White House hoops 'offense'

President Obama found himself on the defensive last week with some of his supporters, but it wasn't over health care, the economy or the war on terrorism. The issue was basketball, and it's because women haven't been included in the games the president plays on a court at the White House.

The New York Times, in a lengthy article Sunday, cited criticism from "women's advocates and liberal bloggers for hosting a high-level basketball game with no female players."

The article also explores the broader implications of gender issues at the White House. (One female staffer noted that no men had been invited to a recent baby shower.)

For his part, the president aptly dismissed the dubious basketball foul call as "bunk," telling NBC, "I don't think it sends any kind of message or signal whatsoever."

President Obama added that women hold "some of the most important decision-making positions in this White House."

The Times article also noted that the president also has been criticized for not including women when he plays golf.

That perceived slight was corrected over the weekend when Mr. Obama included his chief domestic policy adviser, Melody Barnes, in his golfing foursome at the Army's Fort Belvoir (Va.) golf course.

You can't be too careful.

Incidentally, there was no report on the score, so maybe we should assume that everyone was a winner.