 President Obama on Monday flew up to New York from Washington, rode in his motorcade to ABC’s studios and sat down for an interview on “The View.” Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was not far away, in the Waldorf-Astoria, meeting with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan. The president will lay out a set of priorities for the U.N. General Assembly in a speech Tuesday morning, but he flies back to Washington a few hours later and then makes a campaign trip to Ohio on Wednesday. With his wife, Michelle Obama, by his side, the president was quipping with the six women in no time: “I told folks I’m just supposed to be eye candy here for you guys.” He chatted about not-so-weighty topics like the first couple’s 20th wedding anniversary on Oct. 3, the night of the first presidential debate with Mitt Romney. Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, told reporters that Mr. Obama would address anti-American protests that have been unfolding in the Arab world.
– And now for something frothy on the campaign trail: President Obama is pretty certain he's "eye candy," at least when it comes to the women on The View. But forget anything serious, ladies. He spent part of his appearance, scheduled to air today, holding hands with the First Lady, notes Politico. Obama shrugged off possible criticisms that he should be attending to international diplomacy with world leaders gathered for the annual opening of the UN General Assembly in New York instead of showing up on The View. "I told folks I'm just supposed to be eye candy here for you guys," Obama quipped to the five female co-hosts. As the show was being taped, Hillary Clinton was in the city meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, notes the Times. But Obama, for the time being, was sticking to family issues, and talked about how Michelle can make him mad "when she's being thoroughly unreasonable," he joked. Someone no doubt making him mad for real was Mitt Romney, who hammered Obama yesterday on the Mideast, particularly on his handling of the lethal attack on the US consulate in Libya earlier this month. "These are not bumps in the road; these are human lives,” Romney said yesterday in Colorado, referring to the president's own words concerning problems in the region. “This is time for a president who will shape events in the Middle East." White House press secretary Jay Carney called the attacks “desperate” and “offensive” attempts by Romney in a race he's losing. Carney might dismiss criticism over Libya, but questions linger.