WE HAD TO SHUT HIM UP TO SAVE HIM:

White House revamps communications strategy (Michael D. Shear, 2/15/10, Washington Post)

White House officials are retooling the administration's communications strategy to produce faster responses to political adversaries, a more disciplined focus on President Obama's call for "change" in Washington and an increasingly selective use of the president's time. [...]

Vice President Biden's appearances on two Sunday morning talk shows were part of the new response -- in this case, to rebut former vice president Richard B. Cheney's accusations that the administration is weak on terrorism. Biden, who taped one of the shows in advance, said his predecessor was attempting to "rewrite history."

Obama's surprise news conference last week -- his first in nearly seven months -- is another example. After a bipartisan meeting with congressional leaders, Obama faced the media to declare his willingness to work with Republicans. But he warned: "I also won't hesitate to condemn what I consider to be obstinacy that's rooted not in substantive disagreements but in political expedience."

The UR is desperately overexposed, but is wending him out for a pointless press appearance a step towards ending that? And why either respond at all to Dick Cheney or allow Joe Biden to ever speak?

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 15, 2010 6:44 AM