There are many things that conservative columnist George Will may do for his country, but taking White House Press Sec. Jay Carney seriously is not among them. At least, that was his pronouncement in an appearance with conservative radio host Laura Ingraham on Friday. In the interview, Will was asked about the efforts of President Barack Obama and his administration to frame the coming sequester budget cuts in the worst possible light. Will said that the White House has gone so overboard with their warnings about the effects of the sequester that no one can take them seriously. Obama is “even losing the mainstream media,” according to Will.



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Ingraham asked Will for his thoughts on the battle in Washington D.C. over sequestration budget cuts. He responded by saying that the debate about the relatively small cuts in the sequester is educational for the public. “They revealed that the basic position of liberalism is this: whatever the size of the government is at any moment, it’s the bare minimum standing between us and chaos and misery,” Will said.

He added that this proposition makes no sense to so many Americans that the president may have overplayed his hand with even his supporters. “I think the president has, at long last, gone so over the top in his rhetoric that he’s even losing the mainstream media here,” Will continued.

Ingraham countered that polling suggests that the president’s “balanced approach” is favored by the public. “This is an absolute verbal tic of his — a reflex — and its built-in, hardwired into his system.” Will countered, “He did not come to Washington — he did not enter politics to shrink the role of government. Period.”

Will said that Obama may make the mistake of intentionally making the sequester cuts as frustrating for the American public as possible. He said it would be up to the media to follow up on that and report why that did not necessarily need to happen.

“Jay Carney said yesterday that the effects of the sequester would be severe, and it would go right to middle class families,” Ingraham said.

“I will do many things for my country and my profession. I will not take seriously Mr. Carney,” Will replied.

Listen to the clip below via The Laura Ingraham Radio Show:

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