Yes, she really said it.
On CNN’s Piers Morgan Live Tuesday, in a brief discussion about President Obama, Barbara Walters actually said, “We thought that he was going to be - I shouldn't say this at Christmastime, but - the next messiah” (video follows with transcript and commentary):
PIERS MORGAN, HOST: You have interviewed every president of my lifetime. Why is Obama facing so much opposition now? Why is he struggling so much to really fulfill the great flame of ambition and excitement that he was elected on originally in 2009?
BARBARA WALTERS: Well, you've touched on it to a degree. He made so many promises. We thought that he was going to be - I shouldn't say this at Christmastime, but - the next messiah. And the whole ObamaCare, or whatever you want to call it, the Affordable Health Act, it just hasn't worked for him, and he’s stumbled around on it, and people feel very disappointed because they expected more.
It's very difficult when the expectations for you are very high. You're almost better off when they are low and then they rise and rise. His were very high and they’ve dropped. But you know, he still has several years to go. What does he have, three years, Piers? And, you know, there will be a lot of changes, one thinks in that time.
Just imagine someone of Walters’ stature actually admitting that she and others expected Obama to be the next messiah.
Quite a thing to say on the very day a new poll found this president having the lowest approval rating of any since Nixon.
It's also worth noting that this came the day after the Washington Post said Obama was responsible for three of the top ten biggest Pinocchios of the year, and five days after PolitiFact awarded him the Lie of the Year.
Some messiah, Barbara.
