While Barack Obama discussed college football with CNBC's John Harwood, Ann Coulter took a verbal beating from the journalists at NBC.To his credit, Harwood did ask Obama about his tax plan for America, but let Obama wiggle out of answering a question about whether or not and when he would rescind Bush's tax cuts for the rich.
"I'm not prepared to make a hard and fast commitment," said Obama of a possible repeal. He seemed pretty committed to this issue on the campaign trail.
Admittedly, Coulter stirs up controversy whenever possible. She's out to sell books. Her actual conviction often falls into question due to her transparent, money-grubbing objectives. However, there is something strikingly peculiar about these interviews...Ann Coulter is an author. She's a shock jock. A hack, even. Barack Obama is two weeks from taking office as the President of the United States.
Still, journalists continue to throw him softball questions like "Do you think Utah would finish undefeated by defeating Alabama?".
The point is not that Coulter is forced to explain her controversial statements, but that Obama enjoys laid back, ineffectual interviews by even the most respected journalists.
Journalists are the job interviewers for the public. We can't all personally ask Obama the questions that would have helped us make an informed decision on a the proper candidate for the job. Unfortunately, the folks that we rely on to handle this task let us all down.
He was more fun to watch and charismatic...without question. But, journalists needed to apply the same interviewing tactics to Obama that they did to Sarah Palin and Ann Coulter.
Coulter made an excellent point in her interview with Lauer. It boiled down to the fact that the next four years may be a surprise to us because Obama was rarely forced to answer direct questions.
Moreover, with his infamous habit of voting "present", we certainly can't look at his history to determine our future.
