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Is this a bad sign?

post #1 of 31
12/28/08 at 11:10am
Thread Starter 
One of the things about being President of the US, that I actually thought that everyone knew, was that you have the media with you always. You sleep with them right outside your door. It's just a fact that goes along with being POTUS.

It appears that Barrack Obama is already having a "Lindsay Lohan" moment with the press. If he wasn't aware that this was going to happen, I can't help but wonder what else is going to happen he's not expecting?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/200...politico/16882
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post #2 of 31
12/28/08 at 11:14am
He's always had the reputation of trying to keep his private moments private. While no one can blame him for that, it's just not the way the media works nowadays. After all, it's the constant media coverage that brings out many of the little slips and foibles that made Gerald Ford look like a clutz, Dan Quayle look like a doofus, Bill Clinton look like a lying slimeball, and our current President look like an inarticulate boob.
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post #3 of 31
12/28/08 at 11:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippymjp View Post
It appears that Barrack Obama is already having a "Lindsay Lohan" moment with the press. If he wasn't aware that this was going to happen, I can't help but wonder what else is going to happen he's not expecting?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/200...politico/16882
I don't get the reference to Lindsay Lohan. He decided to go to a waterpark and notified the press pool where he was going. He got there before them and he was probably hoping for a few minutes of alone time with his family and friends but who cares. I personally think that the press should back off on little trips like this. I could care less about his private moments with his daughters, I think they should be kept private. I get the need for public record and covering the vacation but give him a few hours of privacy. I think he knows he is under a microscope, he is not a dumb man but that doesn't mean he has to like it all the time. I know I have to go to work everyday and deal with all alot of different people in my position to get paid but I have times I wish they would all go away and solve their own problems. I don't get why people get bent out of shape about someone wanting a few minutes alone. He is being human and a father.

To be honest a shirtless Obama or pictures of him with his daughters feeding seals are only mildly interesting to me. If they weren't there I wouldn't miss them. I would rather hear about what he is going to about the economy or what his policy agenda is going to be. But the celebrity obsessed America are always going to demand these non-news pictures. And value them more than the policies which I find scary.
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post #4 of 31
12/28/08 at 11:55am
Yeah I read that. Comes with the job. If he didn't want all the media and SS around 24/7 he never should have ran for office. I don't feel sorry for him - he wanted the job, he has to deal with the consequences.
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post #5 of 31
12/28/08 at 11:59am
Thread Starter 
Lindsay Lohan as in someone that seeks out being in the public eye, then being irritated about being in the public eye. I'm sure he would like to have private moments on little family getaways. And I don't fault him that. But, he's not going to. His privacy will be in his offices or his bed chambers, that's about it. He can dine in privacy with his family in the white house dining room, but the media will have a copy of the menu, and the schedule, and a list of who was there...

My point is only that I certainly hope he isn't naive enough to have expected anything different.
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post #6 of 31
12/28/08 at 1:00pm
The guy father, wanted to take his daughters to a pool park. Big freakin deal. And you can't judge someone on a position that not one of us has been in. The guy just got done with dealing with his granmothers memorial. Perhaps a personal emotional time for him and he thought what better remedy than to spend time with his girls.

Wow...A father wants to spend time with his children.

Whatever. The only thing I am disappointed in is this actually made news.

