Barack Obama On The Road Ahead

Katie Couric Interviews The Presumptive Democratic Nominee

(CBS)  One day after Barack Obama made history by announcing he'd secured enough delegates to be the Democratic nominee for president, CBS News anchor Katie Couric talks with the Illinois senator about his plans to unite the party … and his strategy to take on Republican nominee John McCain.

What follows is a partial transcript of the interview.

---

Couric In our latest poll, 59 percent of Democratic primary voters, including 46 percent of your voters, think … you should select Sen. Clinton to be your running mate. So, in the spirit of Kennedy picking Johnson, and Reagan choosing Bush, why not pick Sen. Clinton? And please don't tell me it's premature to ask that question.

Obama: Well, it's not premature to ask. It's premature to answer (laughter), because … literally got the nomination last night. So we're gonna go through a process. We've got a committee that's gonna go through all the names. You know, the truth is that I haven't had enough time to think through … how we want to approach … the selection process entirely.

But it's gonna be deliberate. I this is an important decision. It's not one that I take lightly.

It's not one that you want to make in the heat of the moment right after you got out of a nomination. So we're gonna take our time. Sen. Clinton would be on anybody's short list, obviously.

Couric: So you're not ruling her out.

Obama: No. But what I'm saying … is that we're gonna go through a deliberate process. And think this thing through.

Couric: As you know, a lot of it is about chemistry. So, just now, sitting here, talking about it, do you think you're chemically compatible?

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To view the entire interview, click on the player below:






To see the CBS Evening News piece, click below:





Couric appeared on The Early Show and introduced a condensed version of the interview. She then talked with Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith about what she took from her interview of Obama.

To see that segment, click on the player below:

[cindymoose]

Has CBS decided that this interview should play like an episode of "The Bachelor"? While Katie was giggling and blushing, she forgot to ask Senator Obama if he wanted to make out with Senator Clinton...no wonder people are so stupid about things that actually matter.

[randynason]

Has CBS decided that this interview should play like an episode of "The Bachelor"?
Posted by cindymoose

Like NBC before them, CBS will play this thing out for ratings and sensationalism, portraying journalism more like a soap opera than news. It''s the "American way" and the reason the rest of the world look upon us with disgust.

[sgtrds-e4]

The road ahead is 8 solid years of a great presidency for Barack and America and the world!

[nanging3]

ArchBishop come on do your job%u2026enough is enough.. Pfleger can always get a job at TUCC, with the other Racist clowns%u2026

www.thepetitionsite.com/1/removable-of-father-michael-pfleger

Please sign the petition we want %u201CFather%u201D Pfleger gone permanently !!

He has been suspended for a couple of weeks, they will probably try to sneak him back in under the radar%u2026
We want him shipped to Kenya or defrocked..I am sure he can get a job at TUCC, with the other radical, racist, marxist..
The word on the streets of Chicago is the ArchBishop is afraid of PFLEGER !

Maybe that is why the church has such a poor reputation of disciplining it%u2019s out of line priest%u2026

[larrymiz137]

I have seen the democrats do some real stupid things over the last 50 yrs. but this beats them all.obama got himself elected into the senate ,because he,s a sneaky little ***''s goes to a anti American church for 20 yrs. dose drugs hangs out with gay,s( I could go on all night , but you get the picture )And the stupid democrats say yea he,s are kind of man make him our president.

[jeepmanjr]

Obama ain''t gonna get elected. Paaallleeeeeze!! How does this sound: President Obama. Barack Hussein Obama, President of the United States. The Dems don''t have a pot to **** in or a window to throw it out of. All they''re doing is ensuring we will have another Republican president. Don''t argue - it''s true. The United States is not ready for a black Muslim for president. Hide and see....

[nanging3]

Pfleger is temporarily suspended%u2026not good enough%u2026 please click on my name in blue to sign and comment to the ArchBishop%u2026we want him permanently gone%u2026his parishioners say he has been preaching %u201CBlack Theology%u201D from the catholic church pulpit, entrusted to him since 1981.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/
1/removable-of-father-michael-pfleger


The whole world is watching !

