WH Sr. Adviser says Obama will be ‘asset in every way possible’ to Dem candidates
David Gregory asks, “Is the president more of a liability than he is an asset at this stage for Democrats?”
David Gregory spoke with Dan Pfeiffer on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, where he pressed the White House Senior Adviser on Obama’s recent low approval rating among Democrats.
Pfeiffer didn’t address much about the polls very directly, but said that the shutdown and problems with healthcare.gov had some impact for everyone in Washington, including the president.
“Here’s what the president is going to do,” Pfeiffer said. “He is going to lay out the terms of the debate in this election as a choice between Democrats who support an agenda of opportunity for all, for Republicans for an agenda of opportunity for a few. And let’s not forget, this president wrote the book on running and winning modern campaigns. So we’re going to take all of our resources and help Democrats up and down the ballot.”
And then Gregory asked Pfeiffer, “Right, but do they want your help? Is the president more of a liability than he is an asset at this stage for Democrats?”
Pfeiffer responded, “We are going to set the terms of the debate, we’re going to provide our organizational ability to help them if the president’s going to raise money, we want to help them in every way we can.”
Gregory continued to press and asked again, “Liability or asset?”
“The president will be an asset in every way possible and help these candidates,” Pfeiffer said.
Full video below (the Obama approval rating exchange starts at 1:58).
Here’s a writeup of the full exchange:
GREGORY: Let’s talk about domestic politics and the President’s approval rating. We had a big poll out, Wall Street Journal, NBC News this week. Here’s what it found – overall job approval for the president 41%, handling of the economy 41%, same number when it came to foreign policy. And here’s what’s striking – approval is 74% among Democrats. Sounds high but it’s the lowest that the president’s had in terms of his approval among Democrats. He can’t very well blame Republicans for this, the president has really slipped.
PFEIFFER: Well, look. On this, public polls are a little bit all over the map and on the same day your poll came out another poll came out that showed the president gaining six points in the last couple months. But look, I’ve looked at a lot of data, and let me tell you what we see. There’s no question that everyone in Washington, the president included, took a big hit from the double whammy of a shutdown and the problems with healthcare.gov. We have stabilized and we’re working our way back and if you look at the aggregate of public polling we’ve gained three points in the last couple months. But there’s no question we have more work to do.
GREGORY: But there’s so much disappointment, there’s so much disappointment in Washington. But this is an election year. And Democrats are worried. And the NY Times this morning, I’ve been reading Jonathan Martin and Ashley Parker write this: “Democrats are becoming increasingly alarmed about their mid-term election fortunes amid President Obama’s shrinking approval ratings, a loss in a special House election in Florida last week, and millions of dollars spent by Republican-aligned groups attacking the new health law. The combination has led to uncharacteristic criticism of Mr. Obama and bitter complaints that his vaunted political organization has done little to help the party’s vulnerable congressional candidates.”
PFEIFFER: Well look, there’s no question this is a tough map for Democrats, that’s what happens when you win a lot of elections like we did in 2008. But the good news is that we have good candidates and most importantly, we’re on the right side of the issue that matters most to the public: jobs and the economy. Here’s what the president is going to do. He is going to lay out the terms of the debate in this election as a choice between Democrats who support an agenda of opportunity for all, Republicans for an agenda of opportunity for a few. And let’s not forget, this president wrote the book on running and winning modern campaigns. So we’re going to take all of our resources and help Democrats up and down the ballot [crosstalk].
GREGORY: Right, but do they want your help? Is the president more of a liability than he is an asset at this stage for Democrats?
PFEIFFER: We are going to set the terms of the debate, we’re going to provide our organizational ability to help them if the president’s going to raise money, we want to help them in every way we can.
GREGORY: Liability or asset?
PFEIFFER: The president will be an asset in every way possible and help these candidates.
[Featured image: NBC News / Meet the Press video]
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Comments
Isn’t asset the diminutive suffix for ass?
I think it would be more likely to be “assette,” which in turn underscores Pres. MomJeans’ less-than-masculine qualities ~
Only way he can help the Dems is to be elsewhere, with his mouth shut.
Shhhhh. Let ’em campaign the way they want.
Uh oh. Looks like the brass came down hard on Gregory by telling him they want ratings increases. And if he doesn’t stop being Obama’s butt boy, he will be OUT. Time will tell.
Dan Pfeiffer is unimpressive as a spokesperson and I wonder how he has reached the upper echelons of the White House.
He does help show why, except to sycophants, Obama is tanking as a leader, other than as a less than honest in your face pitchman for his insurance company or, while Russia engages in aggression, complain about mommy jeans.
These vacuous guys are living in a bubble and cannot see the reality seen by most others. Instead, they try to manipulate reality by creating division over things that suit their political interests, while the nation and world suffers.
I wonder if he ever had a real job? But then O never really worked either. The whole administration is the same.
“And let’s not forget, this president wrote the book on running and winning modern campaigns.”
Oh really? A completely inexperienced Senator wrote that book? Or just stepped into the slot pre-cut for a cult of personality campaign?
I think that even rabid Democrats have been dismayed by his lack of substance.
When they say the same about Karl Rove, it’s always a negative thing.
“Paging Mr. Barnum…Mr. P. T. Barnum.
You suckers are waiting in the lounge…!”
‘Pfeiffer responded, “We are going to set the terms of the debate, we’re going to provide our organizational ability to help them if the president’s going to raise money, we want to help them in every way we can.”’
You take the Man’s money, you speak the Man’s words.
When you are a FT golfer partying with sports ‘guys’ on Key Largo you are not an asset. You are an ousted, lame duck half ass. All respect reserved.
Obama’s only book: “Hope and Change DIY Materialism”
I believe you meant ‘all due respect…’
…which is about zilch
The President is a liability and he knows it.
But he can’t say it. He would lose his job.
Well, technically a boat anchor is an asset, so Pfeiffer’s right about that.
Best analysis I have heard in a while. Kudos to you.
“But the good news is that we have good candidates and most importantly, we’re on the right side of the issue that matters most to the public: jobs and the economy.”
You know, I think that buffoon actually believes that and I certainly hope they intend to run on it. I want my enemies as ill-informed and delusional as possible.
Just more proof that liberalism is a mental condition.
I blame Bill Clinton.
It was in defense of his selfish determination to keep his post despite his faithlessness to the law that led Democrats and their media following to discover they could get away with the most outrageous lies if they repeated them religiously and combined them with dishonest but strident attacks against those seeking to hold him to account.
Ever since, the truth hasn’t mattered to them at all. Not a bit. They feel empowered to say anything, the more extreme the accusation the better, knowing a large percentage of the population will swallow it whole as long as the media cooperates, which they now always do.
Dan the Delusional
Gregory just mentions an ObamaCare poll as an aside without pointing out the real numbers which are devastating for the President. Then, as the true partisan hack-Obama Administration sycophant that he is, lets Pfeiffer drone on about Obama focusing on jobs and the economy.
Surprise, surprise! One Obama lackey asks another Obama lackey if Obama is an asset and he gets a positive answer. This is definetly a dog bites man non-story.
There are no American tanks at Bagdhad Airport.