Barack Obama and Jay Leno

On Wednesday, Barack Obama swung out to Los Angeles to make an appearance on the Tonight Show.

Time really flies. It doesn't seem that long ago when Obama was talking with Jay Leno about his new book. It was in December of 2006. At that point, Obama hadn't announced that he was a candidate for president, but speculation about him entering the race was running high.

Now here he is, almost eleven months later, running for president and sitting on an $80 million war chest.

I was struck by how incredibly thin Obama looked. He was wearing a dark suit, white shirt, no tie, and, of course, no flag pin. He looked a little tired to me, with sunken eyes, his face drawn.

Not surprisingly, Leno led off the interview asking Obama about being related to Dick Cheney. They're very distant cousins.

Obama said, "Not kissin' cousins." That's more creepy than funny.

He said that he has all sorts of rogues in his background. Also, not funny.

After the obviously prepared jokes, Obama said, "The truth is I am OK with it."

Well, good grief, they're eighth cousins. They aren't long lost brothers. How could he not be OK with it?

Leno brought up George Bush's reference earlier in the day about Iran and World War III.

Obama said, "I am really frustrated by an administration that continually rattles the saber."

"When you use language like that, what it does is it alienates the rest of the world."

"At this point in time I think it's, you know, I hope that the president will be a little more sober and responsible in the language he uses because this is not helpful."

"More sober?"

That has layers of meaning, doesn't it?

Obama rattled off his usual "Folks really want change right now" stuff. Change can really be boring.

Leno asked him how feels about being the underdog, with Hillary being considered the shoe-in.

Obama responded, "When your name is Barack Obama you’re always the underdog."

That must be why he went by the name of Barry for a while.

About his underdog status, Obama claimed, "It's not discouraging. Hillary is not the first politician in Washington to declare 'Mission Accomplished' a little too soon."

That's killing two birds with one stone.

He said that we have a long way to go before the first vote is cast.

True.

He went on, "Four years ago, President Howard Dean was coronated and that didn’t work out."

True.

The funniest part of the interview was when Leno brought up Bill Clinton, the first black president.

Obama said that there's no doubt that he's a plus for Hillary's campaign. "Particularly among Democrats, Bill Clinton is very popular."

However, he quickly added, "Michelle, my wife, is no slouch."

"If there's a debate between Michelle and Bill, I'd put my money on my girl."

Leno shot back, "You'd leave your wife alone with Bill Clinton, would you? You wanna rethink that?"

Obama laughed and responded, "Michelle can handle herself."

When Leno brought up the "flag pin" issue, Obama stumbled around a bit.

"This is the nature of presidential politics. I mean, there's always something. Now the truth is that I wore a pin right after 9/11."

It's always bad when a politician says, "The truth is...." That's a big red flag.

Obama continued, "When I took it off, I lost it."

I hadn't heard that before, that he lost his one and only flag pin.

Obama said, "I didn't replace it even though I have terrific respect for those who wear it because I think a lot of politicians will put their flag pin on and then act in a real unpatriotic manner."

That sounds stupid. I think he simply wanted to appeal to the Lefties, the anti-flag base.

"I mean you had Alberto Gonzales wearing a flag pin the whole time he was shredding the Constitution. And What I want people to do is to judge me by how I act."

That shot was completely unnecessary. It was cheap and over the top. I think Obama forgot that he was addressing an enormous and diverse television audience, and not a group of Barack fans at a fundraiser.

About his legendary, frequently reported sloppiness, the humble Obama said, "I admit that I am not always great about hanging up my clothes. This is one of the flaws that I have."

He said, "I am not a perfect man and I will not be a perfect president. But what I can guarantee is I will always tell people what I think. I'll always tell 'em where I stand. I'll be honest about the challenges we face."

That sounded like Jimmy Carter's "I'll never lie to you."

That's scary.