Last week, after a seemingly emotionless Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki told a Senate Committee he was "mad as hell" about the allegations of incompetence and corruption at VA hospitals, White House spokesman Jay Carney wouldn't go quite that far when discussing the commander in chief's outrage over the scandal. "He certainly is very concerned and angry about the allegations that we've seen regarding specifically the Phoenix office," Carney told ABC News' Jon Karl.
After 48 hours of focus testing, the White House spin machine discovered that voters want their president madder than that, so the White House chief of staff told CBS News' Major Garrett that Obama was "madder than hell" over the growing scandal.
Because, you know, "madder" is more than "mad."
This does call into question whether the president really is "madder than hell" over this scandal or whether he needs to say he's "madder than hell" to keep reporters and pundits from asking pesky questions.
How did the president express his "madder than hell" attitude? According to the Associated Press, he went golfing at a really nice country club:
President Barack Obama departed from his usual golf routine on Saturday by taking his clubs to an exclusive course in Northern Virginia. Obama usually plays his standard weekend golf game at Andrews Air Force Base or at Fort Belvoir in Virginia.
But on Saturday the president and his three companions teed off instead at the elite Robert Trent Jones Golf Clubon the shores of Lake Manassas in Gainesville, Virginia. The club, where membership is by invitation only, has played host to four Presidents Cup tournaments since it was established in 1991.
Maybe he was taking out his anger on little Mr. Titleist?
Lots of people I know use social media to express their "madderness." Maybe Obama took to Twitter for a good old fashioned Twitter rant to let out some steam.
According to the very active White House Twitter feed, Obama was "madder" about some things last week ... but not the VA scandal:
He was "madder" at Republicans over breaking bridges, or something:
"If Congress fails to act, nearly 700,000 jobs would be at risk over the next year" —Obama on transportation funding: http://t.co/kGORX6FfUb
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 18, 2014
And he's pretty "madder" about Brown v. Board of Education from 6 decades ago because ... racism:
"We recommit ourselves to the long struggle to stamp out bigotry and racism." —Obama on the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 16, 2014
He's definitely "madder" that it used to be illegal to have an abortion:
"My Administration remains dedicated to protecting women's rights to make their own health care decisions." —Obama: http://t.co/gPaPNZt2fP
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 13, 2014
He's super "madder" about concussions in sports:
As a parent & sports fan, President Obama's committed to youth sports safety. He'll host a summit on concussions on May 29. #HeadsUp4Safety
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 15, 2014
And not having "access to transit" makes him "madderer" than all get out:
FACT: 45% of Americans lack access to transit. It's time to reauthorize funding to #RebuildAmerica's infrastructure → http://t.co/ZOy0wKPsym
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 14, 2014
But not a whole lot about the VA. If he got any madder, imagine what it would look like. He might even make a public statement.