Helen Thomas and Chip Reid were spot on.

I for one am completely suprised that the President would only take planted questions.

Liz,

-Don’t get too comfortable over there asking questions like this. The Obama’s brown-shirts don’t like it. It is not “useful” for the social revolution.

-If you really dig though, you will find that this is just the latest in attempts to “control the news”.

-Look up Mitch Taylor, and his exclusion from global-warming conference, despite being THE polar bear expert. Reason, his view was cited as “unhelpful” to the CAUSE…www.telegraph.co.uk/…/Polar-bear-expert-barred-by-global-warmists.html

-Trust is an earned thing. You can’t break something you’ve never had.

-I want to find just ONE journalist who will ask the Obama why he won’t unseal the mountain of school, business, medical, and personal records that all previous administrations are forced to turn over. JUST ONE!

-Let us SEE the truth, if he’s got nothing to hide.

“What do staged questions say about Obama’s health care plan?”

What do your daily talking points tell you it means?

It is nothing new to me, I have known he was a figurine for some time now. Everything he does is staged; get him off script and he has trouble speaking his name.

He cant debate the merits of his plan against a worthy adversary, so he uses the media to shut off debate by only allowing his side to be heard.

Obama’s sermonizing about having fair and honest debates about anything are BS. He makes Clinton and Nixon look like models of honesty.

Obama doesn’t resort to cheap stunts and canned messages as a last resort. They’re a deliberate part of his act. His handlers know he’ll get ripped to shreds in an open forum, which is why they rarely allows even the mildest skeptic to participate in his goat and pony shows. He’s been burned several times and come off as complete boob.

Unfortunately we’re likely to see more of this stuff as it becomes clearer that his policies stink and more Americans reject them. Control over the press is a well known tactic among fascists.

It is amazing how concerned Fox News is about staged questions. Why weren’t they as concerned during the previous administration? Heck they wouldn’t even let moderate Republicans ask questions.

It is amazing how concerned Fox News is about staged questions. Why weren’t they as concerned during the previous administration? Heck they wouldn’t even let moderate Republicans ask questions.
— GetReal
12:57 pm July 2nd, 2009

Psssttt!! The previous administration is “previous” as in they are no longer around.

How you defend corrupt behavior by pointing to other corrupt behavior boggles my mind.

Obama is still running for the office, and this is because he knows he will not get anything substantive accomplished during his term in office. He therefore continues to promise and guarantee so that the same pinheads that elected him this time will elect him again, hoping his dreams come true. This guy is a bake sale organizer, not presidential material. He needs these shills and plants in public meetings and conferences to give him the opportunity to say what he wants without interruption by the “other side”. This is the way he and the republicans are approaching everything from talk radio to healthcare. The “one man-one vote” premise is dead, but hopefully not forever.

Bush was stupid and way too silent. This guy is dangerous and talks way too much.

And they said Bush was bad when speaking off the cuff. If it was something Bush was passionate about he delivered it from the heart and did it very well. When you get Obamaprompter away from the canned messages he’s less than believable. I’m not surprised they are spoonfeeding him the questions and scripting the answers for him.

Ex-President Bush became infamous for holding only staged events, especially in the last years of his administration.

His press conferences were no where near as frequent.

How are people who e-mail questions to get their questions handled? Especially since some of those in the press gallery seem to have too narrow of a focus. Or is it that those of the press who have deemed themselves “important” too important to consider the possibility that others may have legitimate questions?

Being able to choose which questions are asked and even who asks them allows you to guide the meeting exactly where you want it to go, bring out those points you want to emphasis and, more importantly, conceal those facts that may argue against your programs. It is a travesty more fitted to a tyrant than a democraticly elected official.

I would like to know why is it that reporters think that their questions are more important than the average American citizen?

I would rather hear questions of the [eople’s answered than those questions that the media want answered about Obma’s healthcare plan frankly. I have noproblem with this method and only have a problem with Obama and ALL Democrats if a public healthcare option doesn’t get passed in the House and Congress.

Furthermore, I haven’t seen any polls of late concerning public opinion on
any healthcare plan. This article states:

“With public and congressional support dwindling for the proposed health care plan…”

It would have been nice if this piece had backed up that statement with the facts along with information about what is showing as the main concern and wants of the people regarding healthcare.

Who can blame the POTUS. When you don’t have most of the answers, you sure don’t want people asking you questions. When you know that the answers are embarressing, you really don’t want to hear those questions. Maybe he should put a LOT more thought into health care before talking about it.

Yes, Bush had staged question, or planted journalists. All true.

