Absolutely right on, and you've stated the case more clearly than I've managed to.
I've always thought that the President's inherent decency and adherence to the facts kept him from perceiving that there's a large sement of the population that only listens occasionally to political discussions, and therefore hears only what's regularly repeated. That's why it's critical to refute the Democrat lies daily.
Here is an interesting take on that:
http://www.instapunk.com/archives/InstaPunkArchiveV2.php3?a=661