The Ravenous Press

The Ravenous Press

He was pleasant and friendly; alas, they were not!
They were focused on making sure he was “got!”
They were focused on being the lead in their stories,
Hoping for “press” and for headliner glory!
They condemned and imputed, kept repeating their brief.
“Things aren’t perfect! Your fault! You’re Commander in Chief.
“We still have pandemic! Why haven’t you stopped it?
“No Voting Rights Bill! Another ball you have dropped!
“Did you promise too much? Do you think you’re too old?
“Are you weak? Are you dumb? Too naive? Or too bold?”
He stayed calm. He tried reason. He explained many things.
He explained the confusion new variants bring.
He explained the economy, the bad and the good.
Said things don’t always go as you think that they should.
He spoke about job growth, low unemployment.
None of that seemed to give them enjoyment.
“Forget the 2 billion in Covid Relief,
“Forget Infrastructure! We’re looking for grief!
“Forget child poverty greatly reduced!
“Forget the lives saved by the vaccine produced!
“Say you’re sorry, you’ve failed, you’ve let us all down!”
Only rarely did he respond with a frown.
For two hours he stood there, withstood their attacks,
Trying to get them to deal with the facts!
And then he misspoke, oh the glory of that!
The gotcha was gotten, they threw up their hats!
“We knew it! We knew it! He made a mistake!
“Now it’s done and we did it! Let’s go home and eat cake!”

Carolyn McGiffert Ekedahl is the former Deputy Inspector General for Inspections, Central Intelligence Agency and co-author of “The Wars of Edward Shevardnadze.”