In a new in-depth interview with GQ, President Barack Obama sits down with Bill Simmons. The president covers a variety of subjects, such as raising teenage daughters and leaving his job behind in the near future, but of most interest to us here, he discusses his love of Game of Thrones!
“I do love Game of Thrones,” Obama says when the subject of television shows comes up and GoT is mentioned.
The president has a favorite character but like a great many fans, isn’t so hot with the names. “My favorite character is probably…the dwarf, what’s his name?” He explains, “The problem with Game of Thrones, though, is that I don’t remember the names of any of the characters.”
President Obama elaborates, “I remember the characters, so when I watch it, I know exactly what’s going on. But if you read a review of the show afterwards and they’re mentioning such and such, the only one I remember is Jon Snow, because I can pronounce Jon Snow.”
You know nothing, Barack Obama. Except Jon Snow, apparently.
Bill Simmons did ask one politically flavored GoT question: Which Game of Thrones character is Donald Trump?
Obama responded, “Uh…I don’t think…I don’t think any of them rise to that level.” Interpret that as you like.
The full-length profile of the president is very interesting and can be read over at GQ.com.
Hodor please’!!!!!!!!!
Always nice to see when other people are talking about a Show you love, always cool to find a new fan or two lol
Moles town bastard,
So proud to get my first hodor now I can read the article lol
I recall he was quite upset that Ollie and the gang stabbed Jon Snow. Glad to see that the Prez has such good taste in television shows! 🙂
Donald Trump is a mix of Stannis Baratheon and Mace Tyrell
I would have put Trump closer to Hodor, but without Hodor’s charm and wit.
HotPinkLipstick,
Then you probably approve of all the wildlings coming through the wall but don’t require them to pay tax or defend the crown
Well…I don’t live in a monarchy and Congress enacts the laws in the U.S., not the President, so I have no idea what that has to do with anything.
But you know, enjoy it.
I kinda of figured this to move into politics…something that I don’t like to get into on public message boards, but I have to agree with you. Or more like Penny’s pet. 🙂
Donald Trump has the intelligence of Mace Tyrell combined with the ego and delusions of grandeur of Joffrey Baratheon.
Just when I thought I couldn’t love Barack more than I already do…
Trump would definitely be Robert Baratheon, what with his characterizing whole families as rapists and whatnot. And pretty much every quote about a great warrior not necessarily making a great king could be said about businessmen and presidents.
weirwoodtreehugger,
Yours is a name I haven’t been seeing very often, of late, but it makes me smile to see it. 🙂
I think Trump would be much better off if he limited his comments to, “Hodor!”
So, let’s be perfectly clear…I love game of thrones…but…hundreds of people have died over the last few days (yes, there was an attack in Lebanon the day before the attack in Paris that killed 50 people and daily attacks in places like Syria and Lebanon) and he wants to talk about tv…I’m a Brit, but I understand why his people hate him…you know nothing Barack…absolutely nothing…you are…Tywin Lannister…with smaller ummm……brain…yeah…we’ll go with brain….
Lady-ish Mormont,
Read the interview.
“At one point during the hour I spent interviewing him at the White House this fall…”
It wasn’t so recent as to cover Paris.
HotPinkLipstick,
Lady-ish Mormont,
Umm. I believe he was asked in an interview. THIS is why politics and this sort of website don’t make very good bed mates.
Lady-ish Mormont,
You realize these interviews are generally done weeks, if not months in advance?
jcDavis, awesome
Lady-ish Mormont,
Perhaps you should take a moment to consider the very, very strong probability this interview was conducted before the events of the last several days.
Oops – I see others already beat me to it.
HotPinkLipstick,
Agreed
Not to mention it’s generally the interviewer who controls content, and he was interviewed by Bill Simmons. It’s a miracle the entire conversation wasn’t about basketball.
Lady-ish Mormont,
Are you drunk?
No comment.
JCDavis,
This is why politicians shouldn’t be discussing tv…seriously…I mean should the commander in chief of a country over the last few months have time for keeping up with tv…probably not…we don’t see David Cameron or Francoise Hollande, or Tayyip Erdogan, talking about game of thrones, or walking dead… If a state leader has enough time on his hands to comment on popular tv shows…he’s not doing his job.
I remember the director of last seasoons finale (forgot his name) said in an interview that he met Obama this summer and the first thing the president said to him was “Did you kill Jon Snow?”. He then said how he answered with his straightest face possible “Sir, Jon snwo is absolutely dead.”
