Obama apologizes about calling AG Harris "The best looking attorney general"

[TheHuckster]

Linky

One thing that annoys me about this whole story is, IMO, it's another case of people taking one person's words out of context of the whole speech and focusing on it as if it's the only thing he said. He didn't say she was qualified to be AG because of her looks, it was an aside. He said it as an afterthought to her actual accomplishments.

I don't see it much different than when someone endorses someone's feats and accomplishments and then says, "Oh, and by the way, he's single, ladies."

I agree that women shouldn't be ranked according to their looks, nor should anyone base their judgement on one's looks, but to me this whole thing is a case of making a mountain out of a molehill. Should he have said it? Maybe, maybe not. But it just seems as though the outrage and focus on it seems a bit excessive to me.

[Kheldarson]

I think it's more the fact that he was there in his official capacity (although, granted, when is he technically not in his official capacity according to the media?). But he's there as a backer to this fundraiser, in his capacity as the President, and says it. Even as an aside.

It would be like your boss's boss saying "Yeah, she's done great work and all, and we're really proud of what she's done. And she's cute to boot!" Now everybody's left thinking why it was important to throw out there.

A Slate columnist did a response to it that explains it a bit better.

[Panacea]

All much ado about nothing.

We've really lost our way as a society, when a simple compliment is the source of such controversy. When suspicion and antagonism is read into any comment of a sexual nature, regardless of intent.

[HYHYBT]

It seems more like a joke than anything else, and about as sensible to make *serious* complaints about as his wife's accidentally calling herself a single mother.

[Greenday]

Not the smartest comment in the world. It comes off sexist regardless of its intent.

[Ree]

Obama said Harris is “brilliant and she is dedicated and she is tough..."

So sad that a single offhand comment to a good friend negates anything else he said prior to that.

People are so busy getting offended by the fact that he mentioned her looks as an afterthought, that they are the ones taking the focus off his compliment to her intelligence and dedication.

In my opinion, by blowing that one comment out of proportion, they are the ones giving it credence and importance, and they are the ones doing a disservice to the woman.

[Seifer]

I'm sure his comment seriously hurt Janet Reno's feelings.

[Ree]

I'm sure his comment seriously hurt Janet Reno's feelings.

Poor Janet.
I'm sure she has also been described as brilliant, dedicated and tough.

[TheHuckster]

So sad that a single offhand comment to a good friend negates anything else he said prior to that.

People are so busy getting offended by the fact that he mentioned her looks as an afterthought, that they are the ones taking the focus off his compliment to her intelligence and dedication.

In my opinion, by blowing that one comment out of proportion, they are the ones giving it credence and importance, and they are the ones doing a disservice to the woman.

That's exactly my feelings as well. I think it's clear, no matter what, that the comments were not meant to be the focus of the speech.

It always touches a nerve when people take a quote from a speech out of context and twist it around to antagonize the person who said it. It's a dishonest political tactic that drives me nuts.