Every love affair has its troubles, but … I don’t know, guys. Reporters griping to Politico about how thin-skinned and controlling the White House is felt like a quarrel before bed, the political equivalent of “we’re not spending enough time together lately.” But actually snarking at The One in public about his refusal to answer questions? With his most special girl, a.k.a. the Times, piling on? I fear we might be near a formal separation.

Can this marriage be saved?

At a ceremony to sign a bill promoting press freedom around the world on Monday, President Obama refused to take questions from the reporters in attendance. “I’m not doing a press conference today,” he told Chip Reid of CBS News, “but we’ll be seeing you guys during the course of the week.”

So when the president hosted a “news conference” in the Rose Garden with the visiting Mexican president on Wednesday, Mr. Reid thought maybe this time Mr. Obama would take questions. Instead, Mr. Obama allowed only a single question from the American media and called on a reporter from Univision, knowing that he would be unlikely to be asked about Tuesday’s anti-incumbent election results…

As the event ended and Mr. Obama swiveled to head back into the Oval Office, Mr. Reid tried again and shouted out a question about the elections.

Mr. Obama ignored him. Maybe he meant later in the course of the week.

The Times’s headline: “Obama Turns His Back On the Press.” It pains me to say it given his insane overexposure, but … maybe it’s time for another prime time press conference? A little Iran spin here, a little Arizona-bashing there, then a suave, softly whispered “if you like your plan, you can keep your plan” and suddenly the magic is back. No? Well, something needs to be done to get these two crazy kids back on track. Maybe they could simply offer to pay him? If there’s a surefire way to get some action from The One, cold hard cash is it.

Update: Actually, this relationship is the definition of co-dependency, isn’t it?