Poor guy, he had to lie the president in his face, fully knowing Obama would find out in a year…
This “hate” you speak of isn’t some universally shared sentiment. Far from it, in fact. And the people who truly intensely “hate” him are… well let’s just say they are on the extreme fringe of the political spectrum.
Lady-ish Mormont,
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/jul/24/the-wire-obama-seinfeld-scalia-tv-leader
You should probably stop with the judgements. Many of us are proud of our President. And it’s unreasonable to think world leaders never get an hour or two to relax.
Erdogan is your example of a good leader??!
You are either very young / naive or a troll. Or, as I say, drunk. It is very late here in the UK after all.
Lady-ish Mormont,
Opening line of the piece: “There’s the president of the United States, and then there’s the person who happens to be the President of the United States.”
The whole story is about the person, and probably because other people do tend to forget that our leaders are also people. They have their favorite foods and shows and like sex and are generally more deserving than we are of the fewer vacations they get.
You don’t want the guy with the nuclear codes twitchy and insane from never unwinding. Give him a beer, some time with his family, and let him sneak in a show on Air Force 1 before he gets his three hours of sleep.
Kilgore Tully,
Thank you for the distinction, however, I think the whole downfall of Obama’s presidency has been his inability to realize that he DOES represent an entire country. I may be a Brit, but I have a father that bled for America in their war. My point is that…a leader of a country has no business wasting time answering questions about a tv show…however good it is…. when people are bleeding and dying for basic human rights issues all over the globe…didn’t realize everyone would get so upset by my point of view…
Lady-ish Mormont,
I do not per sonly like it either but I have the impression that American’s want their leaders charismatic and to know personal things about them and so they mention things like popular tv show for example in interviews. There are worse flaws even if I feel it is kind of irritating quality as a leader and sense I am not American it does not matter what I think.
Well, anything anyone says about Obama on the internet is going to upset someone. That’s just the nature of American politics these days.
And with the half of the country who like Obama, who would consider the last year a string of victories for him, talking about the “downfall” of his presidency is going to draw a lot of flak.
Lady-ish Mormont,
Okay I get it, you’re trolling. But just in case you really are this deluded: leaders don’t trade in their love of music, food, movies, books, art and even television on election night. Every American president in my memory has some sort of connection with popular culture. They invite artists, filmmakers, bands, etc. to the White House all the time. The White House has a screening room. Here’s an article if you’re at all interested in the history:
http://whitehousemuseum.org/east-wing/theater.htm
As you’ll see the screening room dates back to the FDR administration. Hell, everyone knows Lincoln attended the theater (unfortunately for him). And I’m sure Churchill wasn’t all business all the time. Or Thatcher, Reagan, Yeltsin, Gorbachev, whoever.
They’re human beings not automatons.
JCDavis,
Cheers mate made my night! love a bit of Lennon ( know u hate it but come on I had a chance so I took it lol)
Sunfyre,
I’m not a troll…they are human beings who should realize there is more to life than tv shows…Obama and his wife (who’s views on nutrition are more in line with the 1990’s than current day research) need to realize that there are more important issues out there. With great privilege comes great responsibility…I love watchers on the wall, winteriscoming… and heck all the fun theories on youtube, but I think it is disgraceful that a world leader would be asked about his views on a tv show rather than his views on…say…the fact that a country he supports has been massacring innocents, or failing to protect innocents…my point was a comment on the fact that a world leader is so trivial that when someone got a chance for an interview with him, they asked him about television…it’s just silly…and an illustration why no one really cares about his opinion anymore…
Lady-ish Mormont,
He probably did the interview weeks before the current events.
And by the way…I am not drunk…nor a troll…I am a night nurse who happened to get off early due to decreased patient load…I think it is rather rude that someone with an alternative point of view would receive such negative comments based on the time of night that I am posting…
Lady-#32;Mormont,
British prime minister was at the football tonight mate
Lady-ish Mormont,
So there are a lot of people that support the president and think he’s done a pretty good job. The United states political scene is very messed up right now as people seem to think supporting political parties is like supporting a sports team. It’s not. I have conservative views and I have liberal views. I lean more liberal but I don’t irrevocably support the democrats. Having said that I’m happy that the President can unwind with a little Thrones.
