Good. I understand that, as Abraham Lincoln said, Presidents need a sense of humor or the stress of the job will kill them. President Reagan was renowned for his humor. But that doesn’t give you a license to mock elderly former First Ladies that the nation loves.

“President-elect Barack Obama called Nancy Reagan today to apologize for the careless and off-handed remark he made during today’s press conference. The President-elect expressed his admiration and affection for Mrs. Reagan that so many Americans share and they had a warm conversation,” said President-elect Obama Transition Team Spokesperson Stephanie Cutter.

This guy has to check his “humor” or he could end up making fun of the wrong person and spark an international crisis. Again, most witty Presidents knew that there was a line not to cross. In Cutter’s own words, Obama’s remarks were “careless”.

Update: Yes, as Ben Smith notes, Obama messed up the whole “joke” anyway:

He was apparently confusing stories about Reagan’s consulting with an astrologer with those about other First Ladies — from Mary Todd Lincoln to Hillary Clinton — who tried to make contact with figures from the past.

How long has he been President-elect now? And he’s already gaffing it up?