Schieffer: Obama and the 2016 Olympics Fray

By: David Morgan
Topics: White House

(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

The tactic worked for Tony Blair and Vladimir Putin: a leader making a high-profile bid to host an Olympic Games. Now President Barack Obama is throwing his weight towards Chicago's bid to host the 2016 Summer Games.

(Left: President Obama wields a light saber at Olympic fencer Tim Morehouse, at the White House, Sept. 16, 2009.)

But given all that is on the president's plate — health care reform, Iran's nuclear program, the Afghan battle front, climate change legislation, and a struggling economy — is Mr. Obama in danger of spreading himself too thin by spending time on wooing the Olympiad to the shores of Lake Michigan?

Not a problem, says CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer.

"Think of Ronald Reagan: He tied his whole re-election campaign, 'Morning in America,' to the Olympics that summer in Los Angeles," Scheiffer told CBS "Early Show" anchor Harry Smith. "I think in the end you and I will talk about this, a lot of the chattering class will debate it back and forth, but in the end, I don't think it's going to make any difference to the success or failure of the Obama presidency.

"If the Obama presidency goes down because Barack Obama went to Copenhagen [to lobby the International Olympic Committee], it wasn't much of a presidency to start with. I think this president's success will be judged by how other things come out, not the least of which is Afghanistan, Iran and health care."

"Fourteen hours on airplane will not make or break his presidency," agreed Smith. "But at the same time, we've got Iran coming to a boiling point, Afghanistan waiting for a decision on how many troops should or should not be sent there, health care on the back burner — does he have time to do this?"

"Oh, I think the White House would argue that he does," Schieffer said. "Could you make the case that he doesn't? But again, he's not going to decide what to do about Afghanistan over the next 24 hours. Those are the questions, though, that really do count."

On that point, <>Schieffer said that Mr. Obama is busy engaged in a wholesale reassessment of American strategy in Afghanistan: "Remember in March the president told us that he had a new strategy; he sent a new general over there to carry out that strategy. Now here we are going over that total strategy once again. How many troops will he send, or is he going to send no troops? The answer is he simply hasn't decided yet."

David Morgan
David Morgan is a senior editor at CBSNews.com and cbssundaymorning.com.

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by psoupy September 29, 2009 12:32 PM EDT: Schieffer you day has passed. You old establishment news cronies have had your day, thank goodness we now can get the real news instead of being spoon fed from people like you in the past.; Reply to this comment


by ramos1129 September 29, 2009 11:57 AM EDT: This morning I heard Fox & Freinds criticizing President Obama for making time to go to Denmark to further our Olimpic bid for 2016. The criticism is coming entirely from Republicans and their stooges. Since the other countries have their natinal leaders in Denmark trying to further their bids, why can we not do the same?

Look at the picture of Obama. This guy is 47 and in peak physical and mental condition. He is not a Reagan type or a Bush type. Also, have the GOP not heard about the internet? Video/audtio conferences? the Fax? etc?; Reply to this comment


by koko98-2009 September 29, 2009 11:30 AM EDT: It's not a bully pulpit if you don't use it. And as a Chicago guy the President feels he has to step up and help the bid along. Why not?; Reply to this comment

by pubsrtoast September 29, 2009 8:59 AM EDT

is Mr. Obama in danger of spreading himself too thin by spending time on wooing the Olympiad to the shores of Lake Michigan?

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Oh please, President Bush spent almost 3 years of his 8 year presidency on vacation in Crawford or at Camp David and he still had plenty of time to destroy the country.

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by pubsrtoast September 29, 2009 1:15 PM EDT: jameslouiky, you cant wreck what is already wrecked!


by Livinontheedge September 29, 2009 8:33 AM EDT: Nothing more than more far right leaning bad press for Obama. Schieffer is a washed up piece of cow turd that needs to retire; Reply to this comment


by stuart-johns September 29, 2009 8:02 AM EDT: Schieffer, nobody is saying that Obama's presidency depends on his success at wooing the IOC.

I agree with Schieffer's points but why did Smith need to use the trip to Copenhagen to bring them out?

It just seems to me that Smith used this Copenhagen trip to launch a non-story.; Reply to this comment