No matter what job you have or how serious it is you need some mental time off. It’s good for your job and it’s good for you as a person.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/game-of-thrones/10888519/David-Cameron-Im-a-Game-of-Thrones-fan.html
People suck…and then you die…GRRM…sorry I brought it up… but still… I would rather not see President Obama’s pov on ASOIAF and would rather see him dedicating time to…I don’t know..the middle east…an attack against GMO’s…condemning round up…just saying…again…people suck…and then you die
What war might that be? The war that Britain was involved with around 1939 that America did not enter until 1941? Not sure how that could be characterized as “their [American] war.”
So nobody agrees that Trump could be Azor Ahai?
Lighten up folks. Drink, laugh, eat good food, have plenty of sex, and breathe
Trump’s speeches make about as much sense as Patchface’s little ditties. I never considered the possibility that he might be channeling prophecies from some undersea deity. Maybe I should try analyzing them in that light.
Naah, I think I could probably find something better to do with my time…
Ahahaha!! Nice work my friend.
I have a huge network of friends and family across the world, and from what I can tell Obama is *loved* by most of the UK, Europe, Aus and NZ (seriously, we’re jealous). Compared to Tony Abbott (Aus PM recently deposed, thank god) and John Key (NZ PM, my homeland’s shame), Barack Obama is a star.
By the way, if we’re looking to criticise what leaders do in interviews, check out the aforementioned NZ PM on morning radio a while back. John Oliver’s reaction is priceless.
http://www.hauraki.co.nz/video/random-funny/john-keys-thank-you-for-your-honesty-made-it-onto-last-week-tonight/
Come on, guys, Trump is obviously Alliser Thorne. He murdered our hero for being too soft on immigration.
weirwoodtreehugger,
So much yes to this.
Lady-ish Mormont,
Relax, this interview was done a couple of weeks ago.
Slowly backs out of thread. ?
I dare say the responses to you have not been as much about you having an alternative point of view, but instead how you expressed said point of view. Starting off attacking Obama for daring to talk about a tv show given what’s transpired the last few days, even though the interview was conducted long before what transpired the last few days, was not the best way to start. How you continued didn’t help matters, either.
Ah well, moving on…
BunBunStark,
Need something to cleanse the palate? 😀
You know nothing. Have you ever seen Obama’s daily schedule? The man works like a fiend.
If you are expecting the president to work so hard that he literally doesn’t have ten hours a year to watch a favored TV program, your expectations are way too high. It would be counter-productive anyway, as plenty of research shows that overwork causes errors – errors that could be catastrophic in the case of a world leader.
“I’m a night owl. My usual day [is]: I work out in the morning; I get to the office around 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.; work till about 6:30 p.m.; have dinner with the family, hang out with the kids and put them to bed about 8:30 p.m. And then I’ll probably read briefing papers or do paperwork or write stuff until about 11:30 p.m. and then I usually have about a half hour to read before I go to bed . . . about midnight, 12:30 a.m. — sometimes a little later.”
Oh my God, how irresponsible for taking one hour a night on a Sunday for a couple of months to watch tv. *facepalms* /s
iridium,
Not sure about Obama being loved over here (in the UK I mean), he has shown a dislike towards the British/Britain over the years. Most of the people I know have no opinion of Obama to be honest. I don’t have much of one either, the only thing I’ll say is that it’s a shame for America that Ron Paul wasn’t voted into presidency, from what I know of him, he seems fantastic.
Lady-ish Mormont,
I don’t know where you get this bullshit that “his people hate him” from. Extreme rightists, and especially *racists*, are the ones who express actual hate towards our President. So you’d better be damned careful who you consider a source before trying to pass your nonsense off as some sort of fact.
The vast majority of us (Americans) respect him, and are very fond of him. I’d even take a third term if it were possible. Clearly, you’re the one who “knows nothing” here. And the ignorant folk like you, are better off practicing silence to keep their foolishness hidden rather than risk public ridicule. But then again, you obviously weren’t smart enough to realize that.
Having said that, I suspect you’re a troll who has nothing better to do than to push some dumbass political agenda in a place where it’s irrelevant, unwanted, and ultimately, useless. If it talks like a troll, and acts like a troll…you’re a troll.
Sorry for the interruption. Now back to your regularly scheduled WotW discussion thread.
