In his final press conference as president on Wednesday, Barack Obama laughably congratulated the White House Press Corps for not being “sycophants” during his administration, but acting as “skeptics” whose reporting “keeps us honest.”
At the start of the farewell presser, he proclaimed:
I have enjoyed working with all of you. That does not, of course, mean that I've enjoyed every story that you have filed, but that's the point of this relationship. You're not supposed to be sycophants, you're supposed to be skeptics, you’re supposed to ask me tough questions. You're not supposed to be complementary, but you’re supposed to cast a critical eye on folks who hold enormous power and make sure that we are accountable to the people who sent us here, and you have done that.
In reality, Obama received a continuous stream of fawning and sycophantic media coverage leading up to and throughout his presidency.
Seeming to take a shot at the possibility of Donald Trump’s administration moving the press briefing room out of the White House, the current president remarked: “And having you in this building has made this place work better. It keeps us honest. It makes us work harder. You have made us think about how we are doing what we do and whether or not we're able to deliver on what's been requested by our constituents.”
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Despite often dodging tough interviews in favor of softer venues, Obama told the group of journalists: “America needs you and our democracy needs you.” With an eye to his Republican successor, he implored:
We need you to establish a baseline of facts and evidence that we can use as a starting point for the kind of reasoned and informed debates that ultimately lead to progress. And so my hope is, is that you will continue with the same tenacity that you showed us to do the hard work of getting to the bottom of stories and getting them right and to push those of us in power to be the best version of ourselves.
Obama concluded his statement: “I’m looking forward to being an active consumer of your work rather than always the subject of it. I want to thank you all for your extraordinary service to our democracy and with that I will take some questions.”
In the question-and-answer session that followed, most of the reporter’s queries focused on how afraid Obama was of Trump becoming president.
Here is a partial transcript of Obama’s January 18 remarks before the press conference:
2:25 PM ET
(...)
BARACK OBAMA: Second thing I want to do is to thank all of you. Some of you have been covering me for a long time. Folks like [Los Angeles Times reporter] Christi [Parsons] and [Chicago Sun-Times Columnist] Lynn [Sweet], some of you I've just gotten to know. We have traveled the world together. We’ve hit a few singles, a few doubles together. I've offered advice that I thought was pretty sound, like, “don't do stupid stuff.” And even when you complained about my long answers, I just want you to know that the only reason they were long was because you asked six-part questions.
But I have enjoyed working with all of you. That does not, of course, mean that I've enjoyed every story that you have filed, but that's the point of this relationship. You're not supposed to be sycophants, you're supposed to be skeptics, you’re supposed to ask me tough questions. You're not supposed to be complementary, but you’re supposed to cast a critical eye on folks who hold enormous power and make sure that we are accountable to the people who sent us here, and you have done that. And you have done it, for the most part, in ways I could appreciate for fairness, even if I didn't always agree with your conclusions.
And having you in this building has made this place work better. It keeps us honest. It makes us work harder. You have made us think about how we are doing what we do and whether or not we're able to deliver on what's been requested by our constituents. And, for example, every time you've asked, “Why haven't you cured ebola yet?” Or “Why is there still that hole in the Gulf?” It has given me the ability to go back to my team and say, “Will you get this solved before the next press conference?”
I've spent a lot of time on my – in my farewell address talking about the state of our democracy. It goes without saying that essential to that is a free press. That is part of how this place, this country, this grand experiment in self-government has to work. It doesn't work if we don't have a well-informed citizenry, and you are the conduit through which they receive the information about what's taking place in the halls of power. So America needs you and our democracy needs you.
We need you to establish a baseline of facts and evidence that we can use as a starting point for the kind of reasoned and informed debates that ultimately lead to progress. And so my hope is, is that you will continue with the same tenacity that you showed us to do the hard work of getting to the bottom of stories and getting them right and to push those of us in power to be the best version of ourselves. And to push this country to be the best version of itself. I have no doubt that you will do so.
I’m looking forward to being an active consumer of your work rather than always the subject of it. I want to thank you all for your extraordinary service to our democracy and with that I will take some questions.
(...)
