The Bosque Boys

Heck, he should just give up the teleprompter entirely. I'm an Obama backer, but I think that his speeches should be delivered without a piece of glass feeding him words.

However, his speechwriter for his pre-election speeches and his inaugural address were pretty amazing. Historical accuracy is an issue, however.

Gardener:

My point on some of these "howlers" was that they were forgivable "stretches" in aid of diplomacy (someone else who makes a living off of commentating made this same point--I cannot recall exactly who).

I can cut him some slack on most of this. As I noted previously, all that soft history came in the fluffy prologue.

But, on the bigger point, I am with you. This is a president or an administration that is serially IMPRECISE with its history. There are always a ton of conflations and politically pointed interpretations.

It is my opinion that this bunch does not feel the need to be especially faithful to the facts. They have a laser-like focus on the politics--and the truth is often fungible. Part of this, undoubtedly, is their experience in the modern academy where truth is in the eye of the beholder.

As for your assertion that George Bush could not get away with this brand of sloppiness, I agree--but..."if you keep on a talkin' to the people who don't listen, who do you think's gonna hear?"

This president is operating under a different standard of accountability. And that's the way it is. No one cares but us--at least for now.

Related comments with a bite from the Hitch: http://www.slate.com/id/222...

Camille Paglia was not impressed by the speech: and she's an Obama supporter: "Obama's speech (which I read rather than heard) seemed to my teacher's eye like a strong first draft rather than a polished final product. This could and should have been one of the most important documents in American political history. But any president, given the crushing onus of his daily agenda, needs help from a team of speechwriters and advisors who will flesh out his thoughts and argument with example and detail. Despite his Ivy League background, Obama evidently still lacks a reliable circle of erudite, cosmopolitan analysts like those John F. Kennedy drafted via his Harvard network."