Lady-ish Mormont,
For someone who claims to be a Brit, you have way too much concern over what the American President is doing in the world, when I would think your own Prime Minister’s actions in your own country, not to mention your own governments foreign policy (especially at this time) would be of far more interest to you.
I’ll say it again, with absolute conviction, this is no GoT fan, but a troll. Eff off with your political bullshit, already. Either pick up a GoT topic, or GTFO.
Aeryn Sun,
That’s a good point. Cameron is a traitor who doesn’t care about the country, and we have the shambolic and laughable Corbyn as opposition leader, and a whole host of other boring, uncaring and damaging politicians from the Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems, SNP and Greens. They are far more important than Obama is, to us anyway.
I also love watching game of thrones with my Palestinian Christian and Muslim friends .. but sometimes we find it hard to pay attention to the episodes when you have israeli F16s jets bombing the living shit out of a neighbourhood not far from your house .. sigh .. At least we have game of thrones to make our lives less unbearable .. and thank you president Obama for giving Israel weapons to use on us .. we really appreciate this .. it feels like watching an action film .. except people die for real when they are shot in the head or bombed in their homes .. thank you ..
What’s better, Daeny’s terrible wigs or Trump’s natural hair?
(Trying to find a more interesting topic of conversation.)
He gets the seasons in advance! He’ll probably be getting S6 by around March.
He gets advanced copies. He doesn’t watch on Sundays. His wife is apparently more of a Downton Abbey fan and gets advanced copies of those, too. The creators of both shows are huge supporters.
to steal from but slightly tweak many of the comments above, I think Trump has the intelligence of mace tyrell and the ego of renly baratheon.
Sunfyre,
No, they aren’t. That is just ……….idiotic. I absolutely LOVE this place because almost everyone of you can recite, at the drop of a misspelled word or misspoken lineage, every aspect of ASOIAF, but……. BUT, bring in a political candidate and most of you already have your mind’s made up about them without really listening to anything either or any has to say. That one is an idiot because Katy Perry likes the other one. Not the least bit of discussion, listening, debate or F****ng open thought processes.
Bloody Tweeds for mucking up a delightful diversion.
Can we get back to the usual Matrix-esque gymnastics of forcing LSH back into the storyline for the sake of two people on this plane of existence?
Ugh! Phone died in the middle of my oh-so-witty-and-cutting response to the non-American Obama bashing commenter. Ah, well…lost to the ether…probably a good thing…
I also wanted to point out that his liking GoT is old news. He gets advance copies of the episodes. Gotta have some perks for PROTECTING THE FREEDOM OF THE (apparently ungrateful) WORLD! 😉
When he gets S6, Sasha or Malia better get busy uploading them to BitTorrent sites, know what I mean?
Chinoiserie,
It’s cool to have a president who loves watching a tv series you love or is a big fan of something you are a big fan of.. there’s no harm in that .. they’re people too you know .. but it doesn’t help if you are a puppet leader being told what to say or what to do by a higher power .. what I’m trying to say is .. yeah cool you love game of thrones .. but if you cease to be a puppet and actually work for the sake of your people .. that would be even more cool ..
Lady-ish Mormont,
Then your complaint is with the interviewer: it is not as if Obama was asked about carbon emission limits and then started riffing on Thrones. And it certainly beats the malapropisms and Bible misquotes of the last presidency….
And as for the ridiculous notion that Obama was supposed to represent the entire US when a huge numbers of Americans viscerally hate huge numbers of other Americans (or do not consider many fellow citizens to truly be American) well, good luck on that!
Styr me a nice juicy slice of ginger minge please,
Which people? Americans are not a “people” and one of the major contentions in the US concerns whether the government should be trying to help people.
Ravyn,
He actually got an advancd copy of Winter 2 years ago……
😀
Styr me a nice juicy slice of ginger minge please,
The President of the Unites States doesn’t have as much power as some of you seem to think. All of them are pretty much figureheads or “puppets” spouting party lines.
Plus it’s an interview for GQ for christ’s sake.
I’m far from Obama’s biggest fan … but I don’t begrudge him his hobbies and interests. Every President has those. Richard Nixon used to watch Redskins games (and once called in a play for them). George W. Bush was a huge baseball fan (he used to own Texas Rangers) who regularly attended MLB games. As somebody above mentioned, Abraham Lincoln used to frequently go to the theater, and he was president during one of the most divisive and bloody wars in American history — a war that actually happened right here on American soil. No body wants a President to be on the job 24/7, as that would led to an overworked individual more prone to make mental errors that could have disastrous results for the world. So let Obama watch his GoT. Besides, it’s not like he’s this uber-fan who obsesses over every minute details like we do. He couldn’t even remember Tyrion’s name, for Pete’s sake! He’s clearly just a casual fan who enjoys the show for what it is.
