Candidates On White House Reading

The Top Candidates Tell Katie Couric What Book They'd Bring To Washington With Them

(CBS)  For the series “Primary Questions: Character, Leadership & The Candidates,” CBS News anchor Katie Couric asked the leading presidential candidates questions designed to go beyond politics and show what really makes them tick.

For the latest installment, Couric asks the candidates: "If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?"

Also, check out the candidates' full responses to the previous questions in our "Primary Questions" video library.

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JOHN MCCAIN
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?

McCain: "Wealth of Nations" by Adam Smith, because we may be entering some pretty shaky economic times. And I think that's one of the seminal works concerning how the economy of the nation and the world functions.


BARACK OBAMA
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?

Obama: Doris Kearns Goodwin's book "Team of Rivals." It was a biography of Lincoln. And she talks about Lincoln's capacity to bring opponents of his and people who have run against him in his cabinet. And he was confident enough to be willing to have these dissenting voices and confident enough to listen to the American people and push them outside of their comfort zone. And I think that part of what I want to do as president is push Americans a little bit outside of their comfort zone. It's a remarkable study in leadership.


MITT ROMNEY
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?

Romney: "John Adams" by David McCullough. This one on John Adams connected with me in an unusual way - because of his relationship with Abigail - their closeness, and the extensive letter-writing. You saw something about his heart and character: A truly great leader who made a difference for America. And his example is one I'd want to follow.


MIKE HUCKABEE
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to bring with you?

Huckabee: There's a great book by Francis Schafer that had a real influence on me: "Whatever Happened to the Human Race?" And it talks about the dignity and worth of every individual. And it was a very shaping book for me, because it reminded me that at the core of our culture, at the core of our civilization is our sense of self respect for other individuals - as people of equal worth and value. And that no human being has greater value than another human being.


JOHN EDWARDS
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?

Edwards: I.F. Stone's book, "The Trial of Socrates."

Couric: Why?

Edwards: Because he talks in … a very thoughtful way about the challenges that are faced by men about character, about integrity and about belief systems. And the book, I've read it several times. It had an impact on me.


HILLARY CLINTON
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to have along?

Clinton: I would certainly bring my copy of the Constitution because there was apparently not a copy in the Bush White House to the best I can determine. So I would bring The Federalist Papers. I would bring the historic documents about how our country started and the conflicts of opinion and philosophy that helped to form us, because we have been going through a period of time where the president and vice president have asserted an extensive view of executive power that I think is not in keeping with American history.

RUDY GIULIANI
Couric: If you were elected president, what is the one book other than the bible you would think is essential to bring along?

Giuliani: The bible would be it. The next would be The Federalist Papers. I take this with me all over. I have one sits in my law office and the other sits in my security office, and I have one at home. And it contains also the Constitution of the United States and the Declaration of Independence as an appendix.

Couric: You might be interested in knowing that Sen. Clinton had the exact same answer as you did.

Giuliani: She did? It's been with me since I was a lawyer in private practice.

Couric: Yeah. Who Knows? You might turn the Federalist papers into a bestseller. It might be a bestseller on Amazon.com.

Giuliani: … a bestseller. It must be a bestseller already!

[walt1944-2009]

It has been learned that the candidates have mentioned what book they would bring with them to the Oval Office if elected Emperor.

On closer thought some of the candidates have changed their minds and amended their selections as follows:

"Bagdad" John McCain - "Arabic For Dummies"
"9/11" Rudy Giuliani - "Terrorism for Dummies"
"Mormom" Mitt Romney - "The Osmond Family Songbook"
"Huckelberry" Mike Huckabee - "The Collected Sayings
of Pat Robertson"
Barack Obama - "Up From Slavery"
John Edwards - "How to win a Primary"
Hiliary Clinton - "How to Keep Your Husband QUIET!"

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!!

[feelfree1]

What Ghouliani might bring to the Whitey House:

The biggest scarecrow money could buy.

What McCain might bring:

Depends...

[rowdytexan2]

Mr. Obama would bring a book about Abraham Lincoln, the first republican president to step all over our Constitution.

[sgtrds]

The current White House reading room.

