In his first interview with President Barack Obama since taking over as NBC Nightly News anchor, Lester Holt spoke with President on Monday’s broadcast for a friendly interview as part one gave the President a friendly platform to promote criminal justice reform and his decision to send a small group of U.S. troops into Syria.
During a discussion on the first topic, Holt served up a fawning question to the President if he viewed it as “your defining moment” considering the fact that he’s the first African-American President with “[s]o many hopes and aspirations were placed on you.”
Holt first teased the sit-down at the top of the show by promising viewers a “one-on-one with President Obama” as he touted “his new mission” to supposedly lead the charge on what’s already an issue that attracts bipartisan support.
After a few basic questions allowing the President to explain where he thinks the conversation should go, Holt brought up comments last week by FBI Director James Comey concerning the effect events like Ferguson have had on the discomfort police officers now face in going about their jobs.
Along with presenting the line of thought to the President, Holt helped him wonder if it “could undermine or derail” the push to change the country’s criminal justice system:
Your own FBI Director has raised this idea, the Ferguson effect, that police officers may be laying back a bit. They don't want to end up on somebody's camcorder and as a result, we're seeing a spike in homicides in some cities. Do you fear that could undermine or derail what you are trying to do right now?
It was following that inquiry that Holt unleashed this massive softball at the President:
So many hopes and aspirations were placed on you as the first African-American President. As you approach this area of criminal justice reform, is this, in your mind, your defining moment, that would seal the legacy of what we would expect from the first African-American President?
Obama responded by emphasizing that it’s an “important” issue to him because he views himself as “the President of all people” and thus he’s “very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity and racial justice.”
Holt closed part one with a question on Syria before telling viewers that part two (set to air on Tuesday’s NBC Nightly News) will cover politics and the 2016 election.
Already, Holt’s interview of Obama stands in stark contrast with his July interview of Jeb Bush in which the NBC anchor hounded him on race and demanded to know if the Republican Party is “fundamentally out of touch” with minorities.
The relevant portions of the transcript from November 2's NBC Nightly News can be found below.
NBC Nightly News
November 2, 2015
7:00 p.m. Eastern [TEASE]
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: NBC News Exclusive]
LESTER HOLT: Also, our NBC News exclusive. I go one-on-one with President Obama on his new mission.
(....)
7:10 p.m. Eastern
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: NBC News Exclusive]
HOLT: Now to our exclusive interview with President Obama. The President's push for sweeping criminal justice reform brought him here to Newark, this afternoon. Where he met with clients at an addiction recovery house. The President, who has been calling for reduced prison sentences and diversion programs for nonviolent drug offenders, visited integrity house to highlight their work in helping formerly jailed offenders re-enter society. Criminal justice reform enjoys rare bipartisan support in Washington. After his visit, he sat down with me to talk about what’s at stake. [TO OBAMA] You take out one of the underpinning of justice, which is deterrent when you say no jail or diversion or shorter sentences. Are you afraid it could send the wrong message?
(....)
HOLT: Almost every time you speak about criminal justice reform you ultimately note that the system is unfair to black and Hispanic boys and men and I wonder if you could explain a bit more specifically. You talking about the point of arrest, the interactions with police or within the court system?
(....)
HOLT: Your own FBI Director has raised this idea, the Ferguson effect, that police officers may be laying back a bit. They don't want to end up on somebody's camcorder and as a result, we're seeing a spike in homicides in some cities. Do you fear that could undermine or derail what you are trying to do right now?
OBAMA: What is absolutely true is that we've seen some spikes in violent crime in some cities. Overall, the violent crime rate is still near the historic lows. We've seen a spike in some cities this year, but it’s still close to the historic lows.
HOLT: But is it something that you think that chilled — that police officers are feeling?
OBAMA: We have not seen any evidence of that and I think the FBI Director would be the first to say that he's heard anecdotal suggestions that that may be happening on selective sites, but we don't know.
HOLT: So many hopes and aspirations were placed on you as the first African-American President. As you approach this area of criminal justice reform, is this, in your mind, your defining moment, that would seal the legacy of what we would expect from the first African-American President?
OBAMA: You know, this is something that is important to me. You know, one of the things that I've consistently said, as President, is that I'm the President of all people. You know, I am very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity and racial justice.