Frankly I don't like the media following everyone everywhere just to find one mistake. That's all they ever report on. Then there is the "hearsay" which doesn't even stand up in court, but peoples opinions. Yep, gotta believe that.
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post #7 of 31
12/28/08 at 1:06pm
Thread Starter 
A lot of people seem to be missing the point, which is; if he actually thought, for one moment, being a Presidential elect of such historical significance, that the media was going to leave him be for 1 minute, then he had a very unrealistic view of his future.
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post #8 of 31
12/28/08 at 1:16pm
He probably thought of it but not realized how massively invasive the media will be. It will be interesting to see if the media backs off the girls as they did with Chelsea Clinton and Amy Carter. But in an era where anyone and everyone can take a cell phone picture then sell it to the tabloids, the girls privacy will be a hard one to keep.
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post #9 of 31
12/28/08 at 1:37pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by katachtig View Post
He probably thought of it but not realized how massively invasive the media will be. It will be interesting to see if the media backs off the girls as they did with Chelsea Clinton and Amy Carter. But in an era where anyone and everyone can take a cell phone picture then sell it to the tabloids, the girls privacy will be a hard one to keep.
Ah, now that very well may be the case. I've never really kept track of the size of the press corps, but just seeing the occasional news video, there does seem to be a lot more of them these days
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post #10 of 31
12/28/08 at 1:52pm
The media got him elected now they own him.
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post #11 of 31
12/28/08 at 2:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippymjp View Post
A lot of people seem to be missing the point, which is; if he actually thought, for one moment, being a Presidential elect of such historical significance, that the media was going to leave him be for 1 minute, then he had a very unrealistic view of his future.
I honestly think he believed that for him the media would back off if he asked them to. Wishful thinking at best on his part and and terribly gullible also, which is kind of scary, but then I have been scared of an Obama presidency from day one.
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post #12 of 31
12/28/08 at 3:43pm
Quote:
It will be interesting to see if the media backs off the girls as they did with Chelsea Clinton and Amy Carter. But in an era where anyone and everyone can take a cell phone picture then sell it to the tabloids, the girls privacy will be a hard one to keep.
He should be grateful he doesn't have underage twins using trying to get into Bars! lol..ah good times.

I think the media will back off the girls because as cute as they are there is no interest in them. They are not teenagers. They are children. What's there to say about them?

Maybe Obama thought they could hold back a bit. After all it has been pointed out "He's not the President yet."

Not to mention the fact that he is indeed the first elected African American President. I am willing to bet he has more security than any other President before. So yeah..It would be overwhelming. Just like starting a new job. It' overwhelming and then you get used to it.
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post #13 of 31
12/28/08 at 5:40pm
I'm sure it is overwhelming, but you seriously have to be delusional to not know this happens with every President or President-Elect. I'm sorry, but this really is one of those "choice" kind of things. Either you want privacy for your family or you want to be President. Yes, he will still get to read stories to his girls before bed if he wants to, but he may well have those stories interrupted by some international crisis. He can still spend time with his girls, but if it's at a water park there will be throngs of reporters there scribbling down every little sandwich order, and snapping pictures.

Bush went to an elementary school to read a story to the children. No one could have imagined when he scheduled that outing that the biggest national crisis since Pearl Harbor would happen at that time. He could have said, "Hey, I'm here for the kids and they don't need to have their whole school day interrupted with Secret Service and the Press Corps." And if he had done that, where would all the jokes be about the stupid goat story? No one could have criticized him for not freaking out and finishing the story!

Sorry Obama, but this comes with the job. You have to take the bad with the good, and that means that you will be hounded even when you just want to be a normal father.
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post #14 of 31
12/29/08 at 4:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippymjp View Post
A lot of people seem to be missing the point, which is; if he actually thought, for one moment, being a Presidential elect of such historical significance, that the media was going to leave him be for 1 minute, then he had a very unrealistic view of his future.
My point is why does he have to be happy about it all the time? He knows. He is the one that notified the press corp where he was going to be. I don't think he think he believes that the media will leave him alone he is merely trying to find a balance with his kids. My further point is that is sad that he can't take his children to the park without the press corp. I get that people are fascinated with him but the public can't let him take an hour to have privacy with his kids. You can say it is part of being in the public eye but it is no wonder some of our best minds don't want to serve the public interest.
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post #15 of 31
12/29/08 at 5:07am
Security has to go wherever he goes. I suspect he knows that. If he doesn't, there are a lot of his friends who can explain it to him.

The press doesn't HAVE to go, but it traditionally does. Having built the cult of his personality, he and his supporters need to recognize that a lot of Americans want to know everything about him. Don't like it, now that he's elected? Too bad. Live by the sword, you know....
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post #16 of 31
12/29/08 at 8:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Breal76 View Post
He should be grateful he doesn't have underage twins using trying to get into Bars! lol..ah good times.

Oh yes, those horrible twins, how awful of them, LOL.
I wonder how many underage teenagers have tried to get in bars?


Barack's every move will documented just as every POTUS is, I can't believe he thought he would be any different. Odd
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post #17 of 31
12/29/08 at 8:37am
Quote:
Oh yes, those horrible twins, how awful of them, LOL.
I wonder how many underage teenagers have tried to get in bars?
Well I never tried getting into a bar. Of course I am sure thousand if not millions of kids are trying to get in one right now. Wasn't the secret service with the Bush twins the night they went to the bar? That man doesn't have good security.

