Have the Germans overrun the Middle East? That might not be a bad idea — they’ve got to be better than the kleptocracies and mullahcracies there now — but no, the Germans are still happily in Germany, despite Barack Obama’s reference to a “Teutonic shift” in the region:

President Obama made an amusing slip of the tongue last night while discussing the Middle East during a fundraiser in Austin.

“Internationally, we’ve gone through a Teutonic shift in the Middle East that could have enormous ramifications for years to come,” he said.

Hmmm … Teutonic … a reference to the ancient Germans, forerunners of the Germans … as far as we know, the Germans haven’t tried to overrun the Middle East since World War II.

A day later, the White House amended the transcript to note that Obama meant tectonic, not Teutonic.  Even that, though, seems a strange word choice, as USA Today’s David Jackson points out:

Ah, tectonic … “of or pertaining to building or construction; constructive; architectural.”

Maybe Obama meant Titanic?  Oh, wait, he wasn’t referring to his own Middle East policy …

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!