Althouse: "When four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal... The government is a big operation and [at] any given time something screws up."

October 18, 2012

"When four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal... The government is a big operation and [at] any given time something screws up."

Obama, on "The Daily Show."

232 comments:

1 – 200 of 232 Newer› Newest»

Baelzar said...: Not optimal?

What a bastard.; 10/18/12, 5:07 PM
Anonymous said...: What a turd.; 10/18/12, 5:07 PM
Anonymous said...: What a turd.; 10/18/12, 5:08 PM
Drago said...: Why cry over spilt milk?

The only important question to the Teh One is "how does this affect my reelection?"; 10/18/12, 5:09 PM
SteveR said...: Something screws up? Wow; 10/18/12, 5:10 PM
Mark Nielsen said...: Embassy security? He didn't build that.; 10/18/12, 5:11 PM
Automatic_Wing said...: Mistakes were made.; 10/18/12, 5:12 PM
Automatic_Wing said...: He inherited a mess, you know.; 10/18/12, 5:13 PM
Anonymous said...: Ironically he tried to paint Romney as some weird bloodless out of touch man who cares little for others.

Projection.

He even screws up on The Daily Show.; 10/18/12, 5:13 PM
Stephen Pihlaja said...: Uh, what about the question it was as response to? Taken pretty unfairly out of context.; 10/18/12, 5:14 PM
Rae said...: I'm disappointed, he should have said it was sub-par.; 10/18/12, 5:15 PM
Seeing Red said...: Then we have listening posts who listened for 5 hours and watched it from a drone for another hour.

Mehhhh, these bumps...........

The ads are writing themselves.; 10/18/12, 5:17 PM
MayBee said...: A good argument for why the government should not be so large.

It is so large, he can't even find out from people who were in Benghazi what happened there.
He can't even find out from the people who watched it live what happened.
He can't even find out from the people who turned down security requests why they turned it down.
And they still can't figure out who authorized Fast and Furious.

Government's own operations are unmanageable and deadly. Yet we are supposed to want to hand over more responsibility to them?; 10/18/12, 5:17 PM
furious_a said...: Easy come, easy go.; 10/18/12, 5:18 PM
Anonymous said...: Really Mysonabsalom?

The guy is using Romney's "Binders full of women" misstatement on his stump speech.

Last week he made an ad indicating that Romney somehow was connected to financial felons convicted years ago, and that Romney's economic plan hinged on doing away with Big Bird.

Don't start on the "unfairly taken out of context stuff.; 10/18/12, 5:20 PM
furious_a said...: Fanatical jihadis don't murder American embassy personnal, not-optimal screw-ups do.; 10/18/12, 5:21 PM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: Good God, that is bad. And WTF is the President doing on The Daily Show anyway? He seems to have it in his head that he needs to be all hip 'n' shit. I think the youth vote wrote him off a long time back.; 10/18/12, 5:21 PM
Automatic_Wing said...: The buck stops....somewhere over thatta way.; 10/18/12, 5:21 PM
Known Unknown said...: To be fair, the end of Stewart's question used the term "optimal":

“Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page”

So I think that Obama is saying the response was not optimal ... not the deaths themselves.

To which I would say "No shit it wasn't optimal."

Maybe I'm being generous.; 10/18/12, 5:21 PM
furious_a said...: Maybe I'm being generous.

I'm being as generous as they are with "Binders".; 10/18/12, 5:22 PM
AllenS said...: The question was this:

The president was responding to this question from Stewart. “Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within,” the comedian asked according to the pooler. “Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page” (emphasis added).; 10/18/12, 5:23 PM
Wally Ballou said...: "Uh, what about the question it was as response to? Taken pretty unfairly out of context"

--Uh, no. Stewart was saying the White House's RESPONSE was not optimal - Obama said the DEATHS were not optimal. The context was given, so it is hardly out of context.

Stewart had to be appalled by the insensitivity of the answer but he couldn't call Obama on it, because that would be unconstitutional.; 10/18/12, 5:23 PM
Known Unknown said...: Yeah, I re-read Obama's response and he's kind of referring to the deaths as "Not optimal." when Stewart is talking about the response.; 10/18/12, 5:25 PM
Known Unknown said...: Ta-da! Another Romney ad.; 10/18/12, 5:26 PM
edutcher said...: Doesn't quite have the ring of, "Yesterday, December 7th, 1941, a date which will live in INFAMY...".

Can't wait for that big foreign policy debate Monday.

PS Lessee now, who was it called the Romster a train wreck?

Oh, yeah, our little pet, shilol.

Where'd he go, anyway?; 10/18/12, 5:26 PM
Wally Ballou said...: I love all this context stuff. Every time Obama says somethging unfortunate, the defense is that he does not know how to construct a sentence.

"When four Americans get killed, it's not optimal." Clearly "it" refers to a clause in another sentence spoken by someone else. I wish I could get cut that kind of slack. I could coast through life, too.; 10/18/12, 5:27 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: A strange way of saying we screwed up.; 10/18/12, 5:28 PM
Emil Blatz said...: Doh!; 10/18/12, 5:28 PM
Cedarford said...: This is sort of hilarious, except for the dead people and the Al Qaeda victorious attack part.

Romney goofed by reacting and saying Sept 12 that the Obamites shouldn't apologize for the video - but then some idiots at Obama Campaign Central had their brilliant idea to orchestrate a media trashing of Romney even when polls had Obama as a lock for the election. The plan appeared to be to blame the attacks on the video and make Obama look good and Romney bad.

The result...and all this is totally unecessary as Watergate was when Nixon was up by 18 points ... is the Obamites destroyed 300 million dollars worth of negative campaigning about Romney demonizing him as the lying liar who lies!!

Now a few weeks out, the whole focus, thanks to this spectacular blunder going at a Romney goof - is that the media is now on a hot scandal that caused them to shed their Obama kneepads. And begin the hunt to find out who lied about the Al Qaeda attack at Benghazi.

