Give him a break...

Just a short blog this Friday afternoon. It is for President Obama. I want to say to everyone, "Give Him a Break." I know, Nell Carter's show was called, "Give Me a Break;" but, you get the idea. The Bush-Obama transition reminds me of when you work for years for an employer or manager who is awful. You know the kind. The boss does not listen, talks down to you, never formulates any new strategies, and leads a business to a downward spiral that will take years from which to recover. Eventually, this terrible boss leaves. Then, you get this thoughtful new boss, who actually can do some good. Suddenly, employees who were too fearful to stand up to the old boss, are making negative comments about the new boss, out the wazoo. That is the position that I feel like President Obama is in now.

Even the media is getting into it. Chief White House Correspondent, Chuck Todd voiced his concerns on his website today, about how poorly the press is treated in this current White House administration:

Obviously, I'm one of the newbies here in the White House press corps, so maybe I'm unfamiliar with the ways of how this place works. I have to say, nothing is more frustrating than covering an actual event here at the White House if you at all believe in anything remotely having to do with the First Amendment.
For instance, today, the president gave a speech in the East Room to the business council, an audience of dozens of CEOs and major business leaders in America. As per usual, we're allowed to watch the event behind a ropeline. Ok, standard procedure for any event for any candidate, let alone a president. But unlike public events, here at the White House, when the event ends, we get no access to the audience unless the audience happens to amble up to the ropeline and chat with the press.
Today, it was so bad that we were kept behind closed doors so that these CEOs and other business leaders could leave without accidentally mingling with us poor press peons. Once the CEOs were clear and escorted downstairs, then we were let out of our East Room pen. And it's not like we could rush over to the east side of the White House and find anyone left to interview about their role on this business council. By the time, a member of the press leaves out the one exit they can come in and out of, those guys and gals would be history. I'm sure most of them had cars at the ready to quickly get them to their next meeting.

Where were the concerns from the press during President Bush's reign? I did not hear many. Now suddenly, it's "whah whah." OK - that is my whining for today. Have a good holiday weekend.