My Pet Goat and The very Hungry Caterpillar. There are lots of other books too, but Bush hasn''t finished coloring in them yet.

[feelfree1]

As far as books go-

Ghouliani: "The 9/11 Commission Report" (just for laughs, of course)

McCain: "Don Quixote"

***** Runney: None. What''s the point?

He would ask Dubya to borrow his copy of "My Pet Goat", when he finishes it, then sell it for a profit, donate 20% the windfall to his church, then "marry" an 11-year-old to celebrate.

[excoachken]

Before they bring in a new book, they will have to throw away all the Marvel Comics stacked in the corner of the oval office and the High Times from under the mattress in the President''s bedroom.

[micma-2009]

I wish she''d asked George Bush what book he would have brought. "My Pet Goat" is known to be one of his favorites. It''s a heartwarming children''s book about a little boy and his beloved pet goat.

[chopper2901]

How many presidential candidates are there? 8 right? 3 Democratic and 5 Repulican. How many interviews are here? 7 right? HMMMMMMM............. I wonder who''s missing? HUGE SURPRISE!!! The bought and paid for media refused to post any information on RON PAUL yet again. How come the dummy Guliani gets a say and RON PAUL, who is beating the dickens out of Guliani, doesn''t get a say. CBS, you are very biased. You don''t care about my opinion and the opinion of millions of Americans who support Ron Paul. How can you call yourself a news station? You only report about the topics that you are paid to report on. I hope your viewers all boycott you for being so biased and such huge sell outs. You''re terrible.

[sgtrds]

How come the dummy Guliani gets a say and RON PAUL, who is beating the dickens out of Guliani, doesn''''t get a say.

Posted by chopper2901 at 07:44 PM : Jan 29, 2008

Because Ron Paul is bat-sh*it crazy and has less chance of getting nomination then Ralph Nader does.

[jinark]

What does Hillary want with a copy of the Constitution? Is she afraid there won''t be any toilet paper?

[jinark]

What does Hillary want with a copy of the Constitution? Is she afraid there won''t be any toilet paper?

[flreason]

"Mr. Obama would bring a book about Abraham Lincoln, the first republican president to step all over our Constitution."
Posted by RowdyTexan2

Very funny, Rowdy, since Lincoln was the first Republican President. But he certainly wasn''t the first President to stomp on the Constitution. Remember Adams and the Sedition Acts? Or how about Jackson? Presidents have been trying to maneuver around the Constitution from its inception.

However, the triple threat of the previous Republican majority in Congress, a Republican President, and a stacked Supreme Court has very nearly succeeded in destroying many of the protections of the Constitution. It''s going to take time and effort to restore freedoms that have been abdicated by cowardly politicians in the name of national security.

[chopper2901]

SgtRDS--

Blogger, rather than waste your energy with swearing, why don''t you take some time to educate me as to why Ron Paul is so bad. I mean he wants to downsize government, get rid of the IRS and protect your privacy and mine. If you like a large portion of your paycheck going to the government who then invests it in a war that has no meaning, and like government spying on you and making you get National ID cards, then by all means please don''t vote for Ron Paul. You tell me something about this that you don''t like.

[maiingan]

It was very prejudiced for the question to start "...except the Bible." We know all the candidates are Christians, but we''re supposed to keep church & state separate here. The question should have excluded religious foundation books generically. In an unrelated comment, it would have been nice if one of the candidates for Commander-in-Chief had mentioned Sun-Tzu''s "The Art of War."

[notopennshut]

The national democratic party must not and should not seat any of the delegates who broke party rules. We should show the country that we are a party of principles and that we cannot reward those who break party rules and expect to be rewarded. What are we telling the people??? Do as you wish, break any rule, and know that you will be rewarded?? If the party must work out how to find a nominee, they must do it, but not at the cost of rewarding law breakers. It is not fair to those who abide by the rules and not fair to us. Too often, laws have been circumvented to arrive at the means. This is the worst lesson for democracy.