And the damage is compounded by rather than accepting responsibility and burying the issue, as Hillary did on the State side....the vanity of Obama and need to show himself as a superb CiC with Crowley's help - has started a fresh round of media hammering at it.

1. If Obama knew it was a terrorist attack, why did Susan Rice lie to us, and Jay Carney. They wouldn't have done that without instructions to lie. Who in the White House ordered it?
2. Biden said he and Obama were never told? Who is lying?
3. OK, if Obama said he knew, why did he lie later? Or was he telling the truth later and he lied in the 2nd debate to make Romney look bad?

So while some thought Romney looked bad with the Libya stuff and Obama won on his great Commander in Chief judgement and being a caring person going to greet coffins stuff -- all that turned to shit for Obama within hours.

Guaranteeing the Libyan coverup will rage and be a big part of the foreign policy debate - which up to a few weeks ago was going to be Obama bragging about ending AQ by killing Binnie, fostering the Arab Spring, resetting our relationships so others loved us again with the Black Messiah. All that has gone to shit for the Obamites as well.; 10/18/12, 5:28 PM
Mark O said...: He's a nasty little man.; 10/18/12, 5:29 PM
Anonymous said...: Bumps in the road are not optimal.; 10/18/12, 5:31 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Not optimal... like when the Hubble first went up.

Things looked fuzzy all the way over here.

The umpire Hillary blew the call at second... maybe we should allow for instant replay.

Optimise.; 10/18/12, 5:32 PM
Sam L. said...: So, how many deaths are "optimal"?; 10/18/12, 5:32 PM
Mr. D said...: We were sold Mandela. We got Arsenio Hall.; 10/18/12, 5:35 PM
chuck said...: Optimal is a big word, I'm deeply impressed with the man's intellect.; 10/18/12, 5:35 PM
PackerBronco said...: Disassociative personality in action.; 10/18/12, 5:36 PM
Amy said...: He is so cold and detached. I remember the photo of GWB embracing the young child who lost a parent on 9/11. I can't imagine BO doing that. Cold and clinical.

Can't wait for 11/6. I have HOPE for CHANGE!; 10/18/12, 5:36 PM
MayBee said...: I'm beginning to think Obama is either clinically narcissistic or on the autistic scale.

He just doesn't seem to have emotions.
The deaths of these four citizens was not optimal, he said, when asked about the communication in the response.; 10/18/12, 5:38 PM
Known Unknown said...: We got Arsenio Hall.

How dare you impugn the emotive qualities of Arsenio Hall!; 10/18/12, 5:38 PM
MayBee said...: To be fair, I don't really care if the President of the United States is emotional.

I do want him to see when something is really really bad for the country. And our Ambassador being killed in a lawless country is pretty bad. Not being able to explain what led up to it and what he did in the aftermath is pretty bad.; 10/18/12, 5:41 PM
Original Mike said...: Yes, compare this with "binders".; 10/18/12, 5:41 PM
Mr. D said...: How dare you impugn the emotive qualities of Arsenio Hall!

Good point; the comparison was not optimal.; 10/18/12, 5:43 PM
Patrick said...: The President is not a serious leader.; 10/18/12, 5:44 PM
Original Mike said...: Forget this. I want to hear why they deliberately fed us "the video" story for two weeks.; 10/18/12, 5:46 PM
MayBee said...: Well, it's not like binders-full of people were killed in Benghazi.; 10/18/12, 5:46 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: If Joe Biden had said this we never hear the end of it.

I doubt this is going to receive any bad press.; 10/18/12, 5:49 PM
MayBee said...: Forget this. I want to hear why they deliberately fed us "the video" story for two weeks.

And why that ended up with our president saying "the future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam" in his once-a-year speech to the UN.

It's almost like he really really wanted to say that, and created an opening for himself.; 10/18/12, 5:49 PM
rhhardin said...: The scandal is the al Qaeda vanquished narrative and its coverup.

It's a war. You lose people all the time.

Just not to clueless foreign policy.; 10/18/12, 5:50 PM
furious_a said...: C4: Now a few weeks out, the whole focus, thanks to this spectacular blunder going at a Romney goof - is that the media is now on a hot scandal that caused them to shed their Obama kneepads.

And the OFA Kool-Aid drinkers who thought "Please continue, Governor" was a trap for Romney -- they're so cute.; 10/18/12, 5:50 PM
David said...: Optimal (adj.) - the most favorable or desirable

Well, he's right. It cost him part of a night's sleep.; 10/18/12, 5:51 PM
The Drill SGT said...: The less than optimal operation was not in Benghazi, but in Wsahington. When the metal started hitting meat, I haven't heard anything about the guys on the ground not suiting up and soldiering on under nasty odds. The errors seem to be things like:

1. rose colored views in DC of a peaceful democratic revolution in Libya when the reality was far different in Benghazi.

2. Denial of requests from troops on the ground for support. Not once, not twice. Among the reasons given in Congressional testimony by a Deputy Asst Sec State for why the requests for support weren't requests? The reqests weren't in the proper format to be a request.

3. a Unicorn farts smell good view that if we just dont arm and upgun the protective force, the bad guys will ignore them. The Bermuda Embassy has Marines. Liyba does not.

4. Making a US citizen the fall guy for the terrorist acts of others. He's still in jail...

5. Using the Intel community as a scapegoat ultimately gets you worse intel next time, not more timely intel. As a one time consumer, all intel comes with caveats. Flogging the geeks for a mistakes only gets you more waffles and less useful intel next time.

6. The lies out of the WH Press Room were extraordinary.; 10/18/12, 5:53 PM
David said...: Wally Ballou is right. Stewart understands the Constitution. No citizen should make the President feel uncomfortable.; 10/18/12, 5:54 PM
Sammy said...: So is that up grade or down grade from " bumps in the road" .; 10/18/12, 5:54 PM
David said...: "something screws up."

