Among us TV critics, the WashPost’s Tom Shales is well-known for being even more of a grump than most. He doesn’t like much, which is why he’s such a good, worthwhile read.
Shales’ piece today on Pres. Obama’s prime-time news conference last night was unusually adulatory. (Then again, look at the act Obama is following).
“Barack Obama is a truly flabbergasting president,” Shales writes. “And in a good way — not the way some of his predecessors were. He’s not flabberghastly.
“When Obama answers a question, you don’t slap your forehead and moan, “Oh, brother!” He is, as guest expert David Gergen noted on CNN after the news conference, not only “up to speed” on the pressing issues of our time but also articulate about addressing them in a friendly, accessible way. He’s not the student who wears a button that says, “Smartest kid in class,” but clearly he is, at least when surrounded by the White House press corps.”