In watching President Barack Obama’s extensive interview on “60 Minutes” about the killing of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden last Sunday something was nagging at me from the back of my mind — some sense of deja vu. I couldn’t put my finger on it.
I finally realized it was this: I’m old enough to remember the long interviews President John F. Kennedy gave to CBS (particularly the key ones with Walter Cronkite) — the way he looked, the way he coolly talked about foreign policy challenges and before our eyes made the shift from being a young President to someone filling the role of Commander in Chief.
I realized: that was the sense I got. Barack Obama made a shift and it isn’t only due to the mission to get bin Laden being successful. It has to do with him revealing his thought process, showing us how his mind works, how he analyzes and how weighs the pros and cons. I’m sure the interview will be mocked by Rush Limbaugh and other radio talk show hosts — because that is what that infoentertainment does: it operates on partisanship and trying to hit hot buttons so audience comes back for more. But I’m also convinced that vast number of people tuning in felt this was a different Obama than they have seen before.
In my recent viewing of Ken Burn’s masterpiece “The Civil War” there was a point where there was a shift in Abraham Lincoln’s career — where he went from being a Republican politician in the White House to Commander in Chief in name and spirit. Ronald Reagan and others experienced this shift as well.
But when I watched Obama I had the feeling I had seen someone sound like this before — and it was those 1961-1963 CBS JFK interviews I had seen when I was in elementary and junior high school.
Others saw the same thing I did. Irish Central’s Niall O’Dowd. Some highlights from his column:
President Obama was measured, cool and reflective in his ’60 Minutes’ appearance on Sunday night , giving credit where credit is due but also showing a flinty side that is usually hidden.
He was discussing the Bin Laden killing of course and at the end of the interview he flashed anger when asked about people who do not believe Bin Laden should have been killed, sparked by numerous articles in the European press denouncing the loss of life.
Such people should have their heads examined said Obama with a glint in his eye we don’t see often in public.
(That was a key highlight of the interview. You’ll see the quote on interview Part I and it ends the interview Part III).
We forget some times just how hard-nosed this man must be to come from relative obscurity as an African American and become president of the United States.
Based on this interview and the accounts of the decision making around the raid I think we have chosen wisely with this president.
…..This was not the easy rhetoric of “dead or alive’ or chest pounding but an incredibly serious decision about whether to enter another sovereign country, shoot up a compound leaving many dead and get out safely.
What was clear was that he planned for every eventuality which is what any good leader will do.
…..This young president also put in context the inanity of the furore over birth certificates and such nonsense when he described his greatest fear all that week was of losing some of the incredibly brave special forces who took part in the mission.That is the stuff of American history and split second decision making…
Here’s the inteview, which ran in three key parts:
Part II:
Part III: Note the end quote which is the one I believe will endure and be used for years — and perhaps best gives us a glimpse about Obama:
UPDATE: Some comments on Twitter:
AdamSchefter Adam Schefter
On 60 Minutes, President Obama never was more impressive. On why he didn’t release photos of Osama: “We don’t spike the football.”
1 hour ago
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»J G Bose
BoseanLogic J G Bose
RT @michaelskolnik: 60 Minutes: best interview President Obama has given during his entire presidency. Total command. #ProudOfMyPresident
2 minutes ago
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MsJoanne
MsJoanne MsJoanne
RT @mattemmer Watching Pres Obama on “60 Minutes”: why isn’t he being rudely interrupted every 5 seconds? Oh yeah, b/c it’s not on Fox.
2 minutes ago
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Chrisi West
PittGirly Chrisi West
RT @mattison: 60 Minutes interview made it supremely clear:American people made right choice November 2008. Barack Obama is the right POTUS.
2 minutes ago
»Gerald Nelson
lordxmen2k Gerald Nelson
Amazing. RT @blockgreg: Just watched the culmination of the Obama “we killed Osama” victory tour – 60 Minutes. Phenomenal interview.
3 minutes ago
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DC Debbie
DCdebbie DC Debbie
Palin is SO mad at the 60 Minutes interview with Pres. Obama. They didn’t ask any “gotcha” questions, like “which newspapers do you read?”
6 minutes ago
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Judy Echavez
JudyEchavez Judy Echavez
Prez gives impressive interview to ’60 minutes’ Steve Kroft detailing raid on Bin Laden compound. Obama reiterates “Justice was done”
6 minutes agoMattison
Mattison Mattison
60 Minutes interview made it supremely clear: American people made right choice November 2008. Barack Obama is the right POTUS. #p2 #tcot
7 minutes ago
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PragProgForum
PragProgForum PragProgForum
Actually, 70 minutes of Obama on 60 Minutes. http://fb.me/whVRxg3u
7 minutes ago»
jack aimone
jackeyemoney jack aimone
listening to obama on 60 minutes interview, its simply amazing what he had to worry about in giving the go for the seals to move in.
8 minutes agoJoe Ziemer
joeziemer Joe ZiemerAndrew McLaughlin
McAndrew Andrew McLaughlin
President Obama’s interview on 60 Minutes is gripping: http://is.gd/CEe2eM What a fantastic commander-in-chief. He plays a long game.
1 hour ago Favorite Retweet Reply
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Lawrence McDonald
Convertbond Lawrence McDonald
Great interview on 60 Minutes, I’m a Republican.. President Obama is an American Hero #GOP #USMC #NavySeals #ARMY #P2 #TCOT
4 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply
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J
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.