Ironic or just nuts? The cover of this week's New Yorker is sure to make some waves when it hits newsstands and mailboxes. It depicts the Obama's in the Oval Office revealing their "true" selves: Michelle is a revolutionary feminist(?) sporting an afro, Obama is a Osama-worshiping Muslim who burns American flags.

We have to assume that The New Yorker, not one to shy away from political controversy where its covers are concerned (especially under David Remnick's reign) is trying to be ironic. And that seems to be what one of the staff there told the Obama campaign. But considering that it comes after a week of complaints from the Left that Obama is pushing too far and fast to the center (22,000 people logged on to his website to protest his recent approval of Bush's wiretapping bill) one has to wonder if perhaps there is not a little bit of a jab in there aimed at Barack himself. Regardless, the Obama campaign is not laughing. Says spokesperson Bill Burton: "The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Senator Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create. But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree." Either way, we think the honeymoon is officially over.