[nanging3]

Poor Obama he has to visit all "57" states again !

[brianbwb-2009]

"How does this sound: President Obama. Barack Hussein Obama, President of the United States." Posted by jeepmanjr

Sounds good to me, and since Mr. Obama has a 6 point lead, I''d say that at this point it sounds good to a lot of others also.

Yep, sounds much better than "war until at least 2013" (down from 100 years), and "more trickle down economics".

Any other consideration is pure BS.

[evderivas]

After all the preacher scandals, some still think Obama is Muslim. There should be an IQ test to qualify to vote.

[feelfree4u]

All of the commenters here look like centrists.

[trishab4]

I think that Barack will be a great leader. He''ll beat easily JohnMcChainey. He is very thoughtful and he''ll be a great politician. He showed a big political independance with strong attachement to a united Democratic Party roots. All his interview was consistent with what he said previously, showing he''s a great politician, not diverging from previous commitment, without any hesitation, translating into really meaning what he said, since it''s becoming a second nature.

-Solid 4-8 years ahead with Obama as president, providing stability, recovery and wealth to the Nation.

[gocubs58]

jeepmanjr - You think Obama is Muslim?? Do you believe everything you read online? I bet you signed on right away when Bill Gates sent the email stating that he would pay $$ for everyone you forwarded it to.....

[gocubs58]

larrymiz137 - you are a racist idiot.

[gocubs58]

cindymoose - While I am an Obama supporter, I do have to agree with you how this plays out on the news...I really don''t think she asked him one important question.

[lloydbest1]

"The United States is not ready for a black Muslim for president. Hide and see...." Posted by jeepmanjr at 11:29 PM : Jun 04, 2008

Let''s get one thing squared away, right now, so there will be no confusion in the next five months of what I expect will be the dirtiest presidential campaign this planet has ever seen......
Barak Hussein Obama is not now, and has never been, a Muslim. Let me repeat that for the slow learners...
Obama is NOT a Muslim!
It should go without saying that even if Obama were a member of the Islamic faith, that by itself should no more stop me from voting for him than Mitt Romney''s LDS connections should stop a republican from voting for him.
I should also assure jeepmanjr this is no flame attempt, either. I am picking on him (her?) only because this post is the first on this thread that brings up Obama''s supposed Muslim beliefs. I merely wish to correct a false assumption.

[renonv5]

LloydBest1

Let''s get one thing squared right now, a child of a Muslim father is Muslim. Period. He happens to be the worst kind of Muslim, because he renounced his birthright.

[renonv5]

Katie Couric, that was pretty lame.

[obamaslady]

For Christ sake, Obama is NOT A MUSLIM! You do NOT HAVE ANY FACTS and you refuse to RESEARCH your information! So shut the phucke up! Until you can PROVE your position, stop broadcasting your LIES. Barack Hussein Obama is NOT A MUSLIM! There are a lot of American Muslims in our country and there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG WITH BEING MUSLIM if that is your religious heritage or it that is your conversion and religion is A PERSON''S CHOICE IF NOT HERITAGE! Stop SPEWING YOUR HATE! You are IMBICILES! Why can''t you GROW UP and act like an ADULT or is it that you are just another ignorant, uneducated, white RACIST? BTW, I am an OLD Latino and Catholic female! Does that mean you have to HATE me too? If so, you have ABSOLUTELY SHOWN YOUR TRUE RACIST SELF, so shut up until you have something intelligent or worthwhile to say.

[obamaslady]

Posted by evderivas at 05:09 AM : Jun 05, 2008

You are ABSOLUTELY RIGHT AND I COULD NOT AGREE MORE!

A REQUIRED EXAM for ALL voters should BE MANDATORY because some people ''here'' are truly IGNORANT and should NEVER BE ALLOWED to vote. Bet they can''t even tell you what the issues are for eithr Obama or McSame!

[rodbarker60]

All the religions of the world are man seeking God, only Christianity consists of God seeking man. He created us, he should know how HIS plan works.

