I have no idea what Obama was thinking when he uttered that phrase, but his audience certainly made the immediate assumption he was talking about Palin. I've only heard the clip once, so I might be paraphrasing, but the crowd immediately started chanting something like "no pitbull!." There were also a number of surprised gasps from the crowd as a few understood the ramifications of his words.
As soon as Obama heard the crowd, even if he hadn't intended it to be a personal shot at Palin, he should have immediately corrected that impression. Anybody with an ounce of political sense would have immediately had their spidey sense tingling, knowing that he'd get into hot water with it.
