Apparently the press pool covering President-Elect Barack Obama is grasping at straws after they were given a "lid" Friday — only to discover that the Obama family headed out to a marine amusement park afterwards. The press pool was ditched after being told that there would be no more news that day; they then must have spent some time googling al-Maliki’s schedule, only to find a possible reason for, um, something:

Reports from Baghdad that Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki canceled an official trip to Iran stoked speculation among Iraqi officials that al-Maliki changed his plans for a possible visit by Obama.

I guess that’ll teach the President-Elect to spend a leisurely afternoon with his daughters at Sea Life Park, watching the dolphins play.  This chicanery allowed the press pool to speculate aimlessly about how he might mislead the Fourth Estate next time!

But Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt said the president-elect, who is vacationing in Hawaii through Jan. 1, has no plans to visit Iraq before his Jan. 20 inauguration.

Bet he had "no plans to visit" Sea Life Park, either! Good for you journos not to accept the shaved-ice bribe he offered when you caught up with him.

Isn’t it great to watch our national media awake from their eight-year-long enabling slumber?  Lapdogs no more!