Stumped? Obama Dodges Question on Economy, Defers to Advisors

On Friday, President Barack Obama traveled to tour Thompson Creek Manufacturing, a window manufacturing company located just outside Washington, D.C. In his prepared remarks, the president officially announced that former Clinton advisor Gene Sperling would replace Larry Summers as director of the National Economic Council.

Obama also touted the latest job numbers, noting that the economy added 103,000 jobs in December and that the nation's unemployment rate "fell sharply" from 9.8 to 9.4 percent. But when a reporter approached him after the teleprompters were turned off, the President was at a loss for words.

Politico reports:

After reading his prepared remarks on the economy at a window manufacturer on Friday, President Obama sought to take some photos with workers when a pool reporter caught up with him and asked him to explain the connection between the drop in the unemployment rate and the lower-than-expected number of jobs added in December.

Obama's response, according to the pool:

"You know, you've got to talk to Austan Goolsbee. That's his job."

Obama then posed for some photos.