In his interview with NPR, the president claimed that while the terror threat was real, the media was hyping the threat and was "pursuing ratings."

Speaker Ryan pushed back against that notion yesterday.

Washington Examiner:

When asked if the U.S. media was being "played" by the Islamic State, Obama said the press is "pursuing ratings," and suggested the press isn't helping by blowing the problem out of proportion.

But a statement released by Ryan's office said Obama seems to be saying that fears about the Islamic State are "really a media creation." It also said it's not the first time that Obama has blamed "poor communication for America's discontent rather than the failed policies themselves."

"Actually, the president attributes the failures of his entire presidency to messaging problems," the statement said. "When asked by Bill Simmons what one thing he would go back and tell himself in 2008, the president said, 'I would probably tell myself to communicate more effectively early on than I did.'"

"When we passed a law requiring the president to present a plan to defeat ISIS, we weren't talking about a communications plan," it continued. "We need a comprehensive plan to destroy this enemy and protect our homeland."

Ryan's office noted that in 2014, Obama blamed his messaging for Democratic losses in Congress on messaging failures. It also said Obama's White House has blamed messaging for people's resistance to Obamacare, the $800 billion stimulus bill, and Democratic losses in 2010.

All presidents have shown a reluctance to blame their own policies for their failures. Notable exceptions include JFK accepting responsibility for the Bay of Pigs fiasco and Reagan shouldering the blame of Iran-Contra.

It's not that Obama is trying to deflect blame that is sickening, it's this notion that if only he had refined the "messaging" or perhaps spoken even more often to the American people about the benefits he so generously bestows on us that people would support him and his policies. 

This is nonsense, of course, but it serves the purpose of giving his supporters an explanation for why his brilliant policies are so misunderstood by the voters.