Great, great passive voice. Nixon could not have done any better.; 10/18/12, 5:56 PM
OWEBAMA said...: I have thought lately that Mr.Obama is really looking forward to that oceanfront estate in Hawaii and he may not really want this. Almost as though he feels he did his part and made history as the first black president, but this governing stuff....not so much. As the GW Bush character on SNL used to say "Being President is hard."; 10/18/12, 5:59 PM
David said...: I think the post debate bounce just stopped bouncing.

But he could declare his statement inoperative.; 10/18/12, 5:59 PM
furious_a said...: 5. Using the Intel community as a scapegoat ultimately gets you worse intel next time, not more timely intel.

It also, if the Intel community is competent, gets the blamestormer a shiv in the back. Just ask former Speaker (loved typing that) Pelosi.; 10/18/12, 6:02 PM
Eric said...: Yeah, he definitely has binders of screwups.

Also, apparently the buck doesn't stop at Obama's desk. To a certain extent he's right - the president can't prevent every bad thing from happening. But that doesn't absolve him of blame completely, and he should accept his share without ducking.; 10/18/12, 6:02 PM
David said...: Man, I'll bet he's sorry he said that.

Can't wait to see Jay Carney field this one.; 10/18/12, 6:02 PM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: So is that up grade or down grade from " bumps in the road".

Its an optimized bump in the road.; 10/18/12, 6:02 PM
furious_a said...: I think the post debate bounce just stopped bouncing.

The "bounce" (you forgot the "scare quotes") was the President's head off of the floor.; 10/18/12, 6:04 PM
David said...: Why does Nixon keep coming to my mind?

We're way, way beyond Jimmy Carter here.

I think we're gonna need a bigger idiot.; 10/18/12, 6:04 PM
David said...: A real man would stand up and apologize for the statement. Let's watch.; 10/18/12, 6:04 PM
David said...: Remember the Kinsley gaffe.

Accidentally saying what you really believe.; 10/18/12, 6:06 PM
David said...: The New York Times is going to be all over this. It happened right in their city.; 10/18/12, 6:06 PM
David said...: It's 7:07 PM in New York. Do you know where your abortion ad are?; 10/18/12, 6:08 PM
David said...: I'm taking over these comments.; 10/18/12, 6:08 PM
AllenS said...: Anybody see the latest video of BJ Clinton? If Obama is expecting Billy to help him out he'll be very disappointed.; 10/18/12, 6:09 PM
David said...: Not really. Enough now. (Unless another good one occurs to me. Or my first good one?); 10/18/12, 6:09 PM
David said...: Stop butting in, Allen.; 10/18/12, 6:10 PM
Barry Dauphin said...: At the next debate, Bob Schiefer can ask the President whether he would support the death penalty if Kitty Dukakis were raped and murdered.; 10/18/12, 6:10 PM
cold pizza said...: Ambassador Bump-in-the-Road could not be reached for comment. -CP; 10/18/12, 6:10 PM
edutcher said...: David said...

Why does Nixon keep coming to my mind?

Nixon never said anything like that.

Teddy Kennedy, maybe.; 10/18/12, 6:10 PM
Alex said...: Dead is the new alive.; 10/18/12, 6:11 PM
Paul said...: So Obama sticks his foot in his mouth again? 'Not optimal?". oh it's a 'bump in the road' I guess.

Obama and Biden have been a pox on America for four years. They are the disease, and Romney is the cure.

Time to vote them out. Obama can play golf and Biden flap his gaff prone lip into the wind.; 10/18/12, 6:12 PM
n.n said...: He can empathize with individuals who dream of instant gratification (e.g. redistributive change, elective abortion), but he cannot muster a normal human response to the unnecessary and preventable loss of human life. That explains a lot about his perspective of reality and the priorities which motivate his policies. He is a tragic product of democratic leverage.; 10/18/12, 6:13 PM
bagoh20 said...: "Not optimal"

And this lightweight was still today talking about "binders".

Who the hell hired this guy for this job. There wasn't nobody else in that binder, maybe a woman, or even the binder itself would have to be better.; 10/18/12, 6:15 PM
Tarzan said...: These sorts of mindless platitudes are the only thing he's ever offered anyone since inhabiting the White House.

"I've got a lot on my plate."

"I'll have my people look into it."

"Can I finish my waffle?"

The Gray Man moves his mouth and the masses who admire him fill it will everything they suppose him to actually be talking about, when he's really talking about Nothing.

The giddy souls who adore him are nothing short of hypnotized, and have been from day 1.; 10/18/12, 6:15 PM
cold pizza said...: Not to worry. DC will have binders full of Top Men working on fixing it optimally. Top Men, I tell you!

Optimal Prime! Transform! -CP; 10/18/12, 6:16 PM
Shanna said...: If Obama is expecting Billy to help him out he'll be very disappointed.

Yeah. Clinton knows how to do the bless his heart thing. "I just thought he was going to cry thinking about how bad everything is and how he was completely incompetent at fixing it. Vote for O!" Heh.

Chickens. Roosting. The Clinton's don't forget a slight.; 10/18/12, 6:18 PM
ricpic said...: Optimal is the top story at Drudge.

Piece of shit can't get out of this one.

Althouse still agonizing over decision.; 10/18/12, 6:18 PM
Anonymous said...: What did he say was not optimal? The deaths or the intelligence he received, or his statment?

What was not optimal?; 10/18/12, 6:20 PM
Methadras said...: Double handed epic facepalm. Are you fucking serious? He's gauging a terrorist attack that killed 1 american ambassador and 3 other americans commissioned by the state department as being not optimal?

When you don't have enough current in an electrical panel in your house. That's not optimal. When you don't get good fuel economy in your car, well, that's not optimal either. Having people working under your administration that get killed in a terrorist attack, that by the way you still won't name as being so, is not optimal? What the fuck is this guy doing as POTUS? Don't even wait for the election, get rid of him now.; 10/18/12, 6:22 PM
The Drill SGT said...: Inga said...
What did he say was not optimal? The deaths or the intelligence he received, or his statment?

