President jokes about birther controversy...President Obama and First Lady Obama were back in Chicago on Wednesday afternoon, to tape an interview with Oprah Winfrey in her TV studio. It was hours after the White House released the long form of the President's birth certificate, in an effort to end questions about his citizenship. The appearance was the first time in Winfrey's 25-year history that a sitting President and First Lady appeared together on the show, and came as the chat legend is ending her long run. (Above: The President and First Lady with Oprah during the taping)
When Winfrey queried the President about the birth certificate controversy, he joked, "Can I just say I was there, so I knew--that --I knew I had been born."
"I remembered it," the President said, to chuckles from his wife and Winfrey.
The show will be broadcast on May 2, and two short transcript clips from the interview were pre-released (see below). The White House also released a special collection of recipes for Winfrey's website, Oprah.com. (Above: The First Couple as they arrive onstage)Outgoing Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, brother of the President's Chief of Staff, sat in the front row during the taping. After, President Obama presented him with a a framed map of Chicago from 1834, which he said was a survey done by James Thompson in 1830, from the National Archives and Records Administration.
The President noted that this would be the last time he is in Chicago before Daley leaves office on May 4. He'll be replaced by the President's former Chief of Staff, Mayor-Elect Rahm Emanuel.
“You have done an extraordinary job and this city has been transformed because of your leadership,” President Obama told Daley, and lauded him for specific accomplishments and his success in “bringing this city together.”
He read aloud the note he had written in his gift, which was in the frame below the map.
“Mayor Richard Daley- Thank you for making a great American city a great world city,” President Obama read.
Winfrey show clip transcripts:
Clip 1:
OPRAH: And before you came today you had a press conference.
PRES. OBAMA: I did.
OPRAH: By the time this airs, it will be all over the world that you outed the birth certificate. You let us see the birth certificate. (Laughter.)
MRS. OBAMA: He was born here.
OPRAH: Yes. And it's confirmed again that you are born --
PRES. OBAMA: Once again.
OPRAH: -- once again in the United States. Why did -- why did you wait so long, though?
PRES. OBAMA: You know, keep in mind what had happened. This came up about two --
OPRAH: Two and a half years ago.
PRES. OBAMA: Two and a half years ago. And so we called up the folks in Hawaii and the Department of Health.
OPRAH: When it first came up were you thinking, I hope I was born here.
PRES. OBAMA: Can I just say? I was there, so I knew -- (laughter) -- that -- I knew I had been born. I remembered it. (Laughter.)
OPRAH: Of course you did.
OPRAH: And before you came today you had a press conference.
PRES. OBAMA: I did.
OPRAH: By the time this airs, it will be all over the world that you outed the birth certificate. You let us see the birth certificate. (Laughter.)
MRS. OBAMA: He was born here.
OPRAH: Yes. And it's confirmed again that you are born --
PRES. OBAMA: Once again.
OPRAH: -- once again in the United States. Why did -- why did you wait so long, though?
PRES. OBAMA: You know, keep in mind what had happened. This came up about two --
OPRAH: Two and a half years ago.
PRES. OBAMA: Two and a half years ago. And so we called up the folks in Hawaii and the Department of Health.
OPRAH: When it first came up were you thinking, I hope I was born here.
PRES. OBAMA: Can I just say? I was there, so I knew -- (laughter) -- that -- I knew I had been born. I remembered it. (Laughter.)
OPRAH: Of course you did.
Clip 2:
PRES. OBAMA: The bottom line is this, though. Two weeks ago a huge debate was initiated around where our budget needs to go. We've got some serious decisions to make about how do we bring our deficit down and our debt down but do it in a way that preserves what makes America great: Our investments in education. Our investments in infrastructure. Our investments in basic research. Making sure that we've got a strong safety net for our seniors and during the course of this major debate where I gave a big speech and the Republicans voted on their proposal, the biggest news was this birth certificate thing.
OPRAH: The birth certificate.
PRES. OBAMA: And so at that point I said to my team, look, even though this is not usually what the State of Hawaii does. Even though the Republican Governor of Hawaii, the Democratic Governors of Hawaii, all the various officials had confirmed that I was born here, let's ask them for a special dispensation where they will go ahead and provide us with the original to see if we can put this to rest. And my general point is this. We are living in a very serious time. And America has huge potential and opportunity to seize the 21st century. We're only gonna get there, though, if we have a serious conversation about the things that matter to people.
OPRAH: Yeah.
PRES. OBAMA: Jobs and gas prices and how do we bring down the deficit? And how do we deal with all the changes going on around the world? And we can't be distracted by sideshows and, as I said at my press conference, carnival barkers who are going around trying to get attention instead of actually solving the problems -- (applause).
*Top photo by Reuters; second by Harpo Studios
PRES. OBAMA: The bottom line is this, though. Two weeks ago a huge debate was initiated around where our budget needs to go. We've got some serious decisions to make about how do we bring our deficit down and our debt down but do it in a way that preserves what makes America great: Our investments in education. Our investments in infrastructure. Our investments in basic research. Making sure that we've got a strong safety net for our seniors and during the course of this major debate where I gave a big speech and the Republicans voted on their proposal, the biggest news was this birth certificate thing.
OPRAH: The birth certificate.
PRES. OBAMA: And so at that point I said to my team, look, even though this is not usually what the State of Hawaii does. Even though the Republican Governor of Hawaii, the Democratic Governors of Hawaii, all the various officials had confirmed that I was born here, let's ask them for a special dispensation where they will go ahead and provide us with the original to see if we can put this to rest. And my general point is this. We are living in a very serious time. And America has huge potential and opportunity to seize the 21st century. We're only gonna get there, though, if we have a serious conversation about the things that matter to people.
OPRAH: Yeah.
PRES. OBAMA: Jobs and gas prices and how do we bring down the deficit? And how do we deal with all the changes going on around the world? And we can't be distracted by sideshows and, as I said at my press conference, carnival barkers who are going around trying to get attention instead of actually solving the problems -- (applause).
*Top photo by Reuters; second by Harpo Studios
