If you'd rather read what Obama said, the Washington Post has a good summary, or watch in full below. The press corps only asked about guns and the debt ceiling. Obama said he wasn't going to negotiate with republicans on the debt ceiling. End of story. Using a restaurant analogy, he said Congress has to authorize him to pay the tab because they already ate the meal. If they would like to talk about a cheaper restaurant next time, they can do that. Major Garrett suggested that Obama's handling of the debt ceiling was out of the ordinary.
Gun irrationalists will get freaked out because Obama said he could use executive powers (here's a poll gun irrationalists need to see). Last I checked, we had a dysfunctional Congress (many who believe Obama was born in Kenya (racist)) and a president that we, the people, elected, so using executive power seems highly rational to me. It was good to see Colin Powell call out republicans yesterday for being idiots. The bigotry really has to stop, and the only way it will stop is if the media calls it what it is. It isn't Obama not wanting to play cards with House republicans. It's House republicans calling Obama an illegitimate, socialist president. I'm soooooo sick of the antics.
Despite the questions and the inferences that Obama's administration isn't diverse enough (how ironic) and wasn't doing enough to mingle with House republicans who would rather overthrow government than run it, Obama remained gracious and rational.