The press coverage.; 10/18/12, 6:22 PM
Texan99 said...: September 11, 2012: a day when bumps in the road will have proved to be less than optimal.; 10/18/12, 6:23 PM
Chris said...: Al Qaeda would agree with Obama 4 deaths not optimal.; 10/18/12, 6:23 PM
Chris said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 6:25 PM
cold pizza said...: Ax of Terror. -CP; 10/18/12, 6:26 PM
cold pizza said...: Sorry, type. That should have been "Axe." My spelling was not optimal. -CP; 10/18/12, 6:27 PM
cold pizza said...: Typo! DAMN! Not optimal still. -CP; 10/18/12, 6:28 PM
n.n said...: it was not the optimal response

Headline: headlines remove context.

He still will not call it murder. The assault was organized and the "killing" was premeditated. It was not happenstance. It was also not the outcome of faulty intelligence or an unwieldy government bureaucracy. Although, the latter does exhibit an inertia which motivates less than optimal outcomes.; 10/18/12, 6:28 PM
Sofa King said...: Obama is Merkin Muffley.; 10/18/12, 6:33 PM
Anonymous said...: ....."you've got to make a call, and it's not optimal"...

He was speaking of "bad folks" on the other side other world and making decisions.

He didn't say the deaths were not optimal.; 10/18/12, 6:34 PM
Dante said...: It's just a sub-optimal choice of words. Like ladies in binders. It all depends on the context you are thinking from. If you are thinking about running the entire US government, that's a good way of thinking of it. Security is never perfect, it's not optimal.

This idea of judging based on not selecting the right context from which to speak selects for the wrong person, in my opinion.

Agh! What am I saying. Anything goes to get the Obamao out of office!; 10/18/12, 6:36 PM
Michael said...: Inga. Read the link. He said the deaths were not optimal.; 10/18/12, 6:38 PM
Anonymous said...: Michael, YOU read the link, it states it was NOT the deaths he said were not optimal.; 10/18/12, 6:41 PM
Matt said...: Inga... you're reading the question. The question was "Was the response to Bengazi not optimcal?"

Obama's answer to that was "When four Americans die it is not optimal".; 10/18/12, 6:43 PM
Michael said...: Inga. From the link. "Here is what I will say, if four Americans get killed it is not optimal," the president responded. "; 10/18/12, 6:46 PM
Sofa King said...: What "it" refers to is ambiguous. I think Obama should be interpreted as charitably as his campaign interprets the phrasing of others.; 10/18/12, 6:46 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 6:51 PM
Anonymous said...: Michael, read the whole article.; 10/18/12, 6:53 PM
Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...: AllenS - I'm repeating Jon Stewards questions:

“Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within,” the comedian asked according to the pooler. “Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page” (emphasis added).

That question is nonsense with the obvious objective to draw out one of Obama's standard BS lines. Leftists think they can smooth over everything with rhetoric. It's the main reason Hollywood loves Obama – it’s all a big show.; 10/18/12, 6:54 PM
Patrick said...: Re: Inga's Link:

See what CBS did there? Here's what they say the President said:

President Obama told the Comedy Central host that the response to the Sept. 11 terror attacks in Benghazi, Libya was "not optimal."

But here's what he said, from the same article:

"Here is what I will say, if four Americans get killed it is not optimal," the president responded.

CBS is trying to save the President, but only fooling those who wish to be tricked.; 10/18/12, 6:55 PM
Patrick said...: CBS says the "not optimal" referred to the response. the President's words show that is how he felt about the deaths of the Ambassador and the three soldiers.; 10/18/12, 6:56 PM
cold pizza said...: What is the optimal choice on Nov 6? -CP; 10/18/12, 7:03 PM
Anonymous said...: What is the fuss? He killed many more with his drones.; 10/18/12, 7:04 PM
AllenS said...: The CBS Inga links to says:
The president's "optimal" comment seemed to be a reference to Stewart's characterization of the response, since he used the same word. Some, however, have taken the comment to mean the president was saying the deaths themselves were "not optimal."
[bold added}

Who in the fuck is "Some"? Could I have names please. See, here's what CBS is doing. Obama says something and the media has to step in and explain what they think he means. It's happened ever since this stumblefuck come on the scene.; 10/18/12, 7:04 PM
MadisonMan said...: Here is what I will say: If four Americans get killed, it is not optimal.

Gramatically, the it will refer to the closest clause -- four americans getting killed. Obama may have thought he was saying the response to the murders was not optimal. But that's not what he actually said. Points off for obfuscation.; 10/18/12, 7:04 PM
AllenS said...: come = came; 10/18/12, 7:06 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Why does it seem we are always arguing about the meaining of what Obama said? Isn't he the greatest orator since Lincoln?; 10/18/12, 7:06 PM
Tyrone Slothrop said...: If he were honest he would have said, "The government is a big operation, and I am not competent to oversee it."; 10/18/12, 7:08 PM
Methadras said...: President Obama, during the taping of The Daily Show, discussed the Benghazi terrorist attack that claimed the lives of the U.S. Ambassador to Libya and three other Americans.

“Here’s what I’ll say. When four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal. We’re going to fix it,” Obama said per pool. “The government is a big operation and [at] any given time something screws up,” he also said, saying that he believes “you find out what’s broken and you fix it.”

The president was responding to this question from Stewart. “Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within,” the comedian asked according to the pooler. “Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page” (emphasis added).

Obama promised that his administration publicized information about the Benghazi attack as quickly as it came in, which contradicts previous reports.

“Within 24 hours of the 9-11 anniversary attack on the United States consulate in Benghazi, U.S. intelligence agencies had strong indications al Qaeda–affiliated operatives were behind the attack, and had even pinpointed the location of one of those attackers,” according to The Daily Beast’s Eli Lake.

The National Counter Terrorism Center only told Congress that it was a terrorist attack eight days after the assault took place.

Hey Inga, here is the whole article. The money quote is at the top. This is to stop your insipid bleating about what you think your God said vs. what he really said.

