President Obama's Appearance on "The View" Not About Making History, Meant to Appeal to "Soccer Mom" Demographic

President Obama to appear on "The View" in an effort to appeal to "soccer mom" demographic as his poll numbers continue to slip.

To all the haters, including Gov. Rendell (D-PA), as much as you don't like the fact that President Obama will appear on "The View," is a calculated move that serves a purpose in his mind, at least. We know Barbara Walters, Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg will lob soft questions his way and it will be all laughs and a really homey atmosphere aimed at soccer moms, a demographic that he is slowly losing right now. Obama has made history, in a roundabout way. He will become the first president to appear on a daytime television chat show. Hardly a major feat, but one you can understand to some degree.

Here's an excerpt from the Financial Times that pretty much sums up why the President decided to appear on "The View:"

Mr Obama’s administration, facing dismal marks even from friendly pollsters, is making a new push to talk to Middle America, trying to recapture some of his old campaign magic before November’s midterm Congressional elections. And all without having to go through the pesky medium of the White House press corps.

Certainly, the president needs all the positive exposure he can get. Polls regularly put his approval rating below 50 per cent, and a new Quinnipiac University survey found that US voters thought – by a margin of 48 to 40 per cent – that he did not deserve to be re-elected in 2012.

This makes alarming reading in Mr Obama’s Washington, where Democrats could lose control of the House and even the Senate. If the president thinks it’s tough to get legislation passed now, just imagine how difficult life will be in a Republican-dominated Congress.

Hence the new drive to present Mr Obama as a regular guy, sitting on a couch talking about his daughters with a bunch of moms. Before heading to the studio for the show’s taping on Wednesday he visited the Tastee Sub Shop in New Jersey, another high-calorie photo opp for a president once derided for his penchant for arugula (rocket).

Though I am not thrilled with the president appearing to yuk it up on day-time television, I understand his goal nonetheless. For all the haters out there who criticized him for not attending the Boy Scout anniversary ceremony, big deal. That certainly can help his poll numbers.