The phrase “whether we like it or not” usually connotes a negative to which an audience has to resign themselves.  To give one example, no one ever hears, “Whether you like it or not, you’re going to get a banana split with your choice of toppings,” or “Like it or not, I’m going to get naked now.”  For some reason, Barack Obama — commander in chief of the American military, mind you — used this very construct when noting that the US “remain[s] a dominant military superpower” while addressing the Nuclear Security Summit he hosted this week. Freedom’s Lighthouse has the clip:

Er, what exactly is there not to like about having the dominant military in the world?  That status has kept us safe from state-on-state attack since World War II, when Pearl Harbor taught us that weakness invites attack.  Do we need clarification from our Commander-in-Chief as to whether he sees this as a good thing or not?  Because whether we like it or not, we’re stuck with Obama as C-in-C for the next two years, nine months, and five days.

Got an Obamateurism of the Day? If you see a foul-up by Barack Obama, e-mail it to me at [email protected] with the quote and the link to the Obamateurism. I’ll post the best Obamateurisms on a daily basis, depending on how many I receive. Include a link to your blog, and I’ll give some link love as well. And unlike Slate, I promise to end the feature when Barack Obama leaves office.

Illustrations by Chris Muir of Day by Day. Be sure to read the adventures of Sam, Zed, Damon, and Jan every day!