And the Inga disinformation show begins. Why you guys let this cunt get the better of you is a mystery. She's going to try and derail you guys again with his narrative change and deny deny deny because she's a lying sack of cow shit. Let's see how she spins this and her selective reading comprehension.; 10/18/12, 7:08 PM
Known Unknown said...: Read my first comment Inga.

I was willing to concede he was referring to the response.

Unfortunately, the man's tortured grammar isn't doing him any favors.

MadisonMan is correct.; 10/18/12, 7:10 PM
Anonymous said...: Jon Stewart: "Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within. Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page."

POTUS: "Here's what I'll say. If four Americans get killed, it's not optimal. We're going to fix it. All of it. And 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. Whatever else I have done throughout the course of my presidency the one thing that I've been absolutely clear about is that America's security comes, and the American people need to know exactly how I make decisions when it comes to war, peace, security, and protecting Americans. And they will continue to get that over the next four years of my presidency."
-------------------------

Words taken out of context, no surprise.; 10/18/12, 7:10 PM
Anonymous said...: Inga,

Thanks for providing a "news" article that tries to cover for Obama.

Yes Stewart said "optimal" so what? Stewart said the RESPONSE (you know, what Obama did) was not optimal. Obama responded with a comment that the deaths weren't optimal. My read on this is that Obama really couldn't care less that people died, but he's really irritated that the story isn't going away.; 10/18/12, 7:11 PM
Anonymous said...: Yes EMD, I did read your first comment and MM is probably right.; 10/18/12, 7:13 PM
Icepick said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 7:13 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: I didn't hear any of this or see anything. He is not speaking to me. He went where he knows his constituency is, the places I'm sure to not hear anything. He's talking to other people, not me.

If he knew how fast I get off Comedy Central the moment those Daily Show trumpets start up he'd quietly calculate how many rational voters out there hastily exit too. Same with the View. Same with Letterman, Leno. He knows where his constituency goes, he's talking to them.

Still didn't. Present them you must, avoid them I still do. Didn't watch la la la la You turn up the volume to override my veto. *fingers in ears* LALALALALALA WHAT? WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU LALALALALA; 10/18/12, 7:15 PM
Icepick said...: Obama: "When four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal... The government is a big operation and [at] any given time something screws up."

Should he have said "screws up" when some reports in the Arab media indicate that Ambassador Stevens was anally sodomized repeatedly before he finally died? Has Obama been taking appropriateness lessons from Joe Biden?; 10/18/12, 7:16 PM
cold pizza said...: Actually, MadMan, I think the "it" referred to the communication within departments from Stewart's question. President Optima responded that "it was not optimal."

Stewart asked: 'Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? 'Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within.

But it's such a lovely gaffe by this arrogant tool that mocking ridicule is still the best response. He deserves everything he gets for his callousness displayed when first informed of the attack. The 3am call came and he let it go straight to voice mail. -CP; 10/18/12, 7:16 PM
Icepick said...: Inga, are you that meticulous about making certain all of Romney's words are kept in context?; 10/18/12, 7:17 PM
AndyN said...: Mysonabsalom said...

Uh, what about the question it was as response to? Taken pretty unfairly out of context.

Okay, here's the question...
Is part of the investigation helping the communication between these divisions? Not just what happened in Benghazi, but what happened within. Because I would say, even you would admit, it was not the optimal response, at least to the American people, as far as all of us being on the same page.

And the response...
Here’s what I’ll say. When four Americans get killed, it’s not optimal. We’re going to fix it.

Now, let's be as charitable as possible and assume once again that when Barrack Obama uses a pronoun, the antecedent isn't the nearest preceding word or phrase but a word or phrase from some other recent sentence. If we give him that benefit of the doubt, we end up with "When four Americans get killed, the response as far as all of us being on the same page was not optimal."

Do you see the problem he still has? Even if we assume a generous interpretation of his intent that isn't immediately obvious, he's claiming that his administration lying to the public for weeks about the cause of the attack, and then continuing to lie and deny his initial lies for weeks beyond that is simply sub-optimal. A lot of us believe that the president orchestrating and publicly repeating self-serving lies about matters involving the national interest is a whole lot worse than less than optimal. And that's allowing for the most generous possible interpretation of his remarks in their full context.; 10/18/12, 7:18 PM
Anonymous said...: Inga,

In addition, Obama doesn't own any of it, "somethings going to get screwed up".

What got screwed up is that the Administration tried to pretend over and over and over again that some stupid video was the cause of these deaths. They desperately wanted for everyone to believe they vanquished Al Qaeda, so they spent 14 days lying to the American people and apologizing to the world. Meanwhile the embassy was left unsecured and they probably failed to protect sensitive information. You can bet any informants, etc. in Libya feel they are not in an optimal situation. The excuse was that the area was too dangerous, but a reporter found Steven's diary.; 10/18/12, 7:18 PM
Matt Sablan said...: Other things not optimal: My tanking build in most MMOs I play.

That's the right level for using such a phrase.; 10/18/12, 7:18 PM
Known Unknown said...: I did notice that Obama has a bad habit of speaking in sentence fragments and not completing one thought while moving on to another.

Some say it's due to his superior intellect and lightning fast mind (I can do it too, CBS!). I just think he's not a terribly good extemporaneous speaker.; 10/18/12, 7:19 PM
Icepick said...: Unfortunately, the man's tortured grammar isn't doing him any favors.

US Grant was famous for the clarity of his prose, especially his orders during the Civil War. Of course he didn't have the benefit of modern education at the nation's most esteemed institutions of higher learning....; 10/18/12, 7:20 PM
Methadras said...: Icepick said...

Inga, are you that meticulous about making certain all of Romney's words are kept in context?

Inga doesn't even get paid to get on her back to take it for Urkel. She does it for free. Now, I'm sure she'd ask for a small fee if she got on all fours. Once you go Urkel, you become a whore 4 lyfe.; 10/18/12, 7:20 PM
Methadras said...: Matthew Sablan said...

