Barack, the Insult Comic Dog

[immoderate]

I admire the president, don't always agree, but I am always impressed with his talents. And I think that he has stumbled upon conceived the perfect vehicle to press his issues. The conference with the Republicans set the arena, and if he can land them, the meeting on health care should establish it as a series. And this one should sell.

It's a reality show, like Deal or No Deal or The Bachelor with a touch of The Daily Show and American Idol thrown in. Obama is always the main act, and gets the last word. And should I mention that Barack is pretty good at rhetoric, not to mention comedy, and while comity may keep him above the dog level, they think he can't do this without a teleprompter! "POW!" says Jon Stewart when he plays the clips from this.

It's a baseball game where Obama is the only hitter, and good at this position, and every pitcher they bring in is minor league at best. It's John Houseman in The Paper Chase, the law professor (natch) overwhelming the students with his brilliance. Is there a touch of Letterman thrown in? You have to be quick.

Can Obama keep the Republicans on the hook for this? Should he swat them down? Maybe they won't come back. But if he baits the hook with "bi-partisanship" he can keep them snapping. I'm not sure how it will go as the episodes unfold, but I can spot a hit.

--imm