The Obama Media Blitz Ramps Up

(CBS)  President Barack Obama is making a full-out media blitz for health care reform this weekend, and he's getting some help from a very familar face.

CBS News senior White House correspondent Bill Plante reports that, unlike Hillary Clinton who spearheaded the Clinton administration's early health care effort, first lady Michelle Obama will have a very different role in the president's non-stop effort to sell health care reform.

Michelle Obama will be like a stealth weapon, said Plante, giving it a softer touch, .

"It has truly inspired me and the White House staff to look for opportunities to put the topic of healthy eating on the table and at the forefront of health care discussions," she said.

CBSNews.com Special Report: Health Care Reform

With a favorable rating of around 70 percent, well above her husband's, and with the background of a hospital executive, Michelle Obama will counterbalance her husband's hard sell.

"They feel like she can give a different voice, because as you can see, a lot of folks out there are very partisan," said Nia-Malika Henderson of Politico.

CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer said the first lady's popularity is her big asset here.

"People like her; every poll shows that," Schieffer said "The Early Show." "And I think presidents' wives can kind of soften the debate, take the hard edge off of it.

"Is she going to make a big difference . . . be the one that tips the balance toward health care? I think the answer to that is no," Schieffer. "But I think the other part of it is she's very likeable, people like to see her, and like chicken soup, I think it can't hurt."

The first lady's debut in the health care campaign coincides with the president's media blitz this weekend. He's pushing health care reform on five talk shows this Sunday - that'll be a presidential first - adding to the 66 TV appearances and 157 speeches in which he's already campaigned for a reform plan.

Among the programs on which the president will appear on Sunday is CBS' "Face the Nation."

"The administration is convinced [the president] really is the best salesman that they have and they want to put him out there," said Schieffer. "They think he can sell it if anyone can sell it."

And with regard to the president's media blitz, Schieffer said that despite rising public approval of his plan, "he hasn't made the sale yet. Even though the polls showed a little more favorability after the speech [to Congress], a majority of people are still worried that it will cost more, especially to the middle class. They're not convinced that it's going to do what he keeps arguing that it's going to do.

"So maybe he's been out there too much, maybe he hasn't," said Schieffer, "but there's still some selling to be done if he's going to get something here."

Political scientist Larry Sabato says the president's media blitz makes sense.

"It is a fractured media environment, and presidents - like everyone else - have a tough time piercing the public conscientiousness," political analyst Larry Sabato.

(AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

(Left: President Barack Obama speaks at a rally on health care reform, Sept. 17, 2009, at the Comcast Center at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.)

But is the president running the risk of overexposure?

"Common sense would tell that you if a president is on all the time - if it's 'all Obama, all the time' - then probably people will tune out some of the message," Sabato said.

And some of them will never even see it - the president is skipping Fox News this coming Sunday.

[grey000666]

Sometimes if you're told over and over that something is fact you'll begin to believe it. The following statement: "The healthcare bill will not add one dime to the national debt." cannot be believed. This is the one statement that kills all credibility of this administration. If cutting out waste and fraud from Medicare will save so much money, Why aren't we doing that first? And it doesn't even a NEW law.

[oreo1412]

Is there anything in Obama's healthcare plan to address the dementia that people get when watching Fox News? I mean, that statement that Fox gets more viewers than all the other outlets combined demonstrates that Fox causes deterioration in cognitive function because that is just not even remotely true. Those of us who are not in nursing homes get our news elsewhere.

[credibility2]

The only reason the president isn't appearing on the Fox News outlet to regurgitate his contrived script on health care reform is that he is afraid and a coward to go one on one with anyone that appears to challenge, question, or oppose him. How pathetic that he is cowering behind a superficial veil of acceptance by only appearing on every other known news outlet just because each of these outlets agree with him and pander to him. I don't have access to Fox News, but it's rather ironic that this president claims to be open to all viewpoints, dissension included, yet he's too cowardly to go on only one of the networks that exemplifies opposition. Doesn't say much about this man's character or spine.

[Moonshadow54]

Of course hes skipping FOX this sunday. He is only going on state-run television. Right out of Hugo Chavez playbook.

[bzzpd]

Search Yahoo Does the us government hide debt?

Bzzpd the truth telling old Squank gives you the ability to view others articles on the stealth debt we all owe. Half a million dollars worth.

[bzzpd]

Bzzpd the truth telling old squank says,
We have 14,900,000 people unemployed divided by 9.7 which is the unemployment rate as of last week.

It equals one percent of the work force which is 1,536,082.4....
One hundred percent of the work force is 153,608,240.
We have 307 million people in the United States. Only half of them work. This is the only number you can use when deciding who is going to pay for the United States debts.

usdebtclock.org

82.7 trillion dollars of on and off the book debt divided by 153,608,240 citizens equals $538,382.00 dollars that each of us owes.

We each owe over half a million dollars in debt. Since the average citizen only makes a million dollars in his lifetime......we are friggin bankrupt.

Bzzpd the truth telling old Squank. Let the math set you free.

[suki33]

Has anyone told the Obamas that they won the election in 2008 and don't need to run again until 2012? Just wondering...

[bzzpd]

usdebtclock.org
bzzpd the truth telling old squank
The truth on the on the book and off the book debt will set you free.
82.7 Trllion dollars divided by 154 million citizens equals $538,000.00 dollars we each owe.

Only half of the United States population is employed.

The United States is bankrupt.

[bzzpd]

Usdebtclock.org

[bzzpd]

Reveal 5 is a liar. He only uses on the book debt to fool people into thinking the government has enough money for a health care program.
When you give a guy a site which is in real time.....and he refuses to see 82.7 Trillion dollars of debt....which means we all owe half a million dollars each......then he is a liar.

He can give sites all day with on the book debt. He chooses to ignore the 70 Trillion dollars of off the book debt because it shows the government is insolvent.

Therefore.....he is a liar and deceptive person pushing a parties line...rather than looking out for all of us and reporting the truth.

For someone who has this much Diarheal verbage to spout........you would think he had learned some basic math facts.

If the Democratic or Republican Party told this clown that a pile of dog crap was edible......he'd eat it happily and tell you the same thing.

Boy that was tasty dog crap he would repeat over and over again.

And if you tell him anything other than that.....He'll call you a nasty old Squank.

But in the end.......when the hyperinflation is eating into his retirement account.....He'll keep eating the dog crap with a crap eating grin on his face.

Bzzpd the truth telling nasty old Squank.

Your credibility is totally lost as far as I'm concerned....You are blind to facts in front of your face. I've got a brick for you to argue the party line with. It doesn't believe you either....or the lying government which only supplies what they want you to hear.