Other things not optimal: My tanking build in most MMOs I play.

That's the right level for using such a phrase.

I hate tanking. Never liked it. I love the deeps. My deeps specs are always optimal. No derpy here.; 10/18/12, 7:21 PM
Known Unknown said...: somethings going to get screwed up

Yeah, this is another curious statement. He's the CiC, this shit is under his purview. He acts strangely detached from all that happens around him.; 10/18/12, 7:22 PM
XRay said...: I think Stewart's "even you would admit" is a tell. A tell that Stewart knows he is speaking to a great pretender who is good at BS'ing his way out of most anything.; 10/18/12, 7:30 PM
virgil xenophon said...: Unfortunately our gal "Inga" is the descendent of those Soviet apparatchik dupes who were purged by Stalin during his show trials and stumbled out of the court-room reading their own death sentencences signed personally by Stalin but not beliving their eyes while still worshiping their former Saint but now their murderer mumbling: "..there must be a mistake! Someone has mis-informed him...if I could only talk to him!" Inga is a true-believer who will go to her grave with ideological blinders on no matter what the evidence..; 10/18/12, 7:34 PM
AllenS said...: XRay, everyone can be a great BSer if they are never called on it. Barry's never been challenged on his bullshit. Again, look what CBS did, they tried to make excuses for him. All of the MSM has been doing that ever since he showed up on the scene. And before that, his collegiate teachers.; 10/18/12, 7:37 PM
Michael said...: Inga. I did read the whole article. If you are correct our president's language skills again are called into question. That would eliminate these days of parsing what he said versus what he means versus the "out of context" discussion. He is, therefore, callous or a poor communicator. Perhaps both.; 10/18/12, 7:39 PM
Revenant said...: The funny thing is that Inga thinks the full quote makes Obama sound *better*.

But all it does is emphasize the fact that Obama is not only refusing to take any responsibility for the deaths of Americans, but denying there's anything to take responsibility *for*. "Things" just "screwed up" on their own. "It" is broken, and a rhetorical "you" will "fix it".

But he wants to be absolutely clear that the American people will understand how he makes decisions about security. Not what the decisions are, were, or will be, but how he makes them. :); 10/18/12, 7:42 PM
XRay said...: I know Inga has a lot to answer for, but a few of the personal attacks above are certainly not setting a good example. Not of conservatives nor Republicans, nor really of any sort of gentleman, as outdated as that construct may be.; 10/18/12, 7:43 PM
Michael said...: Revenant. Good catch re the passive voice. Obama uses it so often I have grown used to it.; 10/18/12, 7:43 PM
Sammy said...: Let's see today Biden repeatly asked those who served in Iraq and IRAN ...if they were in the audience ...

And Obama is correct it isn't optimal when American diplomats he sends to a unstable country are brutally murdered by a terrorist act he pretended didn't happen while taking no responsibility for the repeated requests for more security, that his adminsriation ignored.

It almost as if these two guys care not at all for Americans they send to dangerous parts of the world to represent America's interest.; 10/18/12, 7:48 PM
Michael said...: XRay. You are quite right about the demise of gentlemanly behavior. But there is something about resolute stupidity, dug in ignorance, and shallow thinking coupled with a glowing sanctimony that brings out the worst in all of us and demands a rhetorical slap.; 10/18/12, 7:48 PM
David said...: Inga, either Obama meant to say the killing was not optimal or Obama's English grammar isn't very good.

Sort of puts you in a binder, doesn't it?; 10/18/12, 7:53 PM
Anonymous said...: David, no one puts Inga in a binder!; 10/18/12, 7:57 PM
bagoh20 said...: This guy could swallow a handful of Quaaludes, wash it down with a quart of Tequila, and then go ice skating with the Press, and his ass would never touch the ice. Seriously, they would dispose of a corpse in their own backyard for this dude. Sheese.

I apologize to Chris Mathews for that unconstitutional outburst.; 10/18/12, 7:57 PM
Steve Austin said...: This is what happens when you try to mimic hip cool cats like John Stewart.

He won't go on Meet the Press or any of the legit news shows. Always the fluff ones that treat him like a TMZ celebrity.

So it comes back to bite him.; 10/18/12, 8:00 PM
XRay said...: Agree completely, AllenS. And Obama knows that, of course, and depends on it. Sharp creases and a big smile, he is smart enough to have figured that out years ago.; 10/18/12, 8:04 PM
Mark said...: I'm beginning to think Obama is either clinically narcissistic or on the autistic scale.

Why choose?; 10/18/12, 8:06 PM
Anonymous said...: One of the people that was killed was one of those that heavily campaigned for Obama back in the day. He was 29ish during last election, a vet, a foreign service guy, and a gamer.; 10/18/12, 8:06 PM
XRay said...: Understood, Michael, and agree. But yet...; 10/18/12, 8:07 PM
Revenant said...: Xray, the standard of gentlemanly behavior presumes the existence of a standard of female deference to men.

It existed in a time when men refrained from speaking harshly to, or around, women, and women refrained from giving them cause to.

We're well rid of both habits.; 10/18/12, 8:09 PM
XRay said...: "...and a gamer." Thanks for the info. Though still, he doesn't seem to have recognized a true mster gamer. Sad, that so many haven't.; 10/18/12, 8:11 PM
Mark said...: Wow. That's a real head-snapping moment. "He said what?"; 10/18/12, 8:11 PM
ALH said...: And that, folks, is why it is sometimes dangerous for a politician to talk with people with whom they are comfortable with....their true self comes out for all to see.

This is the real Obama. Cold and detached. When there is no need to put on a fake accent and use colloquiums, you get things like midwesterners "clinging to guns and religion" and preventable terrorist murders being "not optimal".; 10/18/12, 8:12 PM
XRay said...: "We're well rid of both habits."

