President Obama has a lot to gain with his Thursday appearance on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, said the Los Angeles Times in an editorial. It's a chance for Obama to bypass the Washington press corps by taking his economic message "straight to Leno's 5 million viewers," and show he's a regular guy.
In case Obama hasn't noticed, said Mary Kate Cary, who wrote speeches for president George H. W. Bush, in U.S. News & World Report, he's not a regular guy anymore. He's leader of the free world. "Doing Jay Leno lessens the stature of the office, and diminishes the man."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
California mulls pulling health care from eligible undocumented migrantsIN THE SPOTLIGHT After pushing for universal health care for all Californians regardless of their immigration status, Gov. Gavin Newsom's latest budget proposal backs away from a key campaign promise
-
Is Apple breaking up with Google?Today's Big Question Google is the default search engine in the Safari browser. The emergence of artificial intelligence could change that.
-
Music reviews: Eric Church, Blondshell, and Model/ActrizFeature "Evangeline vs. the Machine," "If You Asked for a Picture," and "Pirouette"
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
-
US election: where things stand with one week to goThe Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
-
Is Trump okay?Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
-
The life and times of Kamala HarrisThe Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