[lloydbest1]

"LloydBest1

Let''''s get one thing squared right now, a child of a Muslim father is Muslim. Period. He happens to be the worst kind of Muslim, because he renounced his birthright." Posted by renonv5 at 09:34 AM : Jun 05, 2008

Nope, Ain''t buyin'' it.
That analysis is merely a matter of opinion. Everybody''s got one. Even if the quran fully backs up your assertion (not sure that it does), a child of a Muslim father or mother is not anything until he or she comes of age. Religion is a matter of choice, not birth. Obama''s parentage is irrelevant to his own faith. And that is all Islam is; merely a faith, It is not a culture or a lifestyle or a birthmark any more than Christianity is. There are, of course, many cases where son follows father, where the child IS "the father of the man". This doesn''t happen to be one of them.

[jack3213]

Obama takes great care to conceal the fact that he is a Muslim.

He is quick to point out that, "He was once a Muslim, but that he also attended Catholic school." Obama''''s political handlers are attempting to make it appear that Obama''''s introduction to Islam came via his father, and that this influence was temporary at best. In reality, the senior Obama returned to Kenya soon after the divorce, and never again had any direct influence over his son''''s education. Lolo Soetoro, the second husband of Obama''''s mother, Ann Dunham, introduced his stepson to Islam. Obama was enrolled in a Wahabi school in Jakarta. Wahabism is the RADICAL teaching that is followed by the Muslim terrorists who are now waging Jihad against the western world. The terrorists that crashed into the Twin Towers were once all enrolled in the study of Wahabism..just as Obama was!!

Since it is politically expedient to be a CHRISTIAN when seeking major public office in the United States, Barack Hussein Obama has joined the United Church of Christ in an attempt to downplay his Muslim background.

[renonv5]

Nope, Ain''''t buyin'''' it.
That analysis is merely a matter of opinion. Everybody''''s got one. lloydbest1

Not just an opinion. Google obama/muslim and read the article Barack Obama/Muslim apostate, by Shireen K Burki, adjunct professor of political science. It is just a little scary.

[parachutepol]

Look at the end of the day. It''s still about the color of his skin. Right! Look America it''s time for a change. Sen. Obams is a fine young man, who wants the best for you and me. Give him the respect you would give a white person. That all, be fair.

[vanesa4]

Obama''s road ahead will prove to be very rewarding. I agree with the comentators who said that "the more voters get to know Obama, the better they like him". Exactly the opposite is true of Hillary: the more we got to know her, the less we liked her! What a relief that she is at long last conceding! She used to say "it''s not over until it''s over", but even in that she did not deliver! Apparently she meant "it''s not over until Hillary says it''s over"...

[jack3213]

HOW TO BE REAL DEMOCRAT

You have to believe that the only reason socialism hasn''t worked anywhere it''s been tried is because the right people haven''''t been in charge.

You have to believe conservatives telling the truth belong in jail, but a liar and a *** offender belongs in the White House.

You have to believe that businesses create oppression and governments create prosperity.

You have to believe the NRA is bad because it supports certain parts of the Constitution, while the ACLU is good because it supports certain parts of the Constitution.

You have to believe that taxes are too low, but ATM fees are too high.

[nanging3]

We can make one change and that is getting Father Pfleger removed, Please sign and pass it on, if you haven%u2019t already.
Suspending him is not enough%u2026The whole world is watching the archbishop in Chicago and his handling of Pfleger.
He has allowed Pfleger to desecrate the pulpit preaching racial hatred and %u201CBlack Theology%u201D and even allowing Nation of Islam, anti-semitic and anti-white Farrahkan to spew his hate from the catholic church pulpit.
ENOUGH !!!! Archbishop !!

www.thepetitionsite.com/1/removable-of-father-michael-pfleger

[nanging3]

Poor Obama he must have failed geography..according to him he has 57 states to visit...

I will NEVER VOTE FOR ANY TICKET WITH OBAMA ON IT !

[nanging3]

From Audacity of Hope: "I will stand with the Muslims should
the political winds shift in an ugly direction."


Our enemies are dancing in the streets..
they are taking over from the inside.. you stupid Obama supporters..

[nanging3]

From Dreams of My Father : "I found a solace in nursing a
pervasive sense of grievance and animosity against my mothers race."
Barack Obama

His mother died ALONE of cancer.

