Can they be this blinded by Republican talking points?
Kroft: Are you saying, then, that this small-- the idea of smaller, less costly, more accountable government was not what you think the voters were saying?
Obama: No, no, no. There is no doubt that folks are concerned about debt and deficits. I think that is absolutely a priority. And by the way that's a concern that I had before I was even sworn in.
....(different part of interview)
Obama: And we're gonna have to, you know, tackle some big issues like entitlements that, you know, when you listen to the Tea Party or you listen to Republican candidates, they promise we're not gonna touch. Those are the choices that I think Republicans and Tea Party members are gonna have to confront in a serious way.
Except it isn't true...
For all the recent frenzy over reducing the deficit, a new poll by CBS News shows that only 4% of Americans consider it the biggest problem faced by the country.
Respondents were asked: "Of all the problems facing this country today, which one do you most want the new Congress to concentrate on first when it begins in January?"
56% of respondents said Congress should focus on the economy and jobs 14% said health care, while only 4% said the budget deficit and national debt. Immigration, education, wars in Iraq or Afghanistan, and taxes each got 2%, while 9% said other.
Another brilliant reading of the electorate by the President and his political team.
A note to David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett.
Turn off Morning Joe.