[ensign5-2009]

Mr. Obama must have forgotten that he chose "Team of Rivals" when he (and Senator Kennedy) sat stonily during the State of the Union speech last night. It was an eye opener. The President has to be President of all, no matter their party. Alas, they weren''t the only people acting like brats last night. Our poor nation!

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by notopennshut at 08:12 PM : Jan 29, 2008

A party rule that excludes the votes of any state needs to be changed. That is insane! For the life of me I cannot figure out how such a rule benefits a free country.

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by flreason at 08:01 PM : Jan 29, 2008

Maybe I should have said he was the first president to suspend habeas corpus, and committed war on states that seceded peacefully from the Union which they had every right to do.

[donscot3]

How unAmerican can a Senator of the United States be to make a comment as did Hillary Clinton in reference to the Bush White House not having the Constitution at hand!!!!!! Shame on you Hillary.

[oeangus]

How is Hillary pointing out the truth, un-American? Unless deception and bald-faced lying is now American. Which could be. Just look at Bush.

[j-whitman]

What Book They''d Bring To Washington ??
--- What ever book they have should be dropped in the night book return slot at the library. -
----- They aren''t going to get into the White House except by invitation for decades.

[wardoglrs]

"GOOGLE" Immigration by the Numbers

http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/december2006/151206Immigration.htm

HOW TO KEEP 100% OF YOUR EARNINGS.
http://famguardian.org/Media/movie.htm

[lil_willie61]

However, the triple threat of the previous Republican majority in Congress, a Republican President, and a stacked Supreme Court has very nearly succeeded in destroying many of the protections of the Constitution.
- Posted by flreason at 08:01 PM : Jan 29, 2008

Educate me, please... Which Constitutional rights/protections have I lost? I don''t seem to be missing any. I''m a libertarian, BTW, who will be voting for the only Constitutionalist in the race.

[incog-nito]

The answers by Clinton and Giuliani smack of phoniness. C''mon! Federalist Papers? Constitution? Does it sounds like something you''d cozy up to next to the fireplace?

[sgtrds]

Blogger, rather than waste your energy with swearing, why don''''t you take some time to educate me as to why Ron Paul is so bad.

Posted by chopper2901 at 08:04 PM : Jan 29, 2008

Have you seen him in the debates? Have you ever really listened to the looneytoon proposals he has? If you have then you know he''s bat-sh*it crazy! Bring ALL of our troops home around the world? Eliminate all taxes and then just cross our fingers on anything getting built, like roads or a military. Privatise everything! Wanna call the fire department and find out they''ll charge you per call because they''re no longer supported by taxes? Wanna call a cop and have him or her say "What''s it worth to you for me to come out? $20? $50?" Wanna hear on the TV (the one you''ll be paying a monthly fee to watch) that one of our closest allies is under attack and all we''ll have to say is "Tough sh*it! That''s what you get for being stupid enough to be our friend! Dumb as*s! HA HA HA!!"

Ron Paul is bat-sh*it crazy. And a racist.

[micma-2009]

Bush brought "My Pet Goat" into the White House.

[j-whitman]

McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone --- By our Constitution he can''t become President.

[clovisbuford]

err. J-whitman I am not a big mccain fan or indeed republican fan ,but you are smoking crack if you dont think John mccain can''t be elected president. Stick to the issues , this is the equivelent of internet cotton candy or crack.Do you post on 9/11 being a staged event as well?

[j-whitman]

clovisbuford,,, Nope, not smoking anything -- Don''t yell at me, I didn''t write or sign the Constitution, read it yourself.... Article 2

No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.

[libra127]

"How unAmerican can a Senator of the United States be to make a comment as did Hillary Clinton in reference to the Bush White House not having the Constitution at hand!!!!!! "
Posted by donscot3 at 08:31 PM : Jan 29, 2008

Nope. In fact her comment was spot-on and there is nothing "unAmerican" about it. She obviously was not speaking literally. Bush has ignored the Constitution repeatedly in his actions, such that it appears he hasn''t read it or hasn''t comprehended it. It is a very significant point.

[cjf2121]

J-Whitman. Nice try, but John McCain''s parents are both American citizens, which makes him (gasp!) a natural born citizen, no matter where his physical birth place was. It''s sad so many Americans are so stupid...

