Topic: Washington Examiner
In an April 27 Washington Examiner column (print-only, not online) attempting to prove that President Obama "could very well be one of the worst U.S. presidents in history when it comes to thinking on his feet," Michael Taube repeats a false story:
According to Sky News, the president read Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen's speech -- and thanked himself -- on his teleprompter in March 2009. Cowen followed him to the podium, started repeating the same words, stopped and then said, "That's your speech."
First, Taube gets the order wrong -- Cowen's teleprompter goof came before Obama's turn to speak, not after. Second, the White House press pool report clearly indicates that that Obama was making a joke about Cowen's goof by thanking himself. Which demonstrates that Obama may be better at thinking on his feet than Taube thinks.
