NBC Finds No Time for Ongoing ObamaCare Disaster, But Plenty for Obamas' First Date

November 20th, 2013 4:32 PM

After censoring any coverage of the continuing ObamaCare disaster since Monday morning, NBC did manage to find time to cover Michelle Obama's fashion choices and the First Couple's first date on Wednesday's Today, with co-host Matt Lauer excitedly telling viewers to stay tuned: "First Lady Michelle Obama opens up about her very first date with the future president as well as her biggest fashion regret." [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump]

In the segment that followed, news reader Natalie Morales gushed: "We're used to seeing First Lady Michelle Obama looking very stylish and picture perfect, but in a new interview with BET, the First Lady admitted there is one particular look that she now regrets....the First Lady was also asked about her first date with the President and she revealed more about their day-long adventure than she's ever really revealed before."

After a clip played of the First Lady detailing the date, the hosts fawned over the outing. Lauer remarked at "what a show-off" President Obama was, while fellow co-host Savannah Guthrie wondered: "Yeah, what do you do for an encore at that point?" Weatherman Al Roker joked: "You become president. 'You think that's good? Watch what I'm gonna do coming up, I'm gonna be president.'" The studio then erupted in laughter.

As far as that "fashion regret," an earlier sound bite ran of Michelle Obama complaining, "I know the first time we went on a family vacation I had shorts on getting off of Air Force One and that created a huge stink because people were like, 'She's wearing shorts getting off of Air Force One.'" Morales laughed at the mock-scandal: "Well, remember shorts-gate, that happened back in 2009."

Meanwhile, NBC has refused to cover the actual scandal of the President's signature policy falling apart and jeopardizing the health care of millions of Americans.

On Wednesday's CBS This Morning, chief White House correspondent Major Garrett was reporting on shocking congressional testimony from Obama administration officials that much of ObamaCare's infrastructure had yet to created.

On Tuesday, both This Morning and ABC's Good Morning America noted "brutal" low poll numbers for Obama as well as revelations that the administration knew of major HealthCare.gov problems as early as March.  

In the twenty-four hour period between Monday and Tuesday morning, NBC gave more air time (8 minutes) to the "family feud" between Liz and Mary Cheney over gay marriage than to ObamaCare (5 minutes 20 seconds).


Here is a full transcript of the November 20 pro-Obama fluff that NBC tried to pass off as news to its millions of viewers:

8:00AM ET TEASE:

MATT LAUER: First Lady Michelle Obama opens up about her very first date with the future president as well as her biggest fashion regret.

8:14AM ET SEGMENT:  

NATALIE MORALES: Alright, well, we're used to seeing First Lady Michelle Obama looking very stylish and picture perfect, but in a new interview with BET, the First Lady admitted there is one particular look that she now regrets.

[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: First Lady of Fashion; Michelle Obama's Biggest Fashion Regret]

MICHELLE OBAMA: Sometimes I forget I'm the first lady and I'm like running around in shorts. I know the first time we went on a family vacation I had shorts on getting off of Air Force One and that created a huge stink because people were like, "She's wearing shorts getting off of Air Force One." And I thought, we're on vacation.

MORALES: Well, remember shorts-gate, that happened back in 2009. The First Family, she said they were on vacation in Arizona, it was over 100 degrees there. So I guess that explains that.

But the First Lady was also asked about her first date with the President and she revealed more about their day-long adventure than she's ever really revealed before. Take a listen.

[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: A Presidential Impression; Michelle Obama Talks About the First Date]

OBAMA: He laid it out, I mean he covered every base. He took me to an art museum, and then he was talking Picasso – so he showed me his little cultural side. And then we went for a long walk and we went to see the opening of Do the Right Thing, Spike Lee. So he showed me his swag side. We had a deep conversation about that. And we ended it having drinks on the top of the John Hancock building in Chicago. That was our first date.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN [BET HOST]: Wow.

OBAMA: Yeah.

MORALES: Not a bad date.

TAMRON HALL: Nice.

LAUER: What a show-off.

HALL: He threw it all on the table.

MORALES: Everything from Picasso to-

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Yeah, what do you do for an encore at that point?

HALL: He was worried he wasn't going to get a second shot.

AL ROKER: You become president.

[LAUGHTER]

ROKER: "You think that's good? Watch what I'm gonna do coming up, I'm gonna be president."