The Football Gamble: Obama Fumbles, Boehner Scores

Not a bad article:

What if the president gave a major speech and no one heard it?

Not a likely scenario, yet this was the question in play for several days as President Obama requested and was kinda-sorta denied an audience before a joint session of Congress. He wasn’t flatly denied, though House Speaker John Boehner strongly suggested that the Republican-controlled House would prefer that he speak the following night, Sept. 8. Logistics, security and various technicalities were cited.

As Kevin Smith, Boehner’s communications director, explained to me:

“No one in the speaker’s office — not the speaker, not any staff — signed off on the date the White House announced abruptly. It’s unfortunate the White House ignored standard protocol of working out a mutually agreeable date and time before making any public announcement. We want to find common ground to help create jobs and lasting economic growth that our country so desperately needs, and we look forward to hearing the president’s speech Thursday night.”

Of course, that night, which Obama ultimately accepted, was also problematic because the prime-time slot coincided with something far more important than a presidential speech on jobs and the economy — football!

The Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints kick off at 8:30. Would the president mind too terribly much speaking before the game so as not to interfere? Once again, Obama obliged.

Football!

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