In a pre-recorded interview with President Barack Obama aired on Sunday's Face the Nation, CBS anchor John Dickerson started to press the President modestly on Hillary Clinton's mishandling of her work email as Secretary of State and whether her behavior was consistent with Obama's 2008 promises of "transparency."
But, after the President twice gave a flimsy defense of Clinton's behavior, suggesting that it was just a typical "mistake" like those many Presidents have made, the CBS host instead of more aggressively pressing the issue, ended up backing off and wondering if "honesty" was even an important issue: "FDR and Lincoln were both talented at letting both sides of an issue think that they agreed with both of them. Is honesty overrated as a presidential quality?"
Dickerson managed to avoid noting that Clinton's behavior was in violation of the law as he first brought up the issue:
You built a team at the beginning, and you were rally clear about transparency. You were going to change the White House and be transparent to send a message to the country that felt let down people. She set up an email server that was neither in the spirit or the letter of that transparency. That's no small thing based on what you told everybody about transparency at the beginning.
After President Obama dismissed Clinton's behavior as just a "mistake" similar to those of other Presidents, Dickerson still avoided recalling the law-breaking aspect as he followed up:
But if you make mistakes, you've got to admit them quick and come clean. You said that about the Reverend Wright. You said afterwards, you said, "You know what, we learned. You got to get this done."
After the President engaged in more excuse-making, the CBS host backed off and posed:
FDR and Lincoln were both talented at letting both sides of an issue think that they agreed with both of them. Is honesty overrated as a presidential quality?
Below is a transcript of the relevant portion of the Sunday, July 24, Face the Nation on CBS:
JOHN DICKERSON: You built a team at the beginning, and you were really clear about transparency. You were going to change the White House and be transparent to send a message to the country that felt let down people. She set up an email server that was neither in the spirit or the letter of that transparency. That's no small thing based on what you told everybody about transparency at the beginning.
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Right, and I think she would acknowledge that she made a mistake, but what I also think is true is, is that if you've been in the public eye for decades at the highest levels of scrutiny, folks are going to find some mistakes you make. I've made mistakes. I don't know any President or public official at her level who aren't going to look back and say, "I should have done something like that differently," but I would also say the consistency with which she has devoted her life to trying to make sure that kids get health care and a good education and that, you know, families are getting a fair break if they're working hard and that America upholds its best traditions of foreign policy, on the big stuff, she's gotten it right.
DICKERSON: But if you make mistakes, you've got to admit them quick and come clean. You said that about the Reverend Wright. You said afterwards, you said, "You know what, we learned. You got to get this done."
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Ultimately, government is a human enterprise, you know, none of us are perfect. And this job, by definition, leader of the free world, President of the United States of America, the most powerful country and wealthiest country and most influential country in the history of the world, it's a big job. And it has gotten more and more complicated. And the speed and pace at which you're moving is different. And if you think about now that we know our history about the errors of even our greatest Presidents -- of FDR or JFK or Ronald Reagan or Harry Truman -- then what you realize is that ultimately each of us who occupy this office, including me, are going to in some ways in some areas fall short of the ideal.
And I promise you, if you occupy this job long enough, you're acutely aware of it. You're painfully aware. There isn't a day I don't say to myself, "I wish I could have done this just a little better. I wish I could explain to the American people this issue just a little bit more effectively. I wish that I had some perfect scheme that could bring about an end to the crisis in Syria quicker so that" -- because I am seeing the consequences of events that are unfolding all around the world. But what keeps you going is the fact that you're doing your best, that you have put together a team of people that could not be working harder or be smarter or more effective. And what you also know is that at the end of the day our democracy works because it's not just reliant on one person, but it's a process of self-government where we're all involved in making things a little bit better.
DICKERSON: FDR and Lincoln were both talented at letting both sides of an issue think that they agreed with both of them. Is honesty overrated as a presidential quality?
PRESIDENT OBAMA: It's interesting. I actually think that honesty is not overrated. I think it is absolutely necessary because the trust you have with the American people is currency that can get depleted. And it's hard to build back up. What I also believe, though, is that the issues we deal with are so complicated, and trying to move all the pieces together to move this huge ocean liner that is the U.S. government, means that sometimes holding your tongue, means that sometimes letting things play themselves out knowing not just when to act but also when to hold back and see how things are playing out so that you can pick and choose the time to do what needs to be done because the moment may not be ripe yet. You know, those things I think are a matter of feel. Lincoln and FDR were masters at it, you know. I'm not in their league but hopefully after seven and a half years I've gotten a little better at it.
