Reince Preibus' Obama, Cruise Ship Captain Comparison Draws Harsh Criticism

WASHINGTON -- The White House is criticizing comments by the Republican National Committee chairman comparing President Barack Obama to the Italian cruise ship captain who allegedly abandoned his sinking ship.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation" that Obama was "our own little Captain Schettino." Priebus accused Obama of abandoning ship in the U.S. and spending more time on his re-election campaign.

Former RNC Chairman Michael Steele told MSNBC the analogy was "unfortunate."

In response, White House press secretary Jay Carney said: "If you are so desperate for attention that you make an analogy that Michael Steele deems inappropriate, you know you've probably gone too far."

Preibus later defended his remarks in an interview with Fox News' Megyn Kelly.

"Well, I mean, clearly Megyn when I made those comments, I clearly used the analogy in both sentences that this president was akin to leaving his own job and campaigning non-stop all the time, worried about his job number one, instead of the jobs of the millions of Americans that are out there," Preibus said. "The reality is, it's a fair analogy in regard to leadership in a moment of crisis that this president is more interested in his own job, number one than the jobs of millions of Americans that are out there hurting right now when he promised them that he would be better."

Preibus continued, expressing his condolences to those who died in the disaster, but also accusing his detractors of blowing his comparison out of proportion.

"No I think it's awful, people have died of course, terrible and our prayers go out to those people without a question. But to take this comment and turn it into something that it was not, that's wrong too and that’s political gamesmanship as well," he said.

So far, the disaster has claimed at least 17 lives, though more passengers and crew remain missing and are presumed dead.

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Comments

[Donald Ong]

09:38 PM on 02/29/2012

this type of comments will certainly draw lots of attentions..

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[Parkside1978]

02:18 PM on 02/01/2012

He should lose his job like that AFLACK man did when he made statement about the earthquake victims. How could he disrespect the dead, and the President!! He had no morals. What a shame!

[Parkside1978]

02:13 PM on 02/01/2012

How can Priebus not remember, when he was living in Wisconsin in 2007-2008, when Bush was president, all the millions of jobs that disappeared off the face of the earth in the USA!!!! December of 2007 became the month of the "Recession/Depression". Bush and the Republican party did NOTHING to help stop the job loses in the USA. But they did help the big banks because they were "To Big to Fail:?!!!! I wonder how many of them lined their pockets with $$$ because they helped the banks from going under! Plus didn't Bush run around campainging in 2004 for a 2nd term. Nothing was said about that and we were in 2-3 wars, with our young people dying all over the place fighting for a war that Bush never intended to end.

[Totto]

11:48 AM on 02/01/2012

Little Reince ought to have his Preibus removed.

[duey35]

10:05 AM on 02/01/2012

One bailed on his ship and the other bailed on his country. Ask any unemployeed person they have no hope and very little change.

[IndependentBadger]

12:49 PM on 02/01/2012

Republicans are the ones who abandoned America. Tripling our debt, starting two disastrous wars, forcing our kids to pay the bill, abandoning New Orleans, stealing elections, cutting off the vote to minorities and old people, protecting insurance companies instead of consumers, etc.

[CarryOn]

08:39 AM on 02/01/2012

nothing is beneath this party, just look at the primary for a window into the depths they go to attack each other, then realize this is how they treat friends...and Obama has been the enemy since day one when McConnell said his goal was to make Obama a one term president...and has put the country on a destructive path hoping to make it happen....they are beyond contempt.

[parlimentMike]

02:55 PM on 02/01/2012

Absolutely, the Republicans do not deserve a single vote at any national level. This does not mean that Democrats do. Those Democrats who haven't demanded and fought for a better deal for the People also need replacing. That includes the President and most of Congress.

Two parties passed the dismantling of Financial Industry oversight. The current administration has been filled with the same folks, or their assistants who argued for the deregulation and globalization that has killed the American middle class.

Just as American Tourister now means made in China, the Democratic Party now means Bankers and Corporations Rule. We hate to believe it, but if we wont see it, we will vote for own indentureship to the banks.

There are no solutions in the Dempublican offerings, only partially true allegations being thrown back and forth.

