Axelrod Joke: Obamas Considered Naming Dog Miss California

On Monday, NewsBusters asked, Is Miss California the Left's new Sarah Palin?

Given what White House senior advisor David Axelrod said in jest about the Obamas considering naming their new dog "Miss California," and judging by the reaction from the audience at George Washington University, one has to think the answer is a resounding "Yes."

Appearing on NPR's "Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me," Axelrod was asked about Bo by host Peter Sagal.

Axelrod's response, and the audience laughter, is rather telling (YouTube audio embedded below the fold with partial transcript):

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PETER SAGAL, HOST: So, let's take the President's dog. Obviously, that was focus-grouped, you really wanted to appeal to the Portuguese-American community with the choice. Seriously, do you, is it part of your job to worry about that, how things will play politically. How they'll look, how they should be framed? 

DAVID AXELROD, WHITE HOUSE SENIOR ADVISOR: I only, I only got called in for the final three on the dog.

SAGAL: Really? 

AXELROD: I wasn't there at the beginning of the process.

SAGAL: Seriously, were you consulted?

AXELROD: I was not consulted.

SAGAL: Really?

AXELROD: I was not consulted. 

SAGAL: Really?

AXELROD: Yeah.

UNIDENTIFIED VOICE: But who were the other two? Were there really two others? 

AXELROD: One was Miss California.

(Audience applause and laughter)

UNIDENTIFIED VOICE: Dude, you just lost the carelessly topless demographic for 2012.

Amazing. Now White House advisors are joining the attacks on this woman while media and audience members seemingly applaud.

Honestly, what is happening to this nation?

*****Update: There is some confusion as to what Axelrod and Sagal were discussing. Were they talking about the choice of dogs or choice of names? The way Drudge and Real Clear Politics framed it, they were talking about names. The New York Times piece seemed unclear, although it suggested they were discussing the choice of dogs. 

Frankly, I'm not sure. It seems to me that regardless of what Sagal was asking, Axelrod must have been talking about names, as even from a comedic standpoint, the Obamas certainly weren't considering making Miss California their pet. As a joke, it makes no sense. Of course, if that's the joke, regardless of how absurd, that's even more offensive, astoundingly so.

What do you think they were talking about? Is the punch line that they were considering naming the dog Miss California, or that they were considering making Prejean their pet?