I'm a little surprised that we haven't discussed this yet. In my opinion, Bill was lobbing softballs at BHO, although he couldn't help interrupting the President a lot (Bill can't resist this with any of his guests on The Factor). I've seen all kinds of response to this. What's yours?

I completely forgot to watch it...but have seen a couple of clips.

Links?

I liked it. I thought both of them came away favorably. I'm glad Obama actually answered questions.

[video=youtubemKgcep7N34][/video]

I <3 Bill.

It's funny to see the reactions because they are all over the place. Some people say Bill went too easy on him and others say he was rude, disrespectful, etc. I have only seen clips but overall I thought it was okay. They only had a short amount of time so of course Bill was going to interrupt him and try to get him to answer the questions.

I think when Baeir (?) did his interview awhile ago and inturrepted the President it was the same reaction, from the usual suspects. BHO is very very good at filhilbustering any question, he'll answer to the topic of the question, but he doesn't like to answer questions directly sometimes (esp. if he knows the answer won't be popular). He is very good a this, a master so-to-speak. The mainstream media doesn't push a lot, so you never really get his true answer to "the question asked", just his thoughts on the topic that the question lies within. Clinton would at least answer questions, he'd just talk so long around it. It's a fine line to walk, interrpting the President without being rude, but as journalists, they should all do this. Their job is to provide the American public with answers that they have access to and we do not. We all know journalism is dead, but I think Bill did a pretty good job of pushing the envelope of comfort and awkwardness.

One thing that stuck out to me is that I think we got a true glimpse of how aloof he can be in regards to how people really feel about him. O'Reilly, although he is undoubtedly a rich and powerful white elite, he nonetheless is probably the best representative "of the folks" as he might say in the mainstream media. I've made the case (and I know many of our right wing friends don't believe me) that Barack Obama in reality is not a die hard liberal and not the true socialist many believe him to be, and that even if he is, it's not his approach governance to try to instill his worldview on the populace. But, the point of this post isn't to argue that point.

What my point is that, when O'Reilly mentioned that there are people who believe that he is indeed a socialist who wants to spread the wealth around...Obama just laughed it off as if it's a non-issue. . To me, it is an issue and he doesn't really understand how many people believe this. I've said before that I think he is a bit naive. I mean there is a large motivated population that believes these types of things. To himself, he's not a socialist and that's fine...but he has to at least acknowledge that people believe this and challenge them.

He explained why, for instance, that the mandate and its underlying justifications are not socialist in nature; when he said asking Americans to pay for their own healthcare. This is true. Indeed, having our hospitals and medical professionals treat those who have not insured themselves out of their own sense of decency is much more grounded in the concept of welfare and this is our current reality.

He never challenges any counterarguments. For instance he said, "what we've always said, is that if you like your insurance you can keep it." Conservative critics are arguing that this is b.s. because his bill is going to make insurers lose money and drop more coverage. He needs to challenge why he thinks this is false.

He needs to be less dismissive it seems to me of conservative positions and arguments when, with a reasoned approach, with his rhetorical skills, he could at least appear to successfully counter these criticisms. Bill Clinton was much more up for this kind of thing, IMO.

As an aside, though I've watched Bill for a long time and I generally enjoy him, he sure does seem like he probably wallows with pleasure in the fog of his own farts.

Any videos since Sunday?

BoatShoes;671811 wrote: He never challenges any counterarguments. For instance he said, "what we've always said, is that if you like your insurance you can keep it." Conservative critics are arguing that this is b.s. because his bill is going to make insurers lose money and drop more coverage. He needs to challenge why he thinks this is false.

He needs to be less dismissive it seems to me of conservative positions and arguments when, with a reasoned approach, with his rhetorical skills, he could at least appear to successfully counter these criticisms. Bill Clinton was much more up for this kind of thing, IMO

I honestly don't think he's that quick on his feet...at least nowhere near the skill level of Clinton.

I thought it was an ok interview. Nothing really shocking or special.

I actually enjoyed it, as it's something of a tradition lately before the Super Bowl. Extremists on both sides have tried to read more into it than it actually was, but I thought the banter between the two was "a bold fresh slice of humanity", to borrow a phrase. I thought O'Reilly gained credibility by doing this as opposed to a more traditional newsman conducting it, so it was win-win for both.

Only saw snippets of the interview. O'Reilly looks like a high school shop teacher. Very poor interviewing skills with all the interruptions. I would have liked to hear some answers to his questions.

http://www.examiner.com/political-buzz-in-national/a-compilation-of-bill-o-reilly-s-48-interruptions-of-president-obama-video-1