In your world, Revenant, and that's fine, but not quite yet in mine.; 10/18/12, 8:14 PM
XRay said...: Though, on second thought, your "deference" bullshit is rather repugnant.; 10/18/12, 8:20 PM
pm317 said...: "optimal" is a big intellectual word.; 10/18/12, 8:27 PM
Revenant said...: Though, on second thought, your "deference" bullshit is rather repugnant.

Your ignorance of Western history prior to the 1970s is not my problem, little man.; 10/18/12, 8:37 PM
virgil xenophon said...: " 'optimal' is a big intellectual word."

Yes...for Obama..; 10/18/12, 8:39 PM
XRay said...: Your wish to rewind history and live in the past is not my problem, big macho man.; 10/18/12, 8:40 PM
virgil xenophon said...: PS: But he's MUCH more familiar with "sub-optimal"--describes his daily m.o.; 10/18/12, 8:43 PM
David said...: Well, Yahoo is on the story now. Their first paragraph:

Under heavy fire from Republicans over the deadly attack in Libya, President Barack Obama told "The Daily Show" host Jon Stewart on Thursday that his response had not suffered from "confusion." But Obama admitted that communication among government agencies and to the American public was "not optimal" and needs fixing.

Not a hint of anything else.

You gotta love it.; 10/18/12, 8:53 PM
Leland said...: As I suggested before, it's not optimal, but it is better than a prolonging of a war (in the view of the Administration). At least "suboptimal" sounds better than, "bump in the road".

Do you know, terrorism is defined by US code as "premeditated, politically motivated violence
perpetrated against non-combatant targets by subnational groups or
clandestine agents". With this definition, can an attack both be terrorism and a spontenous act of violence by mob upset a movie?; 10/18/12, 8:55 PM
Oso Negro said...: Goddamn. What is it with Democratic presidents? We always get down to arguing about the meaning of the smallest possible words. It depends on what you mean by the word "is". It depends on what he meant by the word "it's." I so hope that Romney pounds his mulatto ass with it in the next debate.; 10/18/12, 8:55 PM
XRay said...: Oso Negro, I admire how you worked in 'mulatto' alongside your nic, I'm serious.

Who was it, Frank Yerby? The guy who did all those 50's 60's books of which mulatto was a main component. I've had a few too many to google.; 10/18/12, 9:06 PM
traditionalguy said...: The USA tradition has always been that of a loyal military force that risked high costs and lives of more men to rescue a single man in jeopardy of a violent and murderous foe.

We often rescued our downed pilots in the Pacific using whatever it took while the hostile Jap soldiers on the island by-passed and abandoned by their Empire watched in wonder. Lt George H W Bush was one of those pilots.

But once more, the Marxist from Kenya has no more sense of what it means to be an American than the average Harvard idiot.; 10/18/12, 9:10 PM
Revenant said...: Your wish to rewind history and live in the past is not my problem, big macho man.

"We're well rid of both habits" was a bit confusing for you, I see. :); 10/18/12, 9:24 PM
XRay said...: Trad Guy, good sense. Especially about Harvard grads. Or, Yale or Princeton for that matter.

I'd like a Constitutional Ammendment... no one from traditional Eastern schools, take that as you may, eligible for public office.

I jest, of course. But I'm not so sure that it is a bad idea.; 10/18/12, 9:24 PM
Matt said...: What I don't understand is how Obama could appear in front of a friendly audience and have a friendly host tee up a question for him pre-spun to work in the President's favor and he STILL manages to completely botch it. What a failure.; 10/18/12, 9:27 PM
Michael said...: The press acts as a sort of auto-correct for the president. I expect his English teachers did so as well.

His subjects and verbs do agree, however. Or almost always.; 10/18/12, 9:29 PM
Shanna said...: If four Americans get killed, it's not optimal.

I'm sorry, you can put all the imaginary clauses in that you want, but this is what the guy said. It's wrong. This is what he thinks. Stop trying to spin it away for him. He's a grown man.; 10/18/12, 9:29 PM
Bodacious said...: It's not the use of "optimal" that bothers me (I've read Stewart first brought the word into the conversation) ... it's this "govt. is a big operation and [at] any given time something screws up." It's a complete abrogation of responsibility, and we're not talking about a clerical error.; 10/18/12, 9:31 PM
XRay said...: ""We're well rid of both habits" was a bit confusing for you, I see. :)"

Not at all confusing. You staked your place, I staked mine. You're not worth the effort as I now see.; 10/18/12, 9:34 PM
Anonymous said...: Obama and his followers believe he is President Bartlet from "West Wing."

Life imitates art sometimes, to a degree, but not this time.; 10/18/12, 9:34 PM
Issob Morocco said...: Not Optimal. That also describes the wasted 4 years under the Obama Administration.

Nov. 6th.; 10/18/12, 9:35 PM
Mark said...: What I don't understand is how Obama could appear in front of a friendly audience and have a friendly host tee up a question for him pre-spun to work in the President's favor and he STILL manages to completely botch it.

Pretty much sums it up.; 10/18/12, 9:37 PM
AndyN said...: Michael said...

The press acts as a sort of auto-correct for the president. I expect his English teachers did so as well.

His subjects and verbs do agree, however. Or almost always.

http://hlrecord.org/?p=11263

"Since the merits of the Law Review’s selection policy has been the subject of commentary for the last three issues, I’d like to take the time to clarify exactly how our selection process works."

ITT, the president of the Harvard Law Review makes an elementary school level grammatical error in the first sentence of a letter to the editor arguing that the Law Review's selection process for editors is rigorous enough to ensure excellence among its editorial staff.; 10/18/12, 9:42 PM
carrie said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 9:44 PM
carrie said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 9:44 PM
carrie said...: He's not evening showing respect for the position of Ambassador--it's just 4 Americans that were killed. Isn't it more than just a screw up when an Ambassador is killed? Isn't it significant that an ambassador was killed? He still doesn't want to admit that it was a terrorist attack or that it was a very successful terrorist attack.; 10/18/12, 9:47 PM
Michael said...: AndyN. Yep.; 10/18/12, 9:53 PM
PackerBronco said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 10:08 PM
Mark said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 10:12 PM
Mark said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 10:15 PM
Mark said...: I'm guessing Obama's Id would <del>use>/del> say the death of those four Americans was a betrayal.

