Obama entered the shop saying, "Scott, let me tell you, you are like the biggest pizza shop owner I've ever seen," according to a White House pool report.
Van Duzer, 46, is a big guy: He is 6' 3" tall and weighs 260 pounds.
After Obama was lifted up, he said "Look at that!" Man are you a powerlifter or what?"
He continued, according to the pool, talking about Van Duzer's big muscles.
"Everybody look at these guns," he said. "If I eat your pizza will I look like that?"
Van Duzer, by the way, is a registered Republican who voted for Obama in 2008 and says he will do so again in November.
"I don't vote party line, I vote who I feel comfortable with, and I do feel extremely comfortable with him," he told the press pool.
"I feel extremely comfortable with him." Gee, ya think?
I had planned to put up a more serious post, but seriously how could I resist this?
By the way, and I know this is not fair, but can ANYBODY imagine somebody feeling comfortable enough to do this with Mitt Romney?
Update: My he IS a big guy!
Update 2: Here's the video for those who are claiming this was prearranged. I do NOT think the President expected to be picked up.
Love that picture - Obama's outstretching arms seem to say "WTF?" :) It amazes me how the Secret Service allows such close interaction with "the people". Of course, the team protecting Romney must keep him away from "you people"!
ReplyDeleteLove President Obama!
My guess is that this is somewhat scripted, and that the Secret Service was in on the skit - Obama does have history with Van Duzer after all. Still a great photo op, and I too like the outstretched arms! lol!
DeleteActually, the guy said on the news that Secret Service took a couple of steps toward him but stopped because he put the President down. This was not scripted.
DeleteLove the Tim Tebow jersey hanging on the wall!
ReplyDeleteI just love, love that picture! Makes me smile.
ReplyDeleteI could not love this photo more.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen the picture of Mittens Romney sitting with his grandkids watching Miss Ann's speech at the RNC? Creeps me right out...Grampa Mittens looks just like Sling Blade.
Link? Sling Blade lol.
DeleteNot sure if I know how to do this, but I'll try:
Deletehttp://twitpic.com/aryq66
Thanks for sharing that! What a riot! (Like Mitt eats baked rings of dough with sauce and mozzarella cheese, then cut into a shape that he can relate to- a pie chart).
DeleteThat comparison of the two pics is priceless!
I had just posted this picture to my Facebook with the comment that President Obama genuinely seems to enjoy campaigning. Charming.
ReplyDeleteI love the video link and the real affection that seemingly comes from the pizza owner, but I have a BIG problem with that guy man-handling the sitting president of the United States in that manner.
ReplyDeleteAnd, where WERE the Secret Service? I'd like to know if they were as surprised as the president with that stunt.
No need to get your panties in a twist! The guy asked the Secret Service if it was OK and they said yes, as long as he didn't walk off with him. Sense of humor all around--except from some posters here.
Deletehere's the NYT article where they do explain that the guy had asked permission from the secret service. Glad to hear it!
Deletehttp://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/09/obama-gets-a-lift-on-the-trail/
If the secret service was surprised, the pizza guy would have been face down on the ground in half a second.
DeleteOur prez is just the coolest dude....he loves people and life. You can tell how happy he is out on the campaign trail rather than that viper pit called Washington. He makes them all look like the phoney greedy bastards they are. I love Jimmy's Dream Team of Michelle and Hillary...youza!!!
ReplyDeleteScott is probably an independent than A republican. But as a staunch democratic woman, I thing I should be table to hug President Obama!
ReplyDeleteI love the photo and how happy he is to see the President.
ReplyDeleteI did have a little 'pang' of 'that's the President' but a moment later all the memories of how thrilled our President is to meet people from all backgrounds reminded me that THIS is why people love our President.
Republican, Democrat, Undeclared, he's happy to talk to us. Although I hope this doesn't become a habit. Once it's amazing and brings a smile, twice or more it becomes a concern.
Obama the man is warm, funny, kind and...well, endearing. The nonsense of voting for someone you'd like to sit and have a beer with appeals to non-thinkers, but in this election it might just be terrific. Subtracting bigots, the remaining non-thinkers+thinkers=yay, Obama's second term.
ReplyDeleteHere's a link to something interesting:
http://www.salon.com/2012/09/08/flip_side_of_sarah_palin/
Well, think about it. If he picked Romney up like that, he'd have to clean up a million little pieces afterward.
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw that on the news the very first thing I thought was - you would never see that at a romney rally. The people just aren't that excited about rmoney - the only vote that guy will get is the anti-Obama vote. GameON!
ReplyDeleteHe's a Republican....
ReplyDeleteBut...
He's voting for Obama.
http://gawker.com/5941727/this-is-a-photo-of-the-president-being-lifted-in-the-air-by-a-powerful-hug
I can't imagine anyone wanting to give Mitt a bear hug. You see real joy when people meet the President. There is no joyful faces when meeting Mitt. Also, babies, toddlers and children all seem to love the Prez.
ReplyDeleteI am Belge, live in Belgium,Europe, oh how i love your Mister President Obama !
ReplyDeleteThank you. We love him too.
DeleteBeaglemom
Thank you. So do we!
DeleteYes, yes, yes, we do!
DeleteThank you, Belge!
DeleteMaybe he can visit sometime. He likes beer.
I live this man.
ReplyDeleteI.
LOVE.
This.
Man!
I love this president- but I REALLY love this man.
