NBC’s Chuck Todd: Obama ‘Taking Comfort’ in GOP ‘Race to the Right’
On Monday's NBC Today, chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd described liberal wishful thinking as “conventional wisdom” as he explained how: “The Obama team has been taking comfort in the fact that they believe this Republican race is moving to the Right, that it's a race to the Right. And they take comfort in that and they think that's going to help them long-term.” At the same time, Todd seemed perplexed that the President's poll numbers had fallen despite the conservative values of the Republican 2012 contenders: “But as that happened – and it was a lot of attention over the last four or five days….the President's numbers have still gone down. And that Gallup number, where it dropped in the daily tracking below 40 for the very first time in the presidency.” Later in the segment, fill-in co-host David Gregory asked Todd about how Obama was “going to run against certain members of Congress” and doubled-down on his attacks on Michele Bachmann during an interview with her on Sunday's Meet the Press. Gregory played a clip of that interview in which he dismissed Bachmann's opposition to raising the debt ceiling. The Minnesota Congresswoman pointed out that, “All the people out in America said don't raise the debt ceiling. That's the problem with Washington, they're not listening to the people.” Gregory fired back: “But why does that make it – why does it make it the right thing to do?” Turning to Todd on Today, Gregory saw Bachmann's position as something that could be used to go after her: “This issue of public opinion on the debt ceiling driving her vote, is this something that both the President uses as a potential wedge, and even other more mainstream candidates in the Republican Party?” Todd agreed: “It isn't just President Obama that's going to be hitting her on this. She's got a target on her back right now.” Here is a full transcript of Gregory's August 15 exchange with Todd: 7:05AM ET DAVID GREGORY: Chuck Todd is NBC's chief White House correspondent and political director. Also the host of MSNBC's 'The Daily Rundown.' He's in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, stop number one on President Obama's bus tour, this morning. Hey Chuck, good morning. So the President's got new tracking numbers out. A new low at 39%. He's hitting the road, also in the Midwest, which he knows is an important battleground for him next year. What's the game plan here? Is he talking about what he can do with Congress or does he now just want to turn on the Republicans?
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on August 15, 2011. Filed under