Speaking of reading body language, both the Washington Post and the New York Times put on their front pages today pieces about Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla) and, specifically, per the Times, Democrats’ efforts to “break grip of the Senate’s Flinty Dr. No” (Coburn). Both accounts include the detail that Senators Coburn and Obama recently hugged on the Senate floor (presumably to point out that every now and then Coburn embraces compromise).
Times: “And [Coburn] has worked with Senator Barack Obama of Illinois…The two even shared a hug when Mr. Obama returned to the floor recently.”
The Washington Post gives a little more specificity on how Coburn “worked with” Obama (beyond working the hug): “Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), who greeted Coburn with a hug on the Senate floor earlier this month, co-authored government spending transparency legislation with the Oklahoman.”
Liz Cox Barrett is a writer at CJR.