We know the system is broken, isn't it time we voted for some folks who recognize that and propose actual fixes, rather than just scare us about the bad intentions of the other half of the Dempubican continuum?

[goodmarina]

08:32 AM on 02/01/2012

I am not surprised that a Tea-hardists - acting like a spokesperson for the entire Republican Party, would fall off the intellectual and practical deep end with such fool-hearted comments like this!

For one - there are  families trying to make sense of a senseless tragedy that happened so recently (where 16 people are still missing); yet, all Rience Preibus has managed to do is highlight the callousness that many of us have come to identify the Republican party with.  

Second - one must, then, assume that only Pres. Obama has campaigned while being an elected office holder.  Surely, Pres. Bush or his Republican predecessors did not Campaign as incumbents!  And far be it for me to suggest that Republican Senators, Congressmen/women, Governors, Mayors, etc. have "ever" campaigned while being incumbents or even campaign to seek higher office...  (ahem .. bachmann ... sneeze - sputter!!)  
 (sarcasm alert)

[Southrnbelle]

07:48 AM on 02/01/2012

To call Reince Preibus a piece of $h!t is an insult to pieces of $h!t.

Keep talkin', Pal.

You are working successfully to destroy the Republican Party.

Congratulations!!!!!

OBAMA 2012!!!!!!!!!!

[Totto]

02:45 PM on 02/01/2012

Notice that he giggled like a naughty little boy when he repeated what he said.

[Jo Ann Law McGrath]

07:22 AM on 02/01/2012

I thought families, like those of Reince Preibus, kept relatives like him in the attic.

[John Paganas]

07:25 AM on 02/01/2012

The GOP must pass around a play book compleat with dummy cards, as they all say the same things the same way over and over... Maybe they repeat them so many times to convince themselves.... Just like children, everyone including them selves must repeat it over an over, and they still may not get it...

[djaikins]

07:12 AM on 02/01/2012

There is nothing more pathetic than a republican trying to explain away an insulting remark that they obviously intended. They must offer a class in this at the RNC.

[Unclebuggies]

07:10 AM on 02/01/2012

Obama isn't the one talking about moving to the moon...

[John Paganas]

07:33 AM on 02/01/2012

Yeah, maybe uncle Newt can take all his theives with him... A colony of fools...

[njo49]

06:51 AM on 02/01/2012

Reince, you remind me of the skipper of the Titanic. You're steering your party awfully close to an iceberg. Oh, it's a big iceberg.. a nasty iceberg.

[sjj734]

04:33 AM on 02/01/2012

Well Then Reince, I'd like to make the analogy that Bush crashed the economy just like the terrorist crashed those planes into the WTC.

To quote you "The reality is, it's a fair analogy"
"No I think it's awful, people have died of course, terrible and our prayers go out to those people without a question. But to take this comment and turn it into something that it was not, that's wrong too and that’s political gamesmanship as well,"

So I guess my statement is fair and you wouldn't blow it out of proportion would you?

Of course I am not being serious and am only trying to point out how callous and crass his comment is. He is the one playing political gamesmanship with that comment. Every president running for re-election has to juggle the job with the campaign...but I'm guessing you didn't criticize Regan or the 2 Bushes for doing the sam eh Reince?

[goodmarina]

05:33 AM on 02/01/2012

nice way to put things in perspective!  : )

[Rise and Shine]

04:31 AM on 02/01/2012

Chairman Priebus, given that for the past three years, Republicans have done all they could to torpedo the ship of state, I think President Obama has been pretty steady at the tiller.

But if you want to talk about abandoning ship, look no further than the private sector. For the past 30 years, when faced with stormy seas, the Captains Of Industry have been throwing deckhands overboard, slashing the wages of the remaining crew, and even allowing millions of landlubbing Americans to bail out their ships. Then, when these Captains wreck their vessels, they jump ship and climb aboard their waiting golden lifeboats.

And now you want to put one of these Captains Of Industry at the helm of our country? I'd call that a titanic mistake.

[Mamadea]

05:38 AM on 02/01/2012

F&F!

[kristincavallari56]

03:43 AM on 02/01/2012

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WASHINGTON -- The White House is criticizing comments by the Republican National Committee chairman comparing President Barack Obama to the Italian cruise ship captain who allegedly abandoned his sinking ship.