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Just a year into his presidency, Barack Obama has yet to fix everything wrong in our country. I don't think mine is a particularly partisan claim, or even particularly critical, as the man's plate has enough piled on it to leave Kobayashi with a full tummy. Still, the ability to bring about large-scale, permanent change remains somewhat unproven.

But give the Prez this much. Last Monday, he played host to a Lakers squad whose current road trip had featured a pair of losses against a contender and a pretender, and a win that didn't swing in the Lakers' favor until the fourth quarter. They've been so largely unimpressive, Steve Mason crashed our PodKast to tee off on how poorly they've played. A little time with Obama, however, and the purple and gold are suddenly inspired to kick off the cobwebs, as ESPN Los Angeles' Dave McMenamin reports:

Being in the president's presence not only helped cause (Kobe) Bryant (26 points, eight assists) to play at the title-taking level he's capable of, it infused the whole team with the life it had been lacking. "It reminded us what we were playing for," Bryant said. "It reminded us what's at stake. I'm sure it helped re-energize us a little bit."

Bryant's tank wasn't quite topped off with Obama's influence after Monday, so he made a return trip to the White House on Tuesday morning, spending "about 20 minutes" in the Oval office with the president, bringing along his wife Vanessa and their two daughters, Natalia and Giana. Following Bryant's lead, the Lakers shot 58.7 percent as a team, ran out to a 16-point lead at halftime and didn't let the lead dwindle to less than nine the rest of the way.Just about every Lakers player who starred on Monday credited the president in one way or another.

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Under normal circumstances, I might say the Lakers, in the midst of a 1-2 road trip and a general period of malaise, were inspired by Monday's visit to the White House and an afternoon with President Obama. After all, the Big Moment in L.A.'s 115-103 win Tuesday night over the Washington Wizards didn't come in the fourth quarter. There was no late scramble, no heroic Kobe Bryant push, no real question about the outcome. The Lakers basically controlled throughout.

Can Lakers fans thank the leader of the free world? Maybe, maybe not, since the Wizards are the basketball equivalent of a friendly audience plant in a town hall debate, existing only to make the star look good.

In the end, while the team will surely prize their Pennsylvania Ave. memories, the game itself was likely just a routine victory over a vastly inferior opponent. But in a nice change of pace, the big push came early and was fueled by the reserves.

To say Lamar Odom got the decisive second quarter off to a strong start is a mild understatement. First, he assisted on a nice layup inside from Pau Gasol, then after Washington's Antawn Jamison gave the Wizards a 32-31 lead with a jumper from 11 feet at 11:07, Odom found Shannon Brown streaking to the basket for a sweet alley oop. The Lakers again had the lead. For good measure, LO logged L.A.'s next three baskets, helping them push the lead to five. From there, they hit the gas, holding the Wizards to a single bucket, stretching the advantage to double digits in the process.

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We'll have the newest Kamenetzky Brothers Land O'Lakers PodKast up soon- this week, we break down the season's first half- but in the meantime edify yourself on the state of the Lakers with these handy bits of radio magic:

• Indiana's Mike Dunleavy Jr., who the Lakers will see Wednesday evening, talks about tomorrow's matchup and what's gone wrong with the Pacers this year. Don't worry, it's not a complete list, or you'd have do dedicate hours.
• Spero Dedes, voice of the Lakers, talks about the team's White House trip and the trade winds. Might they blow the Lakers' way?
• More on the squad's visit with President Obama from Jeannie Buss on Mason and Ireland. Can you say Presidential swag?
• Mason and Ireland speak to Lakers assistant coach Jim Cleamons, who reveals the most common order given Andrew Bynum from the bench: "Run, Bynum, run!"
• The Lakers haven't exactly been a model of consistency these days. ESPN.com's Scoop Jackson has the cure for what ails them.

For those of you who didn't get to watch the Lakers being honored by Barack Obama, give 'er a click and enjoy. Or read the entire transcript of the celebration, thanks to the diligence of the Daily News' Tom Hoffarth.

Obama took the time to recognize --among other things-- Kobe Bryant's greatness while playing with a busted finger, the team's (and in particular, Pau Gasol and Jordan Farmar's) contributions towards the Haitian relief effort and Shannon Brown's impending participation in the dunk contest. The Prez seemed keen YouTube's qualifications ("I've been told Mr. Brown intends to win the dunk contest"), which makes you wonder, with all due respect to the impressive grassroots phenomenon that was LetShannonDunk.com, if the whole thing would have been easier just letting Obama make a phone call on Shannon's behalf. The man's got a fair amount of clout.

And speaking of clout, we already knew about Obama's respect for Mamba, having last year declared 24 the best player in the world (which I decided by extension made it U.S. law). But if we learn today's announcement of a discretionary spending freeze proposal came as the result of bending Bryant's ear, I'll REALLY be impressed.

By the way, did Khloe Kardashian pick the right year to fall for a Laker or what?

UPDATE (9:13 pm PT): Here's the story from ESPN LA's Dave McMenamin.

In anticipation of today's White House visit and meeting with President Barack Obama, I thought I'd post some videos I shot last Tuesday with various Lakers talking about the expedition. We'll start with Derek Fisher, whose clip begins with a fantastic exchange between him and CBS/KCAL 9's always impeccably dressed Jim Hill. Those suits he's always wearing during broadcasts? That's what he's always wearing off-camera, too. I mean, literally EVERY time I've ever seen Hill, the man is in a suit (as Brian, the L.A. Times' Broderick Turner and I discussed during a recent PodKast). A one-song muse for ZZ Top, if you will. This consistency didn't escape Fisher, who completely ignored Hill's initial question to give the broadcaster's jacket a feel.

"What is that, tweed," asked Fish as a smile crept across his face. "I like it. I like it. It's like, 12:30 in the daytime."

From there, a conundrum was examined. "Mr. President" is the proper way for NBA players to address the free world's leader, but how does Obama refer to fellow-Prez Fisher (Player's Association)? "Probably not as Mr. President," noted the point guard. "I'll probably have to tell him what my name is." Well, I seriously doubt that, between Obama's rabid hoops love and the attention Fisher gained campaigning on his behalf. It's a meeting Fisher is looking forward to, while noting he and his mates "have a lot of business to take care of" before and after the White House visit.

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