As to which GoT character is comparable to our politicians …
Trump = King Robert. Similar views on women, and a good leader in one aspect that wouldn’t necessarily lend itself well to being a political leader.
Obama = Danys. Young, idealistic leader who is in way over his/her head and led around by others without realizing it, yet impliciably popular with the fanbase in general mostly due to his/her looks.
Hillary Clinton = Cersei. Incredibly rich & power-hungry. She is also batshit insane and everything she touches turns into disaster, but she is protected by her family name. And she always pay her debts, if you know what I mean.
Bernie Sanders = High Sparrow. A man of the people, extremely cunning, and more than willing to stick it to the rich by any means necessary, even if it causes the kingdom / country to collapse into financial ruins.
Ron Paul = Stannis. Utterly non-charmastic, has a rigid world view and refuses to recognize the grayness that exists, and doomed to failure despite his best intentions.
Republicans = Night’s Watch. So completely focused on keeping refugees outside of their land that they completely fail to see the larger global problems.
That’s all I got. I tried to think of a good GoT character for Ben Carson, but I couldn’t think of anybody who was an absolute genius in one field, while being completely batshit insane in everything else. Qybrin?
FWIW, a lot of media outlets have already done the Westerns=Real life pol list. I picked this one from BuzzFeed because it’s the funniest (they almost all universally link Obama and Robb), mostly because it has George W. = Hodor.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/catesish/politicians-as-game-of-thrones-characters#.qdZaWxPNb
Wimsey,
Unfortunately you are right .. the government of the United states doesn’t give a shit about it’s own people .. but many still believe their government is all for the people ..
hexonx,
Exactly .. it’s about time for people to wake up ..
Lady-ish Mormont,
If you think that a world leader should never have enough time to watch television because “there’s more to life than a TV show” then why is it okay for you not to understand that there’s more to life than a TV show? Is that all life is to you?
Also, he clearly understands that there is more to life than a TV show if he can’t be bothered to learn the characters’ names. He’s a human, and in this scenario he was directly asked his opinion of a TV show he’s clearly not too familiar with. Get over your pretentious opinions. Go find a different website from which to worship your pig-fooking PM if UK politicians are so much better. Heh.
This.
I suspect a lot of folks might not be familiar with Bill Simmons. He’s most widely known as a sports writer, but even then his pieces are usually full of pop culture references, like comparing athletes to characters in movies or treating reality TV like its own sport. Sad timing, since Grantland shut down so recently, but check out the archives if you want a taste of how the site he founded managed to actually give sports, entertainment, and culture a place to be looked at critically and intelligently. The topics this interview covered are 100% Simmons’s style: silly-seeming, with some subtle and poignant commentary under the pop cultural surface.
Styr me a nice juicy slice of ginger minge please,
It’s sorta a little important to acknowledge that the government isn’t just elected officials. There are millions of people employed by the US Federal Government, including doctors, clerks, rescue workers, lawyers, researchers, idealistic interns, and a slew of folks whose poorly-salaried job is to keep society humming along. Many, if not most, are genuine, hard-working people who drive themselves home and do…well…whatever people do.
Point being, the “government” isn’t capable of “not caring about its people,” as those millions of government employees and their families and friends are the people.
Amongst the elected ranks we’ve got some real out-of-touch, callous shitheads, there is no questioning that, and it can get really despicable how untouchable many of them are. But to talk about the government as some completely detached entity is like saying the brain isn’t really a part of the body because it orders the body around and sometimes decides to get drunk and turn a blind eye to the disenfranchisement of the liver.
Corbyn is shambolic and laughable? Which rag have you been reading? The man is so honest and principled he is basically a Stark.
Kilgore Tully,
I totally understand what you’re trying to say and I totally agree with you .. what I meant by “the government” is the Decision makers .. the elite .. and their puppets .. those doctors, clerks, rescue workers, lawyers and researchers are victims since they wouldn’t know what happens behind closed doors .. the American citizens are not to blame for the corruption of their leaders .. but it is their duty now to stop following the decisive media their government shoves down their throats 24/7 .. and look for the truth ..
