[netamargr]

LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/news/politics...,3352710.story


An appearance on "The Daily Show" offered President Obama little comic relief from the serious midterm election campaign, as he was peppered with tough questions rooted in whether he has lived up to the promise of his 2008 campaign.

The mood was light-hearted during Obama's interview with Jon Stewart on the satirical Comedy Central program, but exchanges were hard-hitting and direct.

Stewart challenged the president about "timid legislation" to reform the nation's healthcare system, economic recovery and financial reform, and whether it was possible to keep the inspiration and change promised in his 2008 campaign moving forward.

"You ran on the idea that this system needed basic reform. It feels like some of the reforms that passed – like healthcare – have been done in a very political manner that has papered over a foundation that is corrupt," Stewart asked at one point.

Obama argued that the work of his administration was unfinished, that he had promised "change you can believe in," not "change you can believe in in 18 months."

"Over the last two years in the emergency situation, our attitude was that we've got to get some things done. In order to do that, [we] basically worked with the process as opposed to transforming the process, and that frustrated folks. It frustrates me," Obama said.

[gundas]

For those on the right who were convinced this was going to be a Pres. Obama love fest, they couldn't have been more wrong. Stewart has proven time and again that he is not afraid to ask tough questions, and ask them he did. Pres. Obama stuck to the script for the most part, although his use of the phrase, "He did a heck of a job" to describe Larry Summers was unexpectedly eerie. Who knows if the show won Mr. Obama any converts; at times the applause seemed loudest for Stewart.

[movlabk]

http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-epi...0-barack-obama

They went the whole show, too. Not even a monologue.