I'm sure he's at some level pissed at them.; 10/18/12, 10:19 PM
Jane the Actuary said...: Can someone please explain to me what the big deal with Romney's "binders" comment? Does this come from people who are dumb enough to think Rommey referred to actual women in binders? Who think that Romney made some kind of unforgivable gaffe by not saying "binders of resumes of women executives"? Or who are just grasping at straws and are desparate for a Romney equivalent to "you didn't build that"?; 10/18/12, 10:28 PM
Anonymous said...: Jane, Politico and CBS both had several "binders" stories, as if this was a telling moment for Romney.

Never mind Obama pays women less than men and believes the only concerns we have are free birth control and abortion. Personally I can't think of a more sexist attitude.; 10/18/12, 10:36 PM
Horses AgainstObama said...: A Meme is Born. Not Optimal; 10/18/12, 10:41 PM
Eileen said...: When I first saw the question Stewart asked, my reaction was that the statement was somewhat less offensive in context. Though it was horrendously poorly-chosen, nonetheless.

My impression is that he was agreeing with the sentiment behind the question, segueing from Stewart's statement to the more serious matter of the deaths, using a deliberate, softly sarcastic understatement. Kind of like saying, "I'll say it's not optimal; how about those deaths." Badly done, certainly inappropriate, and it will haunt him. Maybe he thought his tone was befitting the interview setting. Comedy Central; can't be too serious. Besides, he's cool, you know. Fits in with the hip crowd. Rock star.

I don't think, even after four years, this man has even begun to understand the significance of his position.; 10/18/12, 10:42 PM
Kansas City said...: It is like Obama has a political death wish. Or he is just politically stupid. Or he is just stupid. His answer is almost incoherant. And, why would he go on the Daily show to discuss Benghazi at all, let alone a few days before a foreign policy debate and three weeks before the election.

Or, maybe he and his operatives are the smart ones getting votes from Daily viewers, and I'm the the stupid one. Could our country have deteriorated to the point this is smart politics?; 10/18/12, 10:48 PM
Icepick said...: "optimal" is a big intellectual word.

Hell, it's only got three syllables. "Motherfucker"'s got four!; 10/18/12, 10:49 PM
Issob Morocco said...: Oh I get it now after watching the clip, the reason it was "...not optimal..." was not about the 4 US citizens who were murdered, but how that has created messy issues for Obama. That is why he said it is not optimal.Watch the clip. He is talking about it affecting his world, not the lives of the ones killed.

Nov. 6th; 10/18/12, 10:51 PM
Mark said...: Can someone please explain to me what the big deal with Romney's "binders" comment?

It's a weird construction. He meant that he had files, records, whatever, and that he understood the issue because he had data.

But the combination of the pseudo-intellectual classes' disregard for data and the data-insensitive classes' glee at the image of women in (can you see the binding/boundage overtones, tee hee hee) binders has caused an internet vapor.

It's when the gonads interact with the really anal parts of the brain. It's like a three-way in the body progressive.; 10/18/12, 11:00 PM
bagoh20 said...: Romney is killing at the Alfred E. Smith Dinner. He is laying into Obama with some of the most biting and funny stuff ever written. Obama does not seem amused, but everybody else is. We'll see what Obama brings.; 10/18/12, 11:19 PM
furious_a said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 10/18/12, 11:22 PM
furious_a said...: "Blame Bush". "Bain". "Big Bird". "Benghazi". "'bortion."

The Obama campaign is running out of Plan B's and there are only 18 days left 'til Judgment Day.

"President Not Optimal" -- I like it.; 10/18/12, 11:23 PM
bagoh20 said...: These candidates have a grueling schedule. I don't know why anyone would want it, especially if you already are a successful rich bastard with 200 million dollars. You can probably do more out of office than in with that kind of money.; 10/18/12, 11:26 PM
Kansas City said...: Yes, Romney killed. He was very funny, going righ up to the line on poking fun at Obama, but poking enought fun of himself to balance out and closing with a very gracious compliment of Obama and moving support for the Catholic organization. Virtually perfect pitch.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/330936/romney-turns-out-be-funny-kevin-d-williamson; 10/18/12, 11:27 PM
Icepick said...: Damn, Al Smith IV had the real zinger!

“We recognize that you have some challenges this year,” Smith told Obama.“It’s never good when your opponent has produced more sons than you have jobs.”

POW! Right in the kisser! (Someone let Romney's son know that's how it's done without getting tackled by the Secret Service - and given the state of the Secret Service these days those aren't the guys you want on top of you!); 10/18/12, 11:34 PM
bagoh20 said...: Obama was much less less funny, but also more self-deprecating than attacking, which is the right approach for the incumbent. It's actually very cool to see them do that. To just say what they probably do behind closed door right out in front of each other. This would make a great debate format: pure comedy.; 10/18/12, 11:35 PM
Icepick said...: From a Bloomberg article on the Al Smith Dinner:

Noting that the nation’s unemployment rate is the lowest since he took office, the president said: “I don’t have a joke here. I just thought it would be useful to remind everybody that the unemployment rate is the lowest since I took office.”

Way to go, President Buzz-Kill. This is a comedy roast dinner for the children, not someplace for you to get all petulant. Not an optimal comment at all.; 10/18/12, 11:37 PM
Icepick said...: Not to mention that the only reason the UE rates are so low is because participation has cratered.; 10/18/12, 11:39 PM
bagoh20 said...: To paraphrase Romney:
~President Obama knows how to seize the moment with the news of the improved unemployment figures this month. He already has a new campaign slogan: "you're better off today than you were 4 weeks ago.~; 10/18/12, 11:55 PM
bagoh20 said...: MSNBC thinks Romney was over the line. They were very uncomfortable. He's a meanie.

I wish.; 10/19/12, 12:09 AM