(Spoiler Alert: Don't read this post yet if you haven't watched the show yet, and want to enjoy the suspense!)
Given that the core foreign policy strategy of Mitt Romney and the Republicans has been to try to manufacture a scandal surrounding the deaths of four Americans in the Benghazi Consulate, and to argue that President Obama is weak in defending America, our President's appearance taped Thursday afternoon, Oct. 18, on Jon Stewart's Daily Show takes on added significance. Yesterday, Jon Stewart totally skewered Mitt Romney's Wile-E.-Coyote-like self-immolation in attempting to ambush President Obama in the second debate.
In Obama denies confusion in Benghazi response on 'Daily Show,' we learn that Jon Stewart asked if the President would work to improve communication in his administration, suggesting that "even you will admit, it was not the optimal response ...,"
"Here’s what I’ll say. If four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal. We’re going to fix it. All of it,” Obama said. “What happens, during the course of a presidency, is that the government is a big operation and any given time something screws up. And you make sure that you find out what’s broken and you fix it.”
When Stewart asked if there was confusion in the response, our President reponds:
“We weren’t confused about the fact that four Americans had been killed. I wasn’t confused about the fact that we needed to ramp up diplomatic security around the world right after it happened. I wasn’t confused about the fact that we had to investigate exactly what happened so it gets fixed. And I wasn’t confused about the fact that we’re going to hunt down whoever did it,” Obama said. "Every piece of information that we get, as we got it we laid it out to the American people. The picture eventually gets fully filled in."
Here's our President vibrating on strength, confidence, competence and resolve, i.e. the opposite of Wile E. Coyote.
Stewart also asks President Obama if he is running a positive campaign on his record and plans for a second term, or a negative case against Mitt Romney, President Obama says that both approaches are necessary and "two sides of the same coin."
What I’ve been fighting for for the last four years, what I intend to fight for for the next four years, is an economy that is based on the free market, rewards individual initiative, rewards people who are starting a business, taking risks, but that also says there are some things we do better together.”
The interview has its mirthful moments as well, which you can wait to watch, or check out the article for details.
In terms of the election competition with Mitt Romney, the timing and audience for this interview are excellent, as yesterday in his monologue Jon Stewart rendered a hilarious Wile E. Coyote satire of President Obama's takedown of Mitt Romney's bungled attempt at a Benghazi scandal ambush - compare the President's "Proceed, Governor Romney" quote to an invitation of the Roadrunner to Wile E. Coyote to run through a picture of a tunnel painted on a rock wall.
This one, two punch set-up should neutralize Romney's and the Republicans Benghazi nonsense.
6:05 PM PT: Come to think of it, this is one heck of a substantive interview. Yesterday, Nate Silver was ribbing Jon about "entertainment masquerading as news."
Now that Jon Steward has delivered such a substantive, and timely interview with our President, he can credibly retort to be the opposite "news masquerading as entertainment."