I thought nothing would top “plug the damn hole” as a feeble show of command in the teeth of pure federal impotence, but never underestimate The One.

Full POTUS quote: “I was down there a month ago, before most of these talkin’ heads were even paying attention to the gulf. A month ago I was meeting with fishermen down there, standin’ in the rain talking about what a potential crisis this could be. and I don’t sit around just talking to experts because this is a college seminar, we talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers, so I know whose ass to kick.”

Nice use of apostrophes by Chuck Todd to show O strainin’ to connect to the common man. His approval rating hasn’t deterioriated over the spill yet, but ABC’s out with a poll today showing that 69 percent rate the feds’ response to the disaster negatively. By comparison, that number was only 62 percent after Katrina. So here’s his attempt at damage control with another two months of this nightmare (at least) still to go, imitating the same sort of bravado that the left used to detest in Bush in hopes that it’ll stop their caterwauling about his dispassion and give them a happy new meme to push. “See? He’s mad. He cares.” It’s completely out of character with his Cool Hand Luke persona and roughly six weeks too late, which means it’s as phony as a three-dollar bill, but so what? This is all about changing the subject from the spill itself to Obama’s engagement with it, and for low-information voters, it’ll do nicely. Three cheers for the cynical scripted soundbite!

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