Quote:
Barack's every move will documented just as every POTUS is, I can't believe he thought he would be any different. Odd
And I can't believe you are making an assumptioin bases on one article. So Freakin what? Who cares? It was one instance that happened and the media and you seem really offended by the whole matter.

Boy, and you say Obama should toughen up.....
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post #18 of 31
12/29/08 at 9:25am
Actually there's been a number of media reports about how he "ditched" the press pool. Not exactly one article....

Wait til they rip that Blackberry out of his hands. It'll get really interesting them.
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post #19 of 31
12/29/08 at 10:20am
I can completely understand why he got upset, but the press DOES come with the territory. And I'm sure he's not the only president to become frustrated about not have a moment of privacy outside. I love the part of the article where he offered to buy the press an ice shave "come on, you want one...I can tell."

Basically, I think every move he makes is going to be scrutinized because first, this election was the most emotional election I have ever seen in 20 years of voting. And, he is making history being the first black president. When and how he picks his nose is probably going to be in the news for a while. (gross I know, but it wouldn't surprise me!).

The thing is, he has had press and SS around him during the campaign. In fact, according to the article he got SS as a candidate before any other candidate in history (at least that's how I read it) so it shouldn't be anything new to him. I can understand not wanting the press around 24/7 and to want to have quality time with his kids, but he's not average John Doe now. I do think any president should have time with his family without the press but I don't think you can do anything about SS. At this point the president is a public servant and the SS is there to protect the public's interest.
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post #20 of 31
12/29/08 at 10:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by calico2222 View Post
I can completely understand why he got upset, but the press DOES come with the territory. And I'm sure he's not the only president to become frustrated about not have a moment of privacy outside. I love the part of the article where he offered to buy the press an ice shave "come on, you want one...I can tell."

Basically, I think every move he makes is going to be scrutinized because first, this election was the most emotional election I have ever seen in 20 years of voting. And, he is making history being the first black president. When and how he picks his nose is probably going to be in the news for a while. (gross I know, but it wouldn't surprise me!).

The thing is, he has had press and SS around him during the campaign. In fact, according to the article he got SS as a candidate before any other candidate in history (at least that's how I read it) so it shouldn't be anything new to him. I can understand not wanting the press around 24/7 and to want to have quality time with his kids, but he's not average John Doe now. I do think any president should have time with his family without the press but I don't think you can do anything about SS. At this point the president is a public servant and the SS is there to protect the public's interest.
Your statement is very logical. He will learn in time as all do, that his life now will be under the microscope. Who knows, maybe he was just thinking he could have one last moment of privacy before the swearing in. I am curious that he already has secret service, I thought all president elects get them when they are elected. Don't they stay with the President after the President completes their term? Does Clinton still have secret service guys? If so how many are in this operation and how does one get a job like that? I need to wikipedia that. Something has peeked my interest. lol
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post #21 of 31
12/29/08 at 10:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Breal76 View Post
Well I never tried getting into a bar. Of course I am sure thousand if not millions of kids are trying to get in one right now. Wasn't the secret service with the Bush twins the night they went to the bar? That man doesn't have good security.



And I can't believe you are making an assumptioin bases on one article. So Freakin what? Who cares? It was one instance that happened and the media and you seem really offended by the whole matter.

Boy, and you say Obama should toughen up.....
"Assumptions"? I don't think so, Barack's every move will be documented, that isn't an assumption, that is a fact of life for any POTUS.

I'm not offended in the least, not sure where that came from, just posting to the thread is all, no worries.
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post #22 of 31
12/29/08 at 10:49am
All presidential candidates can get Secret Service protection, just by throwing their hat in the ring I believe. McCain refused SS protection until he clinched the nomination. Barack got his SS protection earlier than any other presidential candidate ever and way before he got the nomination.
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post #23 of 31
12/29/08 at 10:51am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckblv View Post
"Assumptions"? I don't think so, Barack's every move will be documented, that isn't an assumption, that is a fact of life for any POTUS.

I'm not offended in the least, not sure where that came from, just posting to the thread is all, no worries.
Right. It was the part where you said " I can't believe he thought he would be any different." That's the assumption. You can't know for a fact what he was thinking can you? You can only guess and assume. It is what it is.

