McChrystal: A short history of other 'furious' Obama moments

President Obama — reportedly "furious" over remarks Gen. Stanley McChrystal and his staff made to Rolling Stone, criticizing nearly everyone on Obama's national security team — has relieved his commander in Afghanistan of his duties. But this isn't the first time the famously "cool" and "unruffled" Obama has been "furious." Here, five other instances when the president allegedly blew his top:

1. The BP oil spill, June 2010

Three weeks ago, facing mounting public criticism over the response to the Gulf spill, Obama told CNN's Larry King: "I am furious at this entire situation because this is an example where somebody didn't think through the consequences of their actions. It's imperiling not just a handful of people [but] an entire way of life and an entire region for potentially years."

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2. The loss of the Democrats' Senate supermajority, January 2010

When Republican Scott Brown overcame a huge early deficit in the polls to win the late Ted Kennedy's Massachusetts Senate seat, a senior administration official told the AP that Obama was "furious" with the Democrat's candidate, Martha Coakley, for blowing what many considered a race no Democrat could lose (and depriving the party of their filibuster-proof 60-vote majority). "The president undoubtedly was also mad at himself," The Guardian added, for not doing enough to explain quell anger over his health reform bill, which fueled the Tea Party rage that put Brown over the top.

3. Opening the White House doors to donors, October 2009

A senior adviser said President Obama was "furious" to learn that the Democratic Party had offered major donors opportunities to meet with senior policy makers in his administration.

4. McChrystal's controversial London speech, October 2009

Speaking in London last year, McChrystal publicly rejected proposals to switch to a war strategy "more reliant on drone missile strikes and special forces operations against al-Qaeda," the approach favored by Vice President Joe Biden, saying it would turn Afghanistan into "Chaos-istan." The comments, Britain's Telegraph said, made Obama "furious."

5. The Air Force's scary New York photo op, April 2009

In a misguided effort to update its publicity photos, the White House Military Office set up a largely unannounced, low-level flyover of New York City, sending one of the 747s that serve as Air Force One soaring over the skyline followed by an F-16 fighter jet. It made for some great photos — but also scared the wits out of New Yorkers who had visions of another 9/11-style terrorist attack. The White House," reported CBS News, quickly started spreading "the word that Mr. Obama was 'furious.'"