[nanging3]

We can make one change and that is getting Father Pfleger removed, Please sign and pass it on, if you haven%u2019t already.
Suspending him is not enough%u2026The whole world is watching the archbishop in Chicago and his handling of Pfleger.
He has allowed Pfleger to desecrate the pulpit preaching racial hatred and %u201CBlack Theology%u201D and even allowing Nation of Islam, anti-semitic and anti-white Farrahkan to spew his hate from the catholic church pulpit.
ENOUGH !!!! Archbishop !!

www.thepetitionsite.com/1/removable-of-father-michael-pfleger

[i_m_an_eagle]

I am a democrat and nonracial. I have been cheering Obama on and am wholeheartedly glad he won the nomination. I believe we will see a better America with him in office. McCain or whatever his name is, is too old for the position as president of the United States. And just think, with Obama as president, noone can scream discrimination any longer. Go Obama!

[elitewoman]

Katie Couric was acting like a school girl in her interview with Obama. The giggles made her look unprofessional and biased. To save face it should have been scraped. It''s never been a secret, she is a Obama supporter. This "news story" is not what America expects from CBS. Get rid of her. I''m sure there are plenty of anchors who could have done a better job of being unbiased.

[tiredofobama]

Men have obcessed enough about being president of the United States to have a few of them assassinated. They''ve obcessed over being president since they were children. They competed in ruthless backbiting campaigns scandalizing each other, cheating on their campaign funding and their wives, makeing cigar smoking back room deals, held terrible debates yelling at each other, then kissing each other''s behind when they hate each other, and all the while pissing on their constituents, just to get the almighty dollar!

Now a successful political woman wants to be president and she is dubbed a psycho, back stabbing b****ch by the group of bloated old bigots who got where they are by feeding their ego''s that they know what''s best for this country! And look what a mell of hess we''re in right now because of some bloated ego, manifest destiny spewing back room dealing arrogant smart a/s/s inexperienced CRACKHEAD just like Obama!

And you roboturkeys and the DNC expect me to vote for this inexperienced overbloated goofball just like BUSH because they made back room deals to get him nominated, like I OWE them my vote?

Whatta laugh!

[noloyalisti]

When the right wing wackos run out of any material as they have, all they can do is try to tear people down. Well the Greasy Old Pervert party and it''s supporter will NOT get away with it again. They will not be able to swiftboat a good, intelligent, wise and ethical man like President Obama.

Grow up and join the party as we take back our constitution and government from the war criminal Grand Oil Party.

[craigh9]

Now that Obama is the presumptive nominee I would LOVE to see him completely ignore ABC in general and specifically Charles Gibson and George Stephanopolous to pay them back for the ridiculous hatchet job they tried to do to his campaign.
Perhaps by leaving them on the outside looking in this presidential election they might actually get back to reporting the news versus creating it in the future.

[boycot-china]

To DANA417 and the rest of the True Color Democrats. I am a loyal Democrat who has 7 voting family members. We campaigned energetically for Senator Clinton, but now we want to do the same for Senator Obama, but calling us %u201CYou angry Dems who vote McCain are Morons%u201D does not heal but promote Senator Obama%u2019s true colors of racism and division. My wife and I went down to our local Pierce County party headquarters two days ago and offered to help in anyway we could. WE WERE TURNED AWAY AND TOLD THAT THEY DIDN%u2019T NEED ANY FORMER CLINTON HELP AND THEY TOOK OUR TELEPHONE NUMBER. I WATCHED THE LADY THROW OUR NUMBER IN THE TRASH! I experienced it because I was there! Is that the kind of healing that you Obama elitists want?

[cwarnut]

After reading some of the negative comments about Barack Obama one can become very discouraged with Americans and people in general. But I for one am excited, because for a long time this country has not had such an intelligent, rational, and forward looking candidate for President. Although he does represent the opinions of issues I agree with, it is the character of this man that is most important. His wanting to work with ALL people, regardless of color, creed, ethnicity or beliefs; is something we have not seen since the days of Abraham Lincoln!!!