Conservatives and Media Go Nuts Over Obama's Germany Stopover

by Steve Benen

"Stop it, all of you," may be five of the more important words the president will utter on his trip.

President Obama spent the night in Dresden, Germany, last night. Who cares? Well, apparently, this seems to matter to some political reporters who speculated that Obama's stop in Dresden, instead of Berlin, was intended to send some kind of signal. About something. To someone.

Time's Michael Scherer, who said "much has been made" of the overnight stay, reports that the president was sure to end the speculation this morning.

In a press conference Friday morning, Obama himself knocked down this idea, saying the choice of Dresden had more to do with his tight schedule, which left scant time between his Egypt visit and his visit Friday afternoon to the Buchenwald Concentration Camp and the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, where he will meet with wounded U.S. soldiers.

"Most of the speculation of my schedule in Germany doesn't take into account simple logistics," Obama said, before jokingly chiding reporters to stop promoting controversies without clear basis. "Stop it, all of you," he told the press, in a light tone. "We have enough problems out there without having to manufacture problems."

Sorry, Mr. President. They can't help themselves.

Neither can Obama's conservative critics:

...Obama's decision to stay in Dresden has sparked protests from some of Obama's conservative political critics, who have argued that the visit demonstrates his willingness to highlight America's lesser historical moments. "Dresden: Next Stop on Obama's Apology Tour," ran one headline on the conservative Powerline blog. Obama's aides rejected those suggestions, pointing to the same logistical issues that the president had mentioned, and a desire to find a location that was convenient for Merkel.

"Stop it, all of you," may be five of the more important words the president will utter on his trip.

WashingtonMonthly.com

Steve Benen is "blogger in chief" of the popular Washington Monthly online blog, Political Animal. His background includes publishing The Carpetbagger Report, and writing for a variety of publications, including Talking Points Memo, The American Prospect, the Huffington Post, and The Guardian. He has also appeared on NPR's "Talk of the Nation," MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show," Air America Radio's "Sam Seder Show," and XM Radio's "POTUS '08."