Well this has stayed reasonably civil, and actually kinda funny.
weirwoodtreehugger,
Yes, this. With a touch of Alliser Thorne.
Josh L.,
Not sure I agree with all of these comparisons, but LOL at Qyburn Carson!
This thread went hilariously off-topic
Yeah, suuure thing buddy.
This has been an enlightening thread. I tried to post the link to this interview on reddit and it was refused because it was “political”. I was surprised that simply mentioning our current President watches a TV show is out of bounds…but then I see what happened here and, well, okay then. Internet + humans FAIL.
Back on topic: lol, clearly Obama is all Showed my dad pictures of GoT characters and asked him their names
http://imgur.com/gallery/11bIw
Good taste, Mr. Obama 🙂
Pardon me while I laugh hysterically for 20 minutes.
Obummer needs to turn off the TV and pay attention to his job.
Lady-ish Mormont,
erdogan commenting on game of thrones?? I’d expect to see dragons before seeing tayyip sharing his fav got characters. only way he can mention the show would be to talk about how sinful it is.
Styr me a nice juicy slice of ginger minge please,
Puppet is true
is this Lady-ish Mormon joking ? LOL
Lady-ish Mormont,
You come here, make very rude comments about The President and when people come back at you, you go on the “poor you, you got attacked”. Sorry, you brought this all on your own.
Ravyn,
That one (or a version of it) has been around since the last election. Except it left off the best one (Ned Stark = Al Gore “Right hand man of the previous ruler, throne stolen, always going on about climate change”)
And I do have to say that putting Santorum as Renly is just pure win.
Lady-ish Mormont,
Yep. Not a fan here.
Sorry for going off the rails, guys. Back to the important topic at hand: GoT.
If the President gets advance copies of the show, then it’s fair to assume he’ll get an advance copy of “The Winds of Winter”, right? If so, I expect him to give a ‘State of the Union of Westeros’ speech on whether Jon Snow is dead or not. Too many people in this world need to know the answer to that question. Otherwise, we’ll have a national, nay, *international* crisis on our hands. ?? ?
After he leaves the presidency, perhaps Mr. Obama should host a postgame Game of Thrones show, like Chris Hardwick does for The Walking Dead. The Many-faced God knows how often we fans have desperately needed post-show talk therapy over these last few seasons.
Jesus Christ I wish Sue would just realize the mistake and delete this post, all the comments with it.
AerynsunX,
Its not fair how he gets advanced copies. why cant he watch reruns like other normal people do when they miss an epi due to a busy schedule ! LOLs
On a more important note, if he does, I would love a press conference to discuss Jon’s fate. I need it now.
Trump is obviously Cersei
Correction. The vast majority of American DEMOCRATS respect and are very fond of him. Most recent Rasmussen polls show an approval rating of 44% and 55% disapproval. 22% strongly approve as opposed to 41% strongly disapprove. Don’t be speaking for America, my friend as most Americans disagree with you.
Lady-ish, you’ll find the vast majority of commenters on fansite boards such as this are liberals who don’t appreciate opposing viewpoints. So try not to take the flak you’re getting too hard. It’s to be expected.
And for those of you who are giving her flak for making an anti-Obama statement regardless of when the interview was conducted or what kinds of things presidents should be talking about in interviews, I give you this challenge. If a similar article had been posted on this site showing George W Bush’s love for Game of Thrones would you really have been able to resist making some sort of negative comment about him?
Just my two cents: I was in the magazine biz for many years (on the graphics and design side), and issues of non-news oriented publications like GQ are usually planned months in advance, and I wouldn’t be surprised if GQ’s interview with the president was conducted at least a couple weeks ago. As to whether or not a world leader should be spending any of their time talking about tv shows they enjoy during their down-time, instead of seriously discussing policy 24/7, well, that’s just plain silly if not naive.
But anyway, my favorite part of the interview was when the president joked about a particulary lame conspiracy theory that was making the rounds last summer:
“That military exercises we were doing in Texas were designed to begin martial law so that I could usurp the Constitution and stay in power longer… Anybody who thinks I could get away with telling Michelle I’m going to be president any longer than eight years does not know my wife.”
Now that’s funny. Oh, and imho Trump is definitely Joffrey.
