Jay Cutler has a public demeanor that is rather…alloof? Disinterested? Would rather be anywhere else, doing anything else than what he’s doing at the moment. Not to say that Jay Cutler is thinking that, but it’s the way he comes off in about, oh 90% of his public appearances.
#CuttyDoesIt was the first thing that came to mind upon seeing the transcript NBC just sent out of Bob Costas’ big Winter Olympics exclusive with President Barack Obama. The interview, conducted today, was about issues surrounding the just underway Sochi games. And the following exchange is the only part of the sneak preview sent out to the media that was even remotely interesting.
BOB COSTAS: “…Most people perceive your relationship with the Russian President, this might be the right adjective, this being the Winter Olympics, they perceive it as being icy. How would you characterize your relationship with President Putin?”
PRESIDENT OBAMA: “I wouldn’t call it icy. The truth of the matter is that when we are in meetings there are a lot of exchanges, there’s a surprising amount of humor, and a lot of give and take. He’s always treated me with the utmost respect. I think he recognizes the importance to Russia of working with the United States on areas of mutual concern.
He does have a public style where he likes to sit back and look a little bored during the course of joint interviews. I think that’s where some of these perceptions come up. My sense is that’s part of his shtick back home politically as wanting to look like the tough guy.
U.S. politicians have a different style. We tend to smile once in a while. The truth is, with any interaction between U.S. and Russian presidents, what’s going to be primary are the issues at stake, and where we have common interests we are going to work together .”
Again, sounds exactly like Jay Cutler to me. And we know Barack Obama is a Chicago Bears fan; this is his hometown. NBC will air a video snippet of the Obama interview tonight during Brian Williams and the NBC Olympics special. It will run at some point during the opening ceremonies tomorrow night.
Don’t be surprised if it’s a total snoozer though. You have a career politician being interviewed about the Olympics by the network that is completely in bed with the International Olympic Committee. This joke about Russian monarch Vladimir Putin and his insouciant, Cutleresque demeanor is probably the highlight.
“Must be like Putin”
Paul M. Banks owns The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An MBA and Fulbright scholar, he’s also a frequent analyst on news talk radio; with regular segments on ESPN,NBC, CBS and Fox. A former NBC Chicago and Washington Times writer, he’s also been featured on the History Channel. President Obama follows him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)