[j-whitman]

cjf2121,,,, Check it out yourself -
--- There''s been many arguments for children born with one US parent, but none at all in McCain''s instance,,
,,, He''s NOT a Natural Born Citizen - he was born in Panama with dual citizenship up to a certain age ---
---- Never in the history of the office have we had one born outside the USA ----- Article 2 of our Constition has to be ammended first.

[sgtrds]

McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone --- By our Constitution he can''''t become President.

Posted by j-whitman at 10:48 PM : Jan 29, 2008

He was born in the Canal Zone, which at the time was an American territory, at a US military base, which is considered American soil. He is certainly a natural born American citizen just like any other military dependent born at US bases anywhere in the world and is certainly eligible to be president, though I still think (and hope) he won''t be.

[j-whitman]

Sgt,,,,,

Read up bro,,, There have been arguments for citizenship for children born on bases to one US parent, not to both as US Citizens

,,, Our Constitution has never been ammended to include those as born in US Trust Terrorties, or on US bases abroad..... To our courts it''s a black & white issue, either you are born within our borders or you are not.

---- It''''s a black & white issue to our past court rulings, either you are foreign born or natrual born.

[sgtrds]

Some might define the term "natural-born citizen" as one who was born on United States soil. But the First Congress, on March 26, 1790, approved an act that declared, "The children of citizens of the United States that may be born beyond sea, or outside the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural-born citizens of the United States." That would seem to include McCain, whose parents were both citizens and whose father was a Navy officer stationed at the U.S. naval base in Panama at the time of John''''s birth in 1936.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv
/politics/campaigns/junkie/archive/junki
e070998.htm

[sgtrds]

The 14th Amendment gives Congress the power to decide citizenship as to who is or is not a natural born citizen. They had already done so. Black letter law. McCain is, just like all military dependants born to Americans at US bases, a natural born US citizen.

[sgtrds]

Congress has the power to define citizenship outside birth in the U.S.
Congress can set different citizenship requirements for children born to American mothers versus American fathers.
Congress can require that U.S. citizenship must be established by a certain age for it to be recognized.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural-born_citizen

[cjf2121]

That''s probably true, but wikipedia can''t honestly be cited as a legitimate source. Either way, my original point is still true--McCain is eligible to be president of the United States, and whoever says otherwise is ill-informed.

[chopper2901]

Its good to see that no one thought much of this little interview that CBS put on. What a waste of time and energy they put on, just to have it slammed by all these people who are posting to it. Maybe they''ll get a clue and do some real reporting on real issues and on EVERYONE involved.

[mimiboggie]

I was disgusted with Hillary Clinton when she was asked about the book she would like to take with her to the White House. Almost the first words out of her mouth were bad-mouthing the current president. No other candidate did that - they just answered the question. Her comments were just uncalled for, but then, she does that well.

[remnant8]

As i sat listening to the 5:30p.m. broadcast, i noticed , Katie Couric did not pose the same exact question to the democrates as she did the republicians; quote to the republicians, " If you were elected president what is the one book other than the Bible, would you think essential to bring along?" and to the democrates she quoted the question as follows, and "If you were elected president what would the one book you think esstential to bring along?" Now as John Q. Public, i realize the media is very slanted, as do many other John Q. Public like me, My question to the democrates would "the other than___________ would be ?, .....concerned voting, born U.S. citizen of both parents born U.S. citizens/sdm

[klingon69]

it would have been nice if one of the candidates for Commander-in-Chief had mentioned Sun-Tzu''''s "The Art of War."
Posted by maiingan at 08:08 PM : Jan 29, 2008
A very good book. One of my favorites

[klingon69]

No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.
Posted by j-whitman at 11:22 PM : Jan 29, 2008
If his parents were citizens when he was born, then he is a citizen, natural born. He is eligible.