Obama is supposed to be smarter, better, and more honest than Bush. Yet he pulls the same stuff. Where is Slugger and the other DNC indoctrinated robots to blame Bush for this? Two wrongs don’t make a right kids. Bush did, it was wrong, he got ripped for it. Obama did it, he was wrong…and some of you want to say Bush did it too? C’mon, if you can’t be honest with yourselves at least spare us from the incredible double-standard.

D Walker, the dwindling support for it is because Obama’s plan is a HUGE money hole that makes little fiscal sense and doesn’t even cover everybody. The CBO said there is a trillion dollar shortfall and that wasn’t even considering the whole stinking plan. Both sides are shrinking from it because it is a bad piece of legislation, plain and simple.

I would like questions from ordinary citizens too D, but whether they come from reporters or the hoi polloi, screening them beforehand is NOT a townhall meeting. It is NOT an honest discussion about the bill. It was a contrived media event designed to build support for his bad legislation. The people may want healthcare, but they don’t want THIS healthcare…

When we rule out questions before we’ve asked the question we’ve moved from educating the public to indoctrinating the public. Which in my mind exposes the fact that they know that there are glaring problems with the plan.

If Obama fails in his bid for a second term, he has a position waiting for him. The guy pitching SHAM WOW on TV doesn’t have to take tough questions either.

D. Walker,

A CNN poll reported July 1 says 51 percent of people say they favor the president’s health care plan, with 45 percent opposed.

Here’s a link to the article:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/01/health.care.poll/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular

Get-Real - have you heard Obama won the election in 2008? I think it is time for you to stop living in the past and realize that you have elected a Neomarxist out to personally destroy our country. Good job pal! Even with all his many faults, at least Bush loved this country. Now Obama is siding with the ousted Honduran leading all the while he stayed out of Iranian Muslim politics. What gives?

Thank God Helen Thomas (who is not from Fox News) and is a Democrat to boot, is waking up along with others at what an Obamanation this administration is. Let’s see if giggling Giggy allows her to sit in the front row any longer much less ask any questions. There may be hope yet folks.

I don’t think Obama is the first to control the content of questions asked in a public venue. In fact, I know he isn’t. The husband of one of my co-workers was picked to ask a question at the Bush/Gore “debate” at Wash. U. in 2000. (He was an alternate, he didn’t get to ask his question.) But I was surprised when he told me he had to sign a legal document prohibiting him from asking anything other than the question he had submitted and which had been accepted. That told me everything I needed to know about modern politicians. They are not statesmen, they are animated, cardboard cut-outs.
I appreciate the topic, Liz.

“A CNN poll reported July 1 says 51 percent of people say they favor the president’s health care plan, with 45 percent opposed.

Here’s a link to the article:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/01/health.care.poll/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular
— Liz Stoever ”

How about linking to a poll that releases the internals? Who was asked and what were they asked? Polls taken over the weekend historically favor democrat positions. Constant Barack Station (CBS) recently had a poll that oversampled dems 2-1 and tries to pass it off as credible. Is CNN any better?

In listening to this two things stand out:
First Gibbs is doing what every press secretary has ever done when confronted with a “hostile” crowd — dancing as fast as he can.

Second, the questioners from the press obviously had their toes trod upon and their perogatives slighted.

Of course the discussion was not about Presidential press conferences, but a scheduled town hall meeting.

No President Obama has not broken my trust, but I expected him to be a politician and Chief Executive, not some Republican shill.

PS:
It is nice to see Acentric revert to her true form, she had been so reasonable lately that I feared that she had been replaced by a more civil pod person.

Go get’em you socialist red baiter you!

Why would anyone be surprised? The questions have to match what’s on the teleprompter or the puppet prez will be without a response.

Weekend polls historically favor Democrats? I’m not saying I doubt it, Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum , but where did you get that information? If that’s true, I’d be interested to know why. . .

Remember, planted questions are good for Sarah Palin, but bad for Barack Obama. It’s “gotcha journalism” if you ask Saint Sarah a tough question.

I, for one, am appalled! Appalled, I say! I’m certain this has never happened before.

Change you can believe in? I have read all the previous blogs and see the pointing Bush did it, Palin did it, so why are you complaining that Mr. Change is doing it? I was promised by the CURRENT President that we would be able to read every bill and it would be posted for 5 days. Now, Mr. Transparency is pushing bills through Congress before they can even read the bill. How stupid would I be if I signed a blank check or a contract without reading it yet Congress has been passing bills for this Administration with out reading them. Change I can believe in - About that!