Can you imagine any president OR candidate in US history who would let themselves be bear hugged off the ground or let curious babies stick their fingers UP his nose?
Mitt the Shitt and his "don't sexually defraud me!" side-hugs and robotic countenance would have signaled for the secret service/security to take down the pizza guy AND the baby.
Rick Perry would probably not remember exactly why he was at the pizza joint in the first place.
Herman Cain would have groped the pizza guy's nether-bits and asked the baby if he had a hot college aged sister.
George Duh-bya would have climbed over the pizza counter to drink out of the beer taps.
No- there is no candidate or president who is truly a man of the people like our current and FUTURE president, Barack Obama. I can't say it any simpler- I love this man.
And our First Lady was Bear-Hugged and Lifted this summer as well, by an Olympian! Remember?
DeleteYou have to ask the question about who is more dangerous, a pizzaria owner who is exited about voting for the president or someone like alyssa douglas. Hmmm
ReplyDeleteMy first thought on Alyssa is - where did she learn to hate so much that she would write such a thing? My guess - her parents.
DeleteI hope her parents are proud. /s
This is why even non Americans love President Obama. I live in Canada and we wish he was our PM, I can't picture Harper or Romney allowing that.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if this could be said about lots of countries?
DeleteI do believe this community organizer has organized the world.
Maybe if you Canadians behave yourselves, we will let you elect him Prime Minister in a few years. Like maybe ten. Maybe.
I have family in Argentina, Italy and Germany, they relay pretty much the same reaction to President Obama. They take Nobel Peace Prize Winning Leaders seriously, and they're pissed over the entire birther issue.
DeleteHere's the video G!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7421142n
"can ANYBODY imagine somebody feeling comfortable enough to do this with Mitt Romney?"
ReplyDeleteSomewhere there's a tasteless joke in here about boa constrictors that I'll leave to your imagination, but I seriously doubt that Mittens lets anyone get close enough to breathe the same air that he does, much less put their arms around him. And, no, ain't nobody wants to hug him, either. Of that, I am certain.
It's hard to hug a snake, just saying!
DeleteSo far as we know, these are the only interactive panoramic images taken during and after President Obama’s acceptance speech.
ReplyDeleteClick and hold your mouse to move around the image or use the tools at the bottom of each image. The button on the far right will make the image full screen (recommended). Although this is Flash technology, I use a program that will allow you to view these images on your iPad and iPhone, as well. If you don’t see the panoramic images load below often a browser refresh will load them. There are links to the images flat below the panos.
http://eclectablog.com/2012/09/exclusive-interactive-panoramic-images-from-the-last-night-of-the-democratic-national-convention.html
Thanks! I can't imagine speaking to a crowd that large, and they make it look so easy!
DeleteI wish I could hug him, too.
ReplyDeletePresident Obama is COOL.
It is also cool to see a big white Floridian dude hugging our African American President, and he is so cool it doesn't even embarass him! Can you IMAGINE someone doing that to Rmoney?
Calm, cool, and collected.
Obama/Biden 2012!!!!
"I wish I could hug him, too."
DeleteSarah Palin wishes she could hug President Obama too and take him to Sarah's sister's Alaskan college dorm room and interview him like she did Glen Rice and take President Obama's dicktation!
Take it a step further and imagine some big black dude trying to hug and pick up Romney! What do you think would happen? Romney would stroke out, I think.
DeleteObama/Biden 2012!
"Take it a step further and imagine some big black dude trying to hug and pick up Romney"
DeleteAnn Romney would want some of that too and then pass out in joy.
Now President Obama is "The Pizza Man Whisperer".
ReplyDeleteLove him and understand why anyone who meets him does too.
Todd Palin wants him some of President Obama too. Like Lionel Richie says "All Night Long".
ReplyDelete(CNN) -- A police motorcyclist in President Barack Obama's motorcade died Sunday in Florida following a serious highway accident, the top White House spokesman said.
ReplyDeleteThe officer from the Jupiter, Florida, police department was transported to St. Mary's Medical Center in nearby West Palm Beach after being critically injured in the 5 p.m. crash involving a vehicle not in the motorcade.
About three hours later, after Obama had landed back in Washington, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters the officer, whose name was not immediately released, had succumbed to injuries. Obama was notified of the death, according to Carney, who added that the president said his thoughts and prayers were with the officer's family.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/09/us/florida-motorcade-officer-dies/index.html?hpt=hp_t1
How sad! And it shows President Obama's compassion for others.
DeleteIf the President is "of the people" then he should really LIKE the people, and President Obama does, as this picture shows. But I have to admit, my faves are when he is with children, and smiling for all he is worth at them, as if no one else is there. It's between him and that child, and just beautiful. One thing is the same, though, he always treats whomever he is being with as if that's the person he came to see. You would have thought the man in that photo was his long-time best friend. I love that. And I think, to him, every person is that individual to him, too. Maybe having been just another kid, once, is one of those things he never forgot.
ReplyDeleteI could hug him, but I doubt I could lift him off the floor like Pizza Man. The video shows how surprised President Obama was, it's the rill dill!
ReplyDeletecute!
ReplyDeleteRe: Alyssa Douglass. There are pockets of hatred and stupidity running all through this great land of ours, fueled by FUX Noise and AM radio hosts. There are sheep so stupid they believe everything they hear and spew it back, volcanoes of hate and intolerance.
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