name helps with name recognition? In the clip of the First Lady that was featured, she even went so far as to direct people to the wrong website: "You need to elect Bruce Bailey to the U.S. Senate....vote.BruceBailey.com, that's vote.BruceBailey.com."
Geist and his fellow co-hosts tried to excuse Michelle Obama's gaffe. Geist observed: "Here's my thing, that's a Teleprompter speech....She's reading the speech. Does that mean "Bailey" was in the prompter? Like some – a staffer let her down? Or did she just blow through what she was reading?"
Tamron Hall offered another explanation: "Or sometimes it's stuck in your head, a name gets stuck in your head, and you just glaze past. Even, you know, when we read our Teleprompter sometimes, you'll see something....But your mind glazes past it."
Natalie Morales argued: "And Bruce Braley doesn't quite roll off the tongue."
Geist noted that Mrs. Obama was not alone in her mispronunciation: "By the way, President Clinton made the same mistake a couple of weeks ago when he was in Iowa, also called him Bruce Bailey, that's true. And then over the weekend, Mitt Romney blew the name in a different variation." A soundbite ran of Romney referring to "Bill Braley."
When Geist suggested that people constantly getting Braley's name wrong was somehow a good thing for the Democrat's Senate run, Morales chimed in: "That's true. Actually, maybe it kind of works that way."
The discussion of Braley's name was the only midterm election coverage provided on Monday's Today show.
Here is a full transcript of the October 13 segment:
9:00 AM ET
WILLIE GEIST: Have you guys ever been in a public place and said somebody's name wrong?
NATALIE MORALES: Oh, so many times.
GEIST: Like you're up talking, giving a speech...
TAMRON HALL: All the time.
MORALES: All the time.
GEIST: ...introducing someone, you flub the name.
MORALES: I flub your name all the time.
GEIST: I know you do, and it's really – I want to talk to you offline about that. It's really starting to get to me.
MORALES: She calls you Willis, so.
GEIST: Willis?
HALL: Thank you, Natalie for reminding – it isn't on purpose.
GEIST: They don't know my name, I've been sitting between the two of you for years and you don't know my name, it really hurts me.
But, so there's this big Senate race going on in Iowa, okay? We've got the Republican Joni Ernst and Bruce Braley. Bruce Braley is the Democrat. So, Democrats send in the First Lady, Michelle Obama, to do a little campaigning for the candidate, Mr. Braley. Here's how she spoke about Mr. Braley.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Name Game; First Lady's Mispronunciation Goes Viral]
MICHELLE OBAMA: Then you need to elect Bruce Bailey to the U.S. Senate...who put families first, leaders like Bruce Bailey...All of us just in this room right now could swing for Bruce Bailey....vote.BruceBailey.com, that's vote.BruceBailey.com. Or even better, you can – Braley – what did I say? I'm losing it. I'm getting old. I've been traveling too much. vote.BruceBraley.com.
GEIST: So "Bruce Bailey," said it seven times. Here's my thing, that's a Teleprompter speech. That's what those two pieces of glass, for those of you watching at home, next to her are. She's reading the speech. Does that mean "Bailey" was in the prompter? Like some – a staffer let her down? Or did she just blow through what she was reading?
HALL: Or sometimes it's stuck in your head, a name gets stuck in your head, and you just glaze past. Even, you know, when we read our Teleprompter sometimes, you'll see something-
GEIST: You read a prompter?
[LAUGHTER]
GEIST: See with me it's all here.
MORALES: All in the head.
HALL: Because he's magic. That's what we call him. Willis Magic. But your mind glazes past it, I don't know what happened there, though.
MORALES: And Bruce Braley doesn't quite roll off the tongue.
HALL: Yeah, it does not.
MORALES: Bruce Braley.
GEIST: A lot of Rs. She was not – by the way, President Clinton made the same mistake a couple of weeks ago when he was in Iowa, also called him Bruce Bailey, that's true. And then over the weekend, Mitt Romney blew the name in a different variation.
MITT ROMNEY: Now I know that Iowa voted for President Obama twice, but Iowa is not going to vote for Bill Braley and vote for him a third time, that's for sure.
GEIST: So now he's Bill Braley.
MORALES: It's the name nobody can get right.
GEIST: If you're voting in Iowa, the name is Bruce Braley against Joni Ernst.
HALL: He should say B-squared. "Call me B-squared and be done with it." That's hilarious.
GEIST: But now he's getting a lot of name recognition. Maybe it was like...
MORALES: That's true. Actually, maybe it kind of works that way.
GEIST: ...evil genius move, who knows?
HALL: Nice.
