Lanny Davis Can't Be This Naive

Imus welcomed Lanny Davis to his show this morning by declaring, "We didn't play any of his songs, and we're not going to." How's that for warmth?

Davis, who was special counsel to President Bill Clinton, insisted that his song selections, some of which are Rodgers and Hammerstein tunes, were age-appropriate.

"It's out generation, Don!" Davis crowed to the I-Man, who was always more of an Elvis guy, to be honest.

But Davis is comfortable being the odd man out, a role he often plays when appearing as the token liberal on "The O'Reilly Factor" or "Hannity." In fact, he'll be a part of this evening's Great American Panel on "Hannity," alongside Bernard McGuirk.

"Bring it, yo," Bernard challenged Davis, who has probably never brought "it" before in his life.

An Obama convert who had supported Hillary in the primary, Davis told Imus he has come to admire the President.

"I'm impressed by the way he handles himself," said Davis, who was unwilling to take down his "old friend," Attorney General Eric Holder, much to Imus's dismay. He allowed, however, that Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner "has been weak at times." Ya think?

Every administration has a rocky first year, he argued, and Obama should be applauded for his recent efforts at bipartisanship. For instance, Davis thought both Obama and the Republican caucus did a great job at last week's Q&A session in Baltimore.

"They proved to me they're not the party of no," Davis said about Republicans. "They had a lot of young and very instructive, respectful voices."

Presently a crisis manager, Davis called John Edwards "dishonorable" for his behavior during and after the 2008 campaign. "When he goes on television and says, 'Okay, I'm finally going to tell the truth,' and then he doesn't, he's insulting all of our intelligence," said Davis, who refused judge Edwards on his personal life. Politically, however, he called Edwards's actions "reckless and incomprehensible."

Following this interview with Imus, Davis would head over to the National Prayer Breakfast, where the President would speak and where, for the first time, a woman, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, would deliver the keynote prayer.

"I hope Hillary says a prayer for you and me, Don," said Davis.

Don't hold your breath on that last one, Lanny.

-Julie Kanfer