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If a Teleprompter Falls in the White House Does It Make a Sound?
July 13, 2009 5:32 PM
ABC News' Sunlen Miller and Jake Tapper report:
If a teleprompter falls in the White House, does it make a sound?
Yes, especially when it’s the President’s teleprompter – or TOTUS as it is often referred to.
Midway through his speech on urban and metropolitan policy in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building this afternoon, one of his two small glass prompters came crashing down, hitting the wood floor and crashing in many pieces. It made quite a ruckus.
“Oh, goodness,” a startled President Obama said. “Sorry about that, guys.”
He then proceeded on with his remarks, “To pull our economy back from the brink, including the largest and most sweeping economic recovery plan in our nation's history…”
For the rest of the speech the president relied on the one remaining teleprompter, to his right, and notes on his podium to finish his speech.
Shards of glass remained near the president’s feet for the duration of his speech.
The President’s fandom for his nearly omnipresent prompter has become something of a joke, even to him. In May at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner the President poked fun at himself, declaring that he wanted to “speak from the heart” and “off the cuff.”
Two large teleprompters then rose, with a big smile from the President, and laughs from the White House press corps.
Prompter problems also recently plagued Vice President Joe Biden as well. During a commencement address in May to graduates of the Air Force Academy, a gust of wind knocked over his teleprompter.
The VP took the opportunity to crack a joke at his boss’s expense.
“What am I going to tell the president when I tell him his teleprompter is broken?” Biden joked, “What will he do then?”
Of course, television reporters and anchors never become over-reliant on teleprompters. Never happens. Nope. Never.
-Sunlen Miller and Jake Tapper
July 13, 2009 in Obama, Barack | Permalink | Share | User Comments (602)
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What happened to the minority? Thrown away like the trash huh?
Posted by: Rocky Patel | Aug 11, 2009 2:01:07 PM
Looks like everything in the White House is broke!
Posted by: Mary | Jul 15, 2009 7:02:39 PM
And all this time I thought TOTUS stood for Tool of the United States!
Posted by: Melody | Jul 15, 2009 1:52:20 PM
Great there goes the price of gas and cigarettes, up again so he can afford a $50,000 dollar teleprompter.
Posted by: Sheila | Jul 15, 2009 12:31:41 PM
The teleprompter couldn't think of anymore lies to give to the President, so it committed sucide.
Posted by: Ann | Jul 15, 2009 9:12:02 AM
Please. This was staged. "Oh Goodness"? He did this to show he could deliever a speech without a teleprompter. This was so his supporters can say, "look at how good he does without one"
Posted by: Frank DeCrescenzo | Jul 15, 2009 4:18:46 AM
Tapper's blog looks like a battlefield all right. Can't believe everyones still throwing punches.
Posted by: Elizabeth | Jul 15, 2009 2:42:08 AM
OMG, not the death of the teleprompter!! Yikes, I guess we will be treated to the never ending "uhs", "ums" and stuttering from this Einstein who is totally incapable of putting two words together without the assistance of his best buddy, Mr. Teleprompter. As Joe said, "what will he do, what will he do". Even Joe knows this guy is a sham.
Posted by: Pattieb | Jul 15, 2009 2:14:35 AM
Lets forget Politics for a moment
Giving respect to Drudge
Front Page of Drudge
- Six end simulated Mars mission isolation; 105-day confinement...
Question who will be the First Internet Reporter in Space? Drudge or Huffington? or both :-D
This idea is free of charge and perhaps everyone can lobby for David Blaine to do some cards tricks in space like on Spaceship 2? He would do want no other Magician has done before perform in Space.
On Front Page on Drudge
Monkey Moves Robot Using Mind Control...
Amazing story we can see the future coming.
Posted by: Cooday | Jul 15, 2009 1:48:15 AM
Huffington Post strikes a nerve with Drudge Trolls :-D
Check out Samantha Bee on the Daily Show - Fake News at its best in Comedy Section!
Half-Baked Alaska: Samantha Bee Defends Palin's Choice To Resign As Mother Of Her Children (VIDEO)
On the Front Page of Huffington Post!
- WATCH: Obama Throws Out First Pitch At 2009 All-Star Game
- Liveblogging the Sotomayor Confirmation Hearing with Doug Kendall (Day 2)
The 12 Healthiest Foods On Earth by Jonny Bowden (Forbes.com) in living section of Huffington - I had some blues berries after reading this :-D
Ok so we do have our battles and differences but I respect Drudge.
Posted by: Cooday | Jul 15, 2009 1:16:52 AM
I can't believe someone referenced for us all to read an article on HUFFPO...Yeah right. More handlers.
Posted by: bpower | Jul 15, 2009 12:50:57 AM
Would Cicero have used a teleprompter, if the technology were available in his times?
Would Demosphen or Ceasar, or any of the other heroes of the past?
I don't think so...
Posted by: Mikhail | Jul 15, 2009 12:41:42 AM
Could it be that the Big One was trying to Smite He-Who-Would-Be-King?
Notice that the teleprompter fell right when Obama got to his prevarication about the purpose of the "stimulus" bill.
Coincidence? Or something else????
Posted by: Reasoner | Jul 15, 2009 12:35:59 AM
He was so thrown off he said "nasons" instead of "nations".
Posted by: slamdunker | Jul 15, 2009 12:17:45 AM
This is on the Huffington Post
WATCH: Olbermann Slams Palin's Op-Ed: "The 'Op' Could Have Stood For Facts Optional"
Olbermann Rocks!
Posted by: Dave | Jul 14, 2009 11:42:19 PM
Is this where all the cool Obamacans/Democrats/Independents hanging out?
Posted by: Ronnie in da House | Jul 14, 2009 11:36:40 PM
"Seriously?" wrote:
"So let me get this straight... It's ok to hate on President Obama because he is intelligent enough to read a teleprompter. President Bush, incapable of reading a damn thing, was better?"
Are you kidding me??? Did you vote for the "experience free candidate" Obama because you were voting against Bush and his ilk??? Is THAT what you based your criteria for selection of the leader of the greatest nation in the world on?
What the heck did you do!? You are a dam fool. You voted in a Socialist!!!! Hows that workin' out for ya?
Posted by: Ron Spectre | Jul 14, 2009 11:23:19 PM
you said in the article:
"Of course, television reporters and anchors never become over-reliant on teleprompters. Never happens. Nope. Never."
You have the NERVE to equate yourselves as at the same level of importance as the President??? You arrogant idiots. You are worse than him! You make your living reading from a prompter... HIS royal Obama (read NARCISSIST or ARROGANT FOOL) makes sure every move is calculated to further his political career... Go back to his campaign "promises"... How are those workin' out for ya?
Yeah... I thought so...
Posted by: Ron Spectre | Jul 14, 2009 11:17:42 PM
New crapola on Barry "new lies for old" Obama: The white house staff is putting "pressure" on Senator John Kyl of Arizona because he isn't drinking the Kool-Aid that the stimulus is working. White House is threatening to take away Federal programs from the state. They handled it just like high school punk sophomores. They went and told the Governor of Arizona to remind Kyl he could be held responsible for losing all that Federal money if he didn't shut down his talk about rescinding the stimulus programs. WE DO HAVE A JUVENILE DELINQUENT FOR PRESIDENT! That youthful drug abuse that Barry did arrested his maturity at about fourteen or fifteen years old. That he is a juvenile delinquent makes it so easy for him to lie, with or without a teleprompter.
Posted by: William | Jul 14, 2009 11:15:21 PM
After-affects of the Crash of the Obama-Bus.
Posted by: AmericanCitizen | Jul 14, 2009 11:11:39 PM
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