Obama aces Leno Tonight Show

“I think the things that folks across the country are most fed up with, whether you are a Democrat, Republican, independent, is putting party ahead of country, or putting the election ahead of the next generation,” Obama responded smoothly.”

“The TV Column: Obama on Leno, Rooney hospitalized

 

By Lisa de Moraes, Tuesday, October 25, 8:02 PM

When President Obama made his second visit to Jay Leno’s NBC late-night talker, “The Tonight Show,” he clearly knew Tuesday who his audience was.

Leno: “Have you been watching the GOP debates?”

“I’m going to wait until everybody is voted off the island before — ,” Obama began.

Wild applause from the studio audience in Burbank, approving of the “Survivor” reference.

“Once they narrow it down to one or two, I’ll start paying attention,” Obama added, continuing to heed the first rule of any good late-night talk-show appearance.

Leno had kicked off the interview by asking the president, “Your take on this?” regardinglast week’s grisly death of Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi.

Yes — it’s still a comedy show.

“Well, this is somebody who, for 40 years, has terrorized his country and supported terrorism. And he had an opportunity during the Arab Spring to finally let loose of his grip on power and to peacefully transition into democracy,” Obama began, getting that glassy-eyed, stuffed-frog look that politicians get when they go into well-rehearsed diplomatic-speak.

“We gave him ample opportunity, and he wouldn’t do it. And, obviously, you never like to see anybody come to the kind of end that he did, but I think it obviously sends a strong message around the world to dictators that — ”

“Yeah,” Leno interrupted enthusiastically.

“ — people long to be free, and they need to respect the human rights and the universal aspirations of people.”

Leno asked Obama how many members of the GOP had opposed U.S. withdrawal of troops from Iraq, an event that Obama outlined Friday in a nationally televised speech.

“It’s shocking that they opposed something I proposed,” Obama snarked.

Leno gave Obama a platform to talk about recent comments by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) that, as Leno told it, “our goal is to make this guy a [one-term] president” — something Leno said made him good and mad as he faux-wondered: “How is that a goal?”