The Pot,
I honestly don’t think I would be critical of Bush of he did something like this. I’m sure he has, actually, and I never minded. This is an example of some of the ridiculous level of criticism that gets leveled at Obama. Something that every President has done before (like vacations) gets turned into an ill-informed personal attack on the President. And when others bring up the silliness of the complaint, they’re called liberal partisans who can’t appreciate a different perspective. It’s you who has the double standard, and accusing those who disagree with you of being liberals who don’t listen to other perspectives is actually a method by which YOU don’t have to listen to another opinion.
Hodor Targaryen,
Thank you for this. I was actually writing something similar but got worked up and decided to let it go. Though I’ll add one thing, I don’t ever get insulted if someone calls me a liberal. People who marched with Martin Luther King were probably thought of as liberals, people who advocated for a women’s right to vote were probably thought of as liberals, people who are currently advocating for equal treatment of the gay community are labeled as liberals. Nothing wrong with any of that and in fact much good.
The Pot,
Yes, maybe some would have joked about Bush, because, lets be honest, its bush… but Lady whatever was seriously criticizing a president for having some what of a personal life? WTF is that? im all for criticizing and having opposing views on politics, but to criticize him soley on the grounds that he watches tv is ridiculous.
Stephen Harper WATCHED TV WHILE being PM for 10 years!!!!!!!!! Oh no what a crime. I am NOTTTTTTTTTTTTT a harper fan but never would I use the fact that he likes to watch Breaking bad on Netflix as a criticism for his _____ “prime ministering” over the last few years
I actually laughed a lot at this video. LOLS
Edit: I am Canadian
I loved this. “King of the Guys” lol…Thanks!
Lady-ish Mormont,
I gotta say, Lady Mormont, I agree wholeheartedly with you.
The Pot,
*claps slowly*
http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/r2d/images/2/2e/SlowClap.gif/revision/latest?cb=20150614023221
You are right, I am not a fan of Former President Bush. But you know what? I always respect the person who is holding the office. In the US, the proper title for the POTUS is Mr. President or President Obama – not Odumba or any of the other hundreds of rude ways people say his name. The correct address to a past president is Former President Clinton or Bush or Washington.
I have zero problem that President Obama watches basket ball games or a television show or movie when he has some down time and that is what he likes to do. It is ZERO reflection on the man and his job and how he is or has done it. #tiredoftheuglyremarks
Off-Topic Otto,
There’s no mistake. It’s worthy of a post. If people can’t behave themselves, that’s on them.
That said, some people need to knock it off. I can recognize low-level trolling when I see it.
I’ve no problem with the president enjoying GOT, the only thing we agree on and after all wasn’t GW Bush featured in an episode. Well, his decapitated head was iirc. Anyway, back to BHO, bet his fave character is Littlefinger.
“Chaos is a ladder.”
Waxfoot,
Sure, so principled that he changed his mind on the EU (a view he’s had for over 40 years) within a week of him being made Labour leader.
Greatjon of Slumber,
What’s funny about him hating Britain?
Danny,
I found this kind of funny, I am a libertarian but I lean right on more fiscal issues, and everything you said wouldn’t have been considered liberals those were all conservative movements. Republicans almost universally approved of the civil rights movements when liberals did not and it was republicans who campaigned to give women the right to vote. Not at all meaning to be condescending or rude and I hope you don’t take it that way but it’s just a little funny that you brought up two examples of things you considered liberal and they were actually conservative movements.
The best part of the interview is when the President said he didn’t know what was worse: show Dorne or book Dorne.
I’m laughing so hard! Borak. Hogar? LOL
Cumsprite,
Hahahaha…
Nice to see you, btw. Sorry I’ve been so scarce…lots of stuff goin’ on…should be back to, well, as normal as I ever get fairly soon.
Until then, kick ass and take names. 🙂
ps – I know you didn’t enjoy last night’s game as much as I, but I’m still betting it made you smile, at least a little.
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
To my shame I didn’t even know that game was going on. The season really snuck up on me. I would have loved to have seen Coach Croutonski’s rat whiskers quiver in rage as he dropped f-bomb after f-bomb on the refs for allowing his team to lose.
Looking forward to a good season for the Heels before the NCAA lowers the boom on the program.
Blackfish,
I tend to think that everything evolves, liberal and conservative are mind sets after all. The conservatives of old would now be considered liberals in its current definition because you can’t tell me the current crop of social conservatives would even think to support civil rights movements, especially the one aimed at improving the lives of minorities. They are too busy fighting the war against Christmas or feeling persecuted for some reason only they can see.
