By Laura Ingraham

In an ideal world, the press is supposed to be a check and balance on the power of politicians from both parties. Last night we discussed how Joe Biden gets away with outrageous statements and gaffes in a way that someone like a Michele Bachmann or maybe a Sarah Palin never could.

But the media's willingness to give Biden a pass for his incompetence is nothing compared to the leeway it gives the President himself. This love affair with the President goes back a long way to the 2008 campaign.

Jake Tapper of ABC News, one of the few honest brokers out there in the non-Fox White House Press Corps appeared with me on the radio today conceding...

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, ABC NEWS: I thought the media helped tipped the scales. I mean you know, I didn't think the coverage in 2008 was especially fair to either Hillary Clinton or John McCain. It wasn't always the fairest coverage and I hope it doesn't... I hope that doesn't happen again.

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INGRAHAM: Well, don't hold your breath. Take the latest distraction of Congressman Todd Akin's offensive rape comments. Every Republican has denounced him. Most have asked for him to withdraw from his Missouri senate race. Yet, this story has dominated the news cycle for the past 48 hours and was the first softball question at the President's presser yesterday

Week after week the Obama campaign dabbles in distractions... Bain, Romney's tax returns and now absurd attempts to tie Romney to Akin.

And the President's media enablers are always at the ready, covering these side shows instead of demanding answers to the real challenges facing our country.

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TAPPER: We are spending a lot of times in the last few weeks, those of us in the political world talking about things other than the economy. So you know, a lot of people are hurting out there. I would like to see more action taken and more emphasis given to this issue.

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INGRAHAM: So voters, choose your media carefully. The news division at Fox prides itself on being fair and balanced, holding all sides accountable. And there are a few other good folks in the media who balk the pro-Obama spin.

It's important to note Romney may have a lot more campaign cash in the end than Obama. But Obama has most in the media, including the entire Hollywood establishment at his beck and call. That takes a smart counter strategy to overcome.

And that's "The Memo."

- You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.