From the New York Times: “World Leaders Make Little Headway in Solving Debt Crisis — [They] appeared to make only modest headway in persuading Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to drop her opposition to more government spending to alleviate EuropeÂ’s debt crisis.” They want more spending in Europe. Obama and everybody else is urging it; Merkel is reluctant to go along with it. They say here that Obama is getting desperate “with his own re-election chances directly tied to the European economic crisis.”

This is according to Helene Cooper at the New York Times. Now, I don’t know if you think that, but this is what the media thinks. Do you really think that, that Obama’s re-election chances are “directly tied to the European economic crisis as it drags down growth in the US”? Come on, folks! How stupid do they think we are? The European crisis is dragging us down? Of course, that’s the template. “Poor Barack! Poor President Kardashian. He’s trying so hard, he’s doing everything, but those stupid Europeans! They won’t listen.”

Angela Merkel won’t go crazy with spending. They won’t save Obama. They say, “Obama desperately wants Ms. Merkel to loosen the reins on spending and the austerity programs that have been imposed on Greece…” It says the Obama administration has “spent the last year trying to point to the example of the steps that they took…” I kid you not. Let me read this paragraph to you from New York Times: “That may be an oversimplification of the American position, since Obama administration officials have spent the last year trying to point to the example of the steps that they took, including the stimulus, to jump-start the economy in 2008 and 2009.”

So Merkel won’t let go. Obama administration officials at this G20 thing said, “Look what we did! Look what we did! You gotta do what we did! Look how we jump-started our economy.” (laughing) That’s what the New York Times says. I kid you not. I kid you not. A poll I’ve never heard of, the “Ask America Poll. I never heard of it, but it’s in Michigan, and they confirmed that Romney leads Obama in Michigan. It’s within the margin of error 45 to 43.

And there’s a… Let’s see. This is not the piece I wanted. I’m looking for a piece in the New York Times by a guy named Frank Bruni. We’ve got the sound bite. This is the guy I was talking to you about earlier who said that Obama just doesn’t look like he’s on his game over there. This is last night. It’s on CNN, Piers Morgan Tonight. They had New York Times op-ed columnist Frank Bruni talking about Obama’s press conference. The media is not happy with the way Obama conducted himself. Piers Morgan said (impression), “The president looks a little bit on edge at the moment, a little less self-assured. What’s going on here,” Frankie my boy?

BRUNI: He looked really de-energized. I was watching him, you know, as he stepped to the podium. One of the whole advantages of being president, of being the incumbent, is you get those settings: The flags behind you, the podium. You get the international audience. He strode out there, and the cadence of his speech was very slowed down. There was a lot of hemming and hawing. He got the first question from the press and answered. That answer went on and on and he provided this really strange tutorial on European economic dynamics, and I just… I don’t think that’s what he meant to do when he got to that microphone. He doesn’t seem in command.

RUSH: “He doesn’t seem in command.”

Have you people ever noticed how Obama handles himself at a press conference? That’s exactly what he does! He gets a question, he doesn’t answer it for 20 minutes — while sounding “brilliant” — and then moves on to the next question. In a one-hour press conference he’ll take three questions; he’ll take 15 minutes to answer each one. You guys will sit there and marvel and be dazzled by it. But now that Obama’s sharing the stage with world leaders? “Uh-oh. He doesn’t look so good.”

A lot of hemming and hawing? There’s always hemming and hawing! You know what that means: The uhhhhh and uhhhhhhh and uhhhhhhhhh. He does it all the time when there’s no teleprompter! I wasn’t even watching this last press conference. What was this, about six? I was actually reading a book and I get an e-mail. “Boy, this Obama guy was really bad with no prompter.” This is what the guy was talking about. This New York Times guy is saying: Oh, oh, no! He’s worried.

This is nothing new, but he’s sharing the stage with world leaders, and he’s not looking good in comparison. He’s hem-hawing around. “He got the first question from the press and answered. That answer went on and on and he provided this really strange tutorial on European economic dynamics…” He’s just telling them to do what he did. (interpreted) “Look, we’re here to wreck world economies and then we put ’em back together the way we want. You gotta do what I’m doing before you can join me!”

I tell you, these people in the media, they don’t have the slightest idea what they’re covering. They really don’t. They don’t. It’s right before them every day. They look at it every day and they still don’t get it. But the bottom line is, this Frank Bruni guy at the New York Times was not happy. Obama didn’t look in command. He didn’t look like he knew what he was doing. He didn’t look like he belonged. Which he doesn’t. You see, ladies and gentlemen, that’s the bottom line. He doesn’t.