"We don’t want any more of that Professor Obama lecturing to us stuff"

They wanted the six-hour talks to take place around a table with House and Senate members sitting at the same height as President Barack Obama, according to a senior Senate GOP aide.

“We don’t want any more of that Professor Obama lecturing to us stuff,” said one staffer, speaking on condition of anonymity. Another aide circulated pictures of Obama speaking at various events using his favorite platform, an elevated lectern perched above an audience of upraised, adoring faces.

Republicans got their wish. “Participants will be seated at tables in a hollow square setup. They’ll be identified with name cards,” reads the White House summit schedule.