On a side note: wikepedia the secret service. The history of it is fasinating!
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post #24 of 31
12/29/08 at 11:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Breal76 View Post
Your statement is very logical. He will learn in time as all do, that his life now will be under the microscope. Who knows, maybe he was just thinking he could have one last moment of privacy before the swearing in. I am curious that he already has secret service, I thought all president elects get them when they are elected. Don't they stay with the President after the President completes their term? Does Clinton still have secret service guys? If so how many are in this operation and how does one get a job like that? I need to wikipedia that. Something has peeked my interest. lol
According to the article, he had SS when he was still running.

"For Obama, who received a Secret Service detail earlier than any presidential candidate since the practice began, the scrutiny is much more intense."

I'm sure each former president (and their wives) also still have SS, although not as stringent. There were probably SS men when Celese was at college. I really don't think I could deal with that!

And, there are TONS of SS, it's not just one small group of people. I've actually wanted to go and try out for one, but I don't think DH wants me to learn how to shoot a gun!

(*on a side note, how do you quote an article to have it highlighted in the little box? I tried the "quote" thing but it didn't work. Thanks!*)
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post #25 of 31
12/29/08 at 12:14pm
Of course Obama knew he would constantly be surrounded by reporters. Knowing that and attempting to hold them at bay are 2 different things. Big deal.
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post #26 of 31
12/29/08 at 12:18pm
Is this the same story? I am confused now. If it is, it doesn't sound as bad as the first article made it seem.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28394361/


Quote:
(*on a side note, how do you quote an article to have it highlighted in the little box? I tried the "quote" thing but it didn't work. Thanks!*)

I have never done this before, but I assume (gosh is that the word of the day? lol) that you highlight the word and then hit that big B button on your righthand side to the upper left. I will try it.

Yep..That's how you do it.
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post #27 of 31
12/29/08 at 12:25pm
I have never done this before, but I assume (gosh is that the word of the day? lol) that you highlight the word and then hit that big B button on your righthand side to the upper left. I will try it.


Did I do it??

No, I just put it in bold. But thanks for the help. I'm just NOT computer literate! At least I did learn something new!
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post #28 of 31
12/29/08 at 12:36pm
There are, quite sad to say, very obvious reasons why nominee Obama received SS protection so very early. Apparently there were quite a few fairly credible threats from early on.

As I understand it, a lid had been placed on the pool coverage, since it wasn't anticipated Obama would be leaving the residence. He went out with the kids, pool wasn't standing by, they're annoyed - it's a breach of the 'rules of engagement'. What I don't understand is why even a single pool reporter isn't just out there in shifts (economics?). But, in the end, pool was assembled, they got to see him ordering snow cones, gave everyone something to chatter about. Honestly, for any couple with young kids, it's got to be hard to call a hard 'lid' on staying in for the evening - especially when they're on vacation.

I would think all the currently living former presidents, and their spouses and families, have SS security - as well as Nancy Reagan. I believe you can actually turn it down, but it's always offered. Certainly the Bush twins and Chelsea Clinton had coverage - and I can imagine the Obama children will be heavily guarded.

I believe the press backed off Chelsea as a youngster, and even the Bush girls got a lot of free passes from the press, until the bar incidents. I would assume the Obama girls will be pretty much off limits as well.
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post #29 of 31
12/29/08 at 1:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippymjp View Post
A lot of people seem to be missing the point, which is; if he actually thought, for one moment, being a Presidential elect of such historical significance, that the media was going to leave him be for 1 minute, then he had a very unrealistic view of his future.

I get your point. It just sounds like to me people are trying so hard to find anything they can to discredit the president elect and I think it is getting a bit silly.
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post #30 of 31
12/30/08 at 10:13am
You put this before the quote:
Quote:
then copy/paste what you are quoting right here, where I am typing this, then at the end put:
Quote:
SHOOT, WON'T WORK, anyway, Jcat taught me, use the square parenthasees that are next to the letter "P" on the keyboard and the word "quote" in caps at the beginning of the quote
and at the end of the quote it is the forward slash that is under the question mark and then quote in caps.

at the beginning and end you have to put the square parenthasees

[ QUOTE ] at the beginning, but with not spaces

[ /QUOTE ] AT THE END, with no spaces
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