(Politico).A couple of surprising words were missing from President Barack Obama’s 55-minute news conference on Wednesday: “Iraq” — and “Afghanistan.”
Also MIA: “Korea,” “Pakistan,” “soldiers,” “surge” and “war” — as well as the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines.
The omissions were partly a result of the short attention span of the press, which did not ask about those topics after the president did not mention them in his opening statement.
But the silence on those subjects also provides a striking illustration of one of the singular differences between Obama and his predecessor.
Whereas President George W. Bush invoked his status as wartime commander in chief so often that it seemed like a crutch, Obama has much more of a domestic focus, and resists rhetorical calls to arms like “war on terror.”
One White House official said that the topics of news conferences and speeches are often dictated by events.
"That’s a poignant thing for him,” the official said. “He’s a very confident and optimistic person. But it’s a sobering thing each day to remind yourself of the struggles that people are going through. I think that’s why he does it, frankly — because it’s so easy to get isolated, and everything becomes very clinical.”
Administration officials say that while Obama took a while to adjust to the role of a presidential candidate, he has acted authoritatively since his first trip to the Situation Room or The Tank, the secure area of the Joint Chiefs of Staff wing of the Pentagon.
“What was remarkable to all of us was how comfortable he was from the beginning — his willingness to make decisions, his fluency,” Axelrod said. “It’s been kind of a breathtaking thing to watch.”
But don’t be looking for “enemy,” “troops” or “wounded” in the press conference. They aren’t there.
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