May 16, 2008
'Sweetie' leaves bad taste for Obama critics
By Jennifer Harper
THE WA****NGTON TIMES
Americans weary of "bittergate" can rejoice. It's time for
"sweetiegate."
The presidential election has veered onto another odd tangent,
courtesy of Sen. Barack Obama, who uttered not an epithet nor insult
against blue-collar workers =97 but a term of endearment.
On Wednesday, the Illinois Democrat called a female broadcast re****ter
"sweetie," the moment recorded for posterity on video. In 24 hours,
the three-second exchange had inspired global news coverage, follow-up
stories from the offended correspondent and a debate on both feminism
and news credibility.
Oh, the drama.
Peggy Agar, a re****ter for ABC affiliate WXYZ, had been trailing Mr.
Obama during a morning campaign appearance at a Michigan auto plant,
demanding to know what he planned to do for Detroit autoworkers.
"Hold on one second, sweetie, we're going to do =97 we'll do a press
avail," he said, casually implying that he would take care of the
question during a formal question-and-answer period with other
re****ters.
The promised moment never happened. A vexed Mrs. Agar went public with
the tape and her annoyance, noting that "this sweetie" never got a
story.
By 3:16 p.m. =97 the exact time carefully noted by WXYZ =97 Mr. Obama was
in major mea culpa mode with his entire apology either broadcast or
posted online by the station.
"Hi, Peggy. This is Barack Obama. I'm calling to apologize on two
fronts. One was you didn't get your question answered, and I
apologize. I thought that we had set up interviews with all the local
stations. I guess we got it with your station, but you weren't the
re****ter that got the interview. And so, I broke my word," the
candidate said on her voice mail.
"Second apology is for using the word 'sweetie.' That's a bad habit of
mine. I do it sometimes with all kinds of people. I mean no
disrespect, and so I am duly chastened on that front. Feel free to
call me back. I expect that my press team will be happy to try to make
it up to you whenever we are in Detroit next," Mr. Obama said.
Mrs. Agar =97 a mother of a toddler who normally covers nitty-gritty
local issues and crime =97 made cameo appearances on the evening news in
the same bright suit she wore during her now infamous Obama encounter.
Eager anchors demanded to know whether she was "shocked" and revisited
the video clip.
"Frankly, I have been called worse during interviews than just
'sweetie,' so that really didn't take me aback right then," Mrs. Agar
said yesterday.
"I felt more offended that he didn't answer the question," Mrs. Agar
added, noting that she hadn't even listened to the message until
yesterday morning.
"Now here's a little gaffe from Barack Obama that will energize the 'I
Am Woman'-humming folks in Hillaryland," Tim Graham of the Media
Research Center said yesterday.
"As gaffes go, this seems mild. 'Sweetie' is a very nice word,
especially if used with a person you find to be sweet, like a wife or
daughter or niece. It beats 'Hold on one second, you pushy broad.' If
Obama ever said that, Hillary would have a party," Mr. Graham added.
Sweetiegate marks the third "-gate" moment for Mr. Obama this spring.
The lawmaker's 34-word theory about embittered small-town folks became
"bittergate" last month. He also became the center of "wafflegate"
after making a plea to eat his waffle breakfast in peace after a
re****ter in a Pennsylvania diner asked him a question about
terrorism.
Things remain decidedly saccharine.
The "sweetie" video footage is now on YouTube, inspiring more than
6,000 stories and blog mentions, according to a Google News count.
Mr. Obama has a reputation for flirtation on the campaign trail.
He has used "sweetie" on waitresses =97 including at a diner in
Robesonia, Pa. =97 on children, and even on some autograph seekers.
While touring an Allentown, Pa., clothing factory last month, he
grinned as female workers swooned over him and took his photo, hugging
some of the women and calling one "sweetie."
A few minutes later, he winked at a re****ter following him inside the
factory.
He also told dance-wear manufacturer Marisa Cerveris, a former New
York City Ballet member, that he thought she looked like a dancer.
Observing an old photo of her on the stage, he said, "You're
gorgeous."
"I was," she replied, prompting Mr. Obama to counter: "You still are"
and to ask the crowd, "Isn't she beautiful?"
Later that day, Mr. Obama offered a kiss in exchange for a vote from
Denise Mercuri, a pharmacist from Dunmore, Pa., who sup****ted Sen.
Hillary Rodham Clinton. She wore a "Hillary" campaign button and held
an Obama button in her hand. As Mr. Obama greeted her, he asked what
he needed to do to get her to wear his button instead of his rival's.
"What do I need to do? Do you want me on my knees?" he asked.
He then conceded: "I'll give you a kiss," and he planted one on her
cheek.
In nearly all of his speeches, someone will shout, "I love you,"
prompting him to grin and respond, "I love you back."
Mr. Obama has fawned over New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd when
she rode aboard his press plane.
The Caucus, a New York Times blog, had drawn close to 300 comments in
the aftermath yesterday =97 including one visitor who felt that the
Michigan "sweetie" incident reflected a "petty media" and another who
urged, "rise up O' American sisters and stand up for your rights."
=95 Christina Bellantoni contributed to this re****t.
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