[beguhnn]

Once again it seems that Hillary Clinton cannot open her mouth without the first words being a negative remark about someone.
Regardless of my party choice, and even being a female, I find Mrs. Clinton''s conduct embarassing and petty. I would love to see a female president, when the best female candidate runs, I will likely vote for her.
CBS, I am further insulted that in order to post a comment on this site we, the general voting public, are asked to adhere to the "Rules of Engagment", when it obvious Mrs. Clinton hasn''t read your rules.
It''s a frightening thought to me to consider I may be represented by someone who lacks integrity even in the most benign situations, and expect the world at large to respect her (thereby me, and other Americans) Hmmm.... very scary.

[boogama]

For the people brainwashed into thinking that Ron Paul''s ideas are "crazy" and that he''s a racist: If you''re going to criticize his ideas and policies, get them right. He doesn''t want to end all taxes, he wants to end a lot of them including the income tax. Not a cent of the income tax goes toward any social service or infrastructure maintenance that the federal government provides. To the nut job that thinks that your fireman or policeman is paid by federal taxes, READ A BOOK, your understanding of how government works is a little flawed. State and local governments. Ron Paul is talking about FEDERAL TAXES, and we pay a lot of them for a lot of things that make sense, but collecting the income tax itself is illegal. There''s no law that says you have to pay it or that the government has the authority to collect it, LOOK IT UP. Taxing labor wages is unconstitutional, and mainly goes to funding the pentagon system. The idea that the man is a racist is just retarded, (ignore youtube garbage. The man believes the government should protect individual rights, not gay rights, women''s rights, etc. We are all individuals, and racism tries to categorize people, which he has publicly said he is against. The man has been raising huge sums of money from ordinary people, not big business, so if you think he''s crazy then I guess the constitution is a crazy piece of paper and all of the people who''ve donated money are crazy.

[boogama]

For the people brainwashed into thinking that Ron Paul''s ideas are "crazy" and that he''s a racist: If you''re going to criticize his ideas and policies, get them right. He doesn''t want to end all taxes, he wants to end a lot of them including the income tax. Not a cent of the income tax goes toward any social service or infrastructure maintenance that the federal government provides. To the nut job that thinks that your fireman or policeman is paid by federal taxes, READ A BOOK, your understanding of how government works is a little flawed. State and local governments. Ron Paul is talking about FEDERAL TAXES, and we pay a lot of them for a lot of things that make sense, but collecting the income tax itself is illegal. There''s no law that says you have to pay it or that the government has the authority to collect it, LOOK IT UP. Taxing labor wages is unconstitutional, and mainly goes to funding the pentagon system. The idea that the man is a racist is just retarded, (ignore youtube garbage. The man believes the government should protect individual rights, not gay rights, women''s rights, etc. We are all individuals, and racism tries to categorize people, which he has publicly said he is against. The man has been raising huge sums of money from ordinary people, not big business, so if you think he''s crazy then I guess the constitution is a crazy piece of paper and all of the people who''ve donated money are crazy.

[boogama]

sorry for the double post. i''m an idiot. I''d like to know what Ron Paul reads too. He''s still in the race, unlike Rudy. He also beat McCain in Nevada...doesn''t he count? Why does he win debates in post debate polls? Is it rigged?

Why does CBS make it so hard to comment ? Not really want to hear ? The next president should read Paul Theroux''s Dark Star Safari, recounting his journey into Africa and pointing up the failure of top-down ''help'' for the needy. Democracy is in desperate need of a bottom up revision; we need managers, not ''leaders''. Great charismatic leaders invite corruption, egopower and greed.The people will prosper and flower if you put power in their hands, not if you tell them what they must do. We can''t afford another bad president.

Why does CBS make it so hard to comment ? Not really want to hear ? The next president should read Paul Theroux''s Dark Star Safari, recounting his journey into Africa and pointing up the failure of top-down ''help'' for the needy. Democracy is in desperate need of a bottom up revision; we need managers, not ''leaders''. Great charismatic leaders invite corruption, egopower and greed.The people will prosper and flower if you put power in their hands, not if you tell them what they must do. We can''t afford another bad president.

[jon_roland-2009]

I would recommend Restoring the Lost Constitution: The Presumption of Liberty, by Randy E. Barnett. It is a good place to start for anyone intending to enforce constitutional compliance. For more on the subject go to http://www.constitution.org