Obama Channels Nixon

Sure, President Obama is going to appear on a The Tonight Show.

Others have appeared on TV as well:

Presidential candidates often appear on television shows when they’re trying to get elected, but once successful, it is rare to find a commander in chief appearing on TV shows except as joke fodder. President Bush did show up on NBC’s “Deal or No Deal” last year, but it was in a taped appearance in which he voiced support for a contestant who had served three tours of duty in Iraq.

Apparently, Obama will be talking about the economy and already, the White House is hedging on the key question: Will Obama be funny?

“As funny as the times allow,” the official said.

The question is, can Obama be as funny as...Nixon?

Not exactly a tall order, but Obama is appearing in order to talk about the economy--but not in front of a live audience answering questions nor in a format that lends itself to seriously addressing the issue.

Personally, I would have liked to see Obama appear on a show where he could be interviewed by someone like John Stossel, who did a report entitled: Bailouts and Bull:

Instead we will get a carefully choreographed presentation which suites Obama's style and reduces an issue important to Americans to simple table talk.

Somehow, I don't see Obama granting David Frost an interview in the near future...and don't even think about SNL.

Technorati Tag: Obama and Nixon.