Actually no what you’re saying is completely and utterly incorrect.
clearly Roose Bolton is the Donald Trump of Westeros
Speaking as someone old enough to have been around for the Civil Rights movement, I’m here to tell you that this is a radical rewrite of history. Perhaps you are getting confused by the fact that the Dixiecrats always voted with the GOP against civil rights; they were what would be called DINOs or Blue Dogs nowadays.
As for the Women’s Suffrage movement, back in the beginning of the 20th century Republicans were nowhere near as far right as they are today. The modern GOP would label Teddy Roosevelt a socialist if he were alive today. Some of them did support giving women the vote, but Democrats were the majority of supporters. And no way could the supporters of either suffrage or civil rights be rationally described as ‘conservatives’ even by yesteryear’s definition of that term.
GreatJon has the right of it. A big reason is that the modern Republican = Conservative and Democrat = Liberal dichotomy did not exist then. Republicans tended to be moderate or “libertarian” conservative, whereas Democrats included both the liberals and the social conservatives (particularly the “Dixiecrats”). The conservative Dixiecrats fought as hard as they could to limit the rights of blacks, women, non-Christians, etc. The Republicans were “meh” on those issues: they did not push for active repression, but they opposed anything that would have involved tax dollars being used to better the lots of women and non-whites. The Dixiecrats, on the other hand, were “meh” on workers rights, as they generally were from states without much industry.
That ended with the Civil Rights Act in 1964. The Dixiecrats left the Democratic Party, and Nixon actively drew them into the Republican Party with his “Southern Strategy” of getting the Republicans to oppose desegregation, etc. Over the course of the next 10-20 years, the Dixiecrats became the Republican Party and the the Rockefeller Republicans (an analog of the Whigs in the UK) went extinct. So, in a lot of ways, the Republican Party of the mid-20th Century does not exist anymore.
However, the other key points stand. Supporting rights for non-whites has always been a liberal value. Supporting rights for women has always been a liberal value. Supporting workers rights has always been a liberal value. The conflict obviously arose from the fact that a lot of black men and white Union men did not support women’s rights, a lot of white women did not like Unions or blacks rights, and a lot of Union men did not want black men taking their jobs! So, they all held some liberal and some conservative values.
Thrones touches on some of these dynamics, particularly the books. The nobility clearly are very disdainful of the merchant class, just as they were in the real world, and just as the landed “old money” of the 19th and early 20th centuries were disdainful of the capitalists.
Wimsey,
According the Riverlands Times, McCarthy has been reluctantly resurrected by Thoros and he has added you to his list of “people of interest” to watch for providing too much information to the american public. Also, as a result of your union views, you may want to avoid the Meadowlands because Hoffa’s ghost will haunt you.
UGH…… can we PLEASE leave politics (and Politicians) out of this site??? I come on here to see news of GoT NOT to hear hate bashing against others who have different opinions of our leader or party affiliations. I don’t CARE what side you are on (REP or DEM/Lib or Independent). LEAVE it out of our thread PLEASE!!! The ONE and ONLY site I visit online for pure escapism from the hatred of politics and this comes up….. I hardly EVER post bc I just like to participate by seeing what is being said on theories… and I really REALLY REALLY dislike it when someone is negative. Be POSITIVE …bring positivity to the site or please just do NOT comment. Rant over…..
BoromirStark,
Gotta love me some Colbert when he is on his game. Well done, Sir.
Bah! Everyone knows that Hoffa really is hiding as Howland Reed. J. Edgar Hoover (a.k.a., Varys) has the files to prove it tucked into one of his corsets…..
weirwoodtreehugger,
I have no love for Donald Trump, but thinking he’s dumb is probably not the best strategy to defeat him.
Ha, Obama has been through the ringer these past 8 years, and then some! He must feel oftentimes like he is on “Game Of Thrones”!!!
Personally, I’ll miss him once he is out of office, shortcomings and all, especially seeing the other choices outhere …
As for Donald Trump…hmmm…I think he is more like the big, lumpy, runny, greenish, brownish turd errr…dump…errr…putrid stank ass huge shit Maester Pycelle takes every morning…
Josh L.,
“For Pete’s sake” – pun intended? If so, touche!