Usually, it’s President Obama (or one of his aides) who ends the interview, leaving reporters clamoring for more. Indeed, Robert Gibbs, his press secretary, cut off the president’s exclusive interview with The Times on Friday after about 35 minutes.
But less than 90 minutes after Air Force One landed, the telephone rang. President Obama called The Times’s Jeff Zeleny, wanting to add one more point to a response he gave during the interview.
As Mr. Zeleny writes, Mr. Obama was asked whether his domestic policies suggested that he was a socialist, as some conservatives have implied.
“The answer would be no,” he said, laughing for a moment before defending his administration for “making some very tough choices” on the budget.
When he called, he said he had been thinking about the question as he boarded the helicopter taking him back to the White House. He then dismissed the criticism, saying the large-scale government intervention in the markets and the expansion of social welfare programs had begun under his Republican predecessor.
Read on.
President Obama’s Response to the Original Question: “Are You a Socialist?” (mp3)
President Obama’s Follow-Up Call to The Times (mp3)
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