Well. This is… embarrassing. During an interview with Univision and speaking to his failure to pass comprehensive immigration reform, President Obama lamented the degree to which his capability to lead and to get things accomplished in Washington has been so steadily and unfortunately put-upon, and made a rather awkward apology for his policy deficiencies.

“The most important lesson I’ve learned is you can’t change Washington from the inside.”

Hem, hem. And I quote:

Okay, hold the phone — the President of the United States is powerless to influence Washington’s inner workings? I thought that was supposed to be the entire point of America electing him? You don’t think that maybe the real reason President Obama has failed to deliver on his many ambitious campaign promises — increasing transparency and bipartisanship, ending business as usual, creating jobs, and everything else that can be summed up by his erstwhile campaign slogan — could be because he finally got to Washington and figured out that, hey, actually… I’m fine with it just the way it is. Maybe?

The Twitterverse is having a grand ol’ time with this one:

So he can’t change it from the outside. He goes inside. All the way inside. Can’t change it from the inside. What now?

— David Freddoso (@freddoso) September 20, 2012

Coming soon from Obama: “Another thing I learned is that ‘hope’ is a very overrated concept. People need to learn to settle.”

— Just Karl (@justkarl) September 20, 2012

Obama 2008: “”We are the ones we have been waiting for”. Obama 2012: “You can’t change Washington from the inside.” #Forward

— Little Miss Rightie (@LilMissRightie) September 20, 2012