So, let’s see RH…Obama promised no tax increase for those making under $250,000..yet Cap and Trade will do just that. He is willing to keep the VAT on the table in addition to taxing health care benefits…yet you were told over and over and over..that he wouldn’t raise taxes on the “middle class”. He said he would have transparency in government..however his stimulus package was passed in 3 days without anyone reading the bill..including the public…that he promised would have a chance to review it. He has appointed tax cheats, backed down on terrorist detentions and has had hands off any foreign entanglements like Iran and N. Korea (although he is strongly against the Honduran coup)…and he still has your trust???

RH, you typically have fairly reasoned comments and I sure don’t think you’re stupid…but trusting a President who has lied to you (and the American public) seems to be less than intelligent.

I saw that Obama hugged a planted audience member who has cancer..and was a DNC operative…ugh. What a phony.

Wow, was that for real? I haven’t stop chuckling. For the first time in my life, I have to give a “Gold” star to Helen Thomas!

A document filed in federal court this week by the Justice Department offers new evidence that former U.S. vice president Richard B. Cheney helped steer the Bush administration’s public response to the disclosure of Valerie Plame Wilson’s employment by the CIA and that he was at the center of many related administration deliberations, according to the Washington Post. A list of at least seven related conversations involving Cheney appears in a new court filing approved by Obama appointees at the Justice Department. In the filing, the officials argue that the substance of what Cheney told special prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald in 2004 must remain secret.

Amazing Loon - what does Fox news have to do with this? Chip Reid works for CBS? Do even know what you are talking about? Heck, they won’t even let Fox reporters talk at press conferences. Are you aware that Fox News shows took all the top ten slots for most watched news shows? People are finally realizing that Fox is the only true news network that has not been taken over by the Obamanation hoax.

Sorry, that last comment should have gone to Get (not) Real!

“Logicunpracticed” -
Let me see if I can understand your line of reasoning.
It was perfectly okay for former President Bush to go to completely staged managed “town hall meetings” wherein every member of the audience either was “invited” or had contributed a fair amount of money to him. There he got to make a pre-approved speech and “field” questions from the audience that simply allowed him to restate his talking points.

Then you are surprised and shocked to learn that the current President may have invited guests at his town hall meetings?!

But then again the Republicans have been talking about “morality” & “gravitas” and taking their advice from Newt (”sorry dear I want a divorce”) Gingrich, Antonin (”my constitution is dead”) Scalia, Dick (”Psst, Valerie Plame Wilson is a spy”) Cheney, Rush (”where’s my oxycontin”) Limbaugh, and most recently Mark (”I didn’t have sex with every woman I met, just the one in Argentina”) Sanford.

I am sorry, but President Obama is still a politician, so I expect him to behave as such.

However, my point is that the Washington Press corps seems to feel they have a proprietary claim on all questions.

Lastly, the woman had cancer and you fault the hug because she works for the DNC? Really compassionate there — or is it only MoPubs who suffer?

RHarnack,

Thanks for putting this in its proper perspective, your comment, “Lastly, the woman had cancer and you fault the hug because she works for the DNC? Really compassionate there — or is it only MoPubs who suffer?”

Regardless of being a plant, her illness, and healthcare dilemma is all too real for her alone with many and the nerve of these people to critizise.

Liz Stoever,

Thank you for the link, I hadn’t seen this latest poll.

All these events are staged in favor of the politition giving the speech or asnswering the questions. The questions must be prescreened and no questions can be asked that are not approved beforehand or the person asking the question will immediatly be removed from the room, and sometimes tasered as an example to others to conform and not to make waves.
Real questions are not allowed, only questions that are soundbite answerable and further the agenda of the politions platform. These townhall question and answer sessions are just an illusion designed to placate the public into thinking they are involved with the decision making process.

RH..”I am sorry, but President Obama is still a politician, so I expect him to behave as such.”..SERIOUSLY?? Obama ran on a platform of “change” and “transparency” and has not lived up to that. Obama was voted in due to those very two words. As you have agreed (since the silence from you and the rest of the liberal bloggers were deafening last year) that he accomplished nothing as a Senator and that he represented “change”…and now you’re okay with him being like a typical politician??

I am condemming the man for being a hypocrite. I’m not too shocked that he would stack the town hall with his cronies..but think it was little over the top for a DNC operative to be hugging him. I’m sure she had/has cancer but the melodrama was a bit nauseating…just as the picture of the “homeless” guy taking a cell phone picture of Michelle Obama at the soup kitchen a few weeks ago.

I won’t disagree that Republicans are on the ropes but Obama and his pack of lies will help us get back in the middle of the ring.