By the time I get to Phoenix (health care edition)

Video of Bret Baier’s 18-minute interview of President Obama in the White House yesterday is below; a transcript of the interview is here. The interview was broadcast on the the Fox News Special Report with Bret Baier. Having previously declared Fox News an illegitimate organization, Obama’s strategists must have arrived at a health care reconciliation package of their own. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Most of the interview is devoted to Obamacare and related questions of process. Is the Louisiana Purchase in or out? Is the Cornhusker Kickback in or our? Is Gatorade in or out? Is the Connecticut hospital in or out?
By the time the bill is voted on, Obama says, Obama will know, and so will Baier, because the bill will be posted online. All will become clear in the fullness of time. To paraphrase Jimmy Webb, we’ll laugh when we read the part that says we’re payin’, ’cause we’ve paid so many times before.
Obama apparently can’t say at the moment exactly what’s in and what’s out of the bill that is imminently to be voted on. There is some mystery about the contents. Obama does defend the Louisiana Purchase; unlike Nebraska, Louisiana’s staying bought.
By my lights, the attention to procedure in the interview is excessive. The distasteful procedural issues, however, fairly represent the deceptive talking points supporting the horrendous substance of the legislation. When Baier asks Obama about double counting the purported Medicare savings in the bill, Obama all but says, “I’m dancing as fast as I can.” There is good reason Obama hasn’t made himself available to be questioned on the substance of the bill by a knowledgeable reporter.
Baier is incredibly persistent in pressing his questions over Obama’s evasions and filibusters. Obama’s technique for dealing with difficult questions is on display throughout, as well as his reactions of frustration and irritation. Baier manfully resists Obama’s domination of the interview. Putting the seriousness of the issues to one side, I found this to be an incredibly entertaining piece.

Via NRO’s The Feed.
UPDATE: Memeorandum compiles comments on the interview. Ann Althouse critically observes Obama’s evasions. Michelle Malkin attends to Obama’s invocation of the Hawaiian earthquake, a highlight that whizzed right by me. Seth Liebsohn’s assessment is on the money: “Bret Baier just concluded the single best interview of President Obama in a year, by any reporter….Bret showed the rest of the press how to do it from now on.”

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