In a Tuesday 10 a.m. et NBC News special report on President Obama
declaring a state of emergency for Gulf Coast states in the path of
Hurricane Isaac, Today co-host Matt Lauer gushed: "Politics 101,
you've got your opponents in Tampa and Mitt Romney's about to tell
Americans why he should be elected president, if you're the president,
you go out and act like the president." [Listen to the audio [1]]
Meet the Press host David Gregory agreed: "Yeah, you do your job." As
they both anchored the coverage from the Republican National Convention,
Gregory observed that Obama's statement "...happens as there's so much
anxiety here among the campaign and the party organizers about how to
approach this and the optics of a split-screen, storm coming and a big
political party." After the President spoke about the impending storm,
Gregory added: "Again, it only underscores how difficult it is
for a Republican Party to move forward with this convention, with that
potential threat."
Both Lauer and Gregory made sure to reference Hurricane Katrina hitting
New Orleans in 2005. Lauer noted: "Obviously the timing of this storm
bearing down on New Orleans all bringing back memories of 2007 [2005]
and Katrina." He then described the government response to Isaac as "an
opportunity for the President," but that any failure would mean paying
"an enormous price."
Gregory responded: "I think, frankly, after Katrina, and you it when
President Bush was still in office, any president takes an approaching
storm very seriously to make sure that the federal government is doing
everything that the state needs, and then some."
As Obama finished speaking, Lauer zeroed in on the political message of
the declaration: "He said things like 'at my direction, FEMA is
engaged,' 'I approved a disaster declaration,' 'as president, I'm making
sure the federal government is doing everything possible.' Leaving no
doubt in the minds of people out there who's in charge."
Here is a full transcript of the August 28 exchange:
10:08AM ET
MATT
LAUER: And I'm Matt Lauer live in Tampa, Florida at the Republican
National Convention. Tropical Storm Isaac is just starting to bear down
on the central Gulf Coast right at this moment. President Obama is about
to speak out about that storm from the Diplomatic Room at the White
House. Let's bring in NBC's David Gregory, moderator of Meet the Press.
And David, Politics 101, you've got your opponents in Tampa and Mitt
Romney's about to tell Americans why he should be elected president, if
you're the president, you go out and act like the president.
DAVID GREGORY: Yeah, you do your job. And you talk about what the
federal government is actually doing to help people who are in the
storm's path, that's what the President is doing. And it happens as
there's so much anxiety here among the campaign and the party organizers
about how to approach this and the optics of a split-screen storm
coming and a big political party.
LAUER: Yeah, obviously the timing of this storm bearing down on New
Orleans all bringing back memories of 2007 [2005] and Katrina. It
presents an opportunity for the President. But, if you fail to deliver
the kind of response that's needed, there's an enormous price that will
be paid.
GREGORY: Well, there is. And I think, frankly, after Katrina, and you
it when President Bush was still in office, any president takes an
approaching storm very seriously to make sure that the federal
government is doing everything that the state needs, and then some. And
is even taking a bigger role. And we've seen, with Bobby Jindal, who is
the Republican governor of Louisiana, thought to be on Mitt Romney's
short list, it's very important.
LAUER: Already criticizing. Here's the President:
[OBAMA STATEMENT ON ISAAC]
LAUER: President Obama, who's speaking in the Diplomatic Room of the
White House this morning before taking off on a three-state trip.
Talking about expressions, David, we just talked about how you go out
there and you do the job, as you put it. He said things like "at my
direction, FEMA is engaged," "I approved a disaster declaration," "as
president, I'm making sure the federal government is doing everything
possible." Leaving no doubt in the minds of people out there who's in
charge.
GREGORY: Right. And you don't want to be too cynical about it, but when
the President talks about, "this is a big storm, no time to tempt
fate," there's some serious potential consequences here. Again, it only
underscores how difficult it is for a Republican Party to move forward
with this convention, with that potential threat.
LAUER: Understanding that so much media attention will be paid not only
to what's going on here in Tampa, but what's happening in the Gulf
Coast with this storm, as the President takes off now for Iowa,
Colorado, Virginia, would you expect to see him in the Gulf Coast region
when this storm passes through?
GREGORY: Oh, certainly. Particularly if there's severe damage. I think
that any president would want to be there, and certainly in an election
year, to make sure that they're getting everything they need. There is a
Republican governor who, as you mentioned, has been critical about not
getting the support in the declaration of emergency support that he may
need. So I think the President would want to head that off.
LAUER: Alright, so obviously it's a story being handled by the
President from the White House and it's also something that will be
addressed – there will be, I would imagine, some mention of what's going
on in the Gulf as this convention kicks off later today.
GREGORY: For sure.
LAUER: David Gregory. David, thanks very much.
GREGORY: Thanks, Matt.
LAUER: Good luck tonight, we appreciate it. We're going to have more on
Isaac throughout the day on MSNBC and tonight on NBC Nightly News.