President Barack Obama graces the May issue of Rolling Stone Magazine in a navy presidential tailored suit and a chevron tie half-propped on a desk looking the part as he opens up with the mag about driving points as of late from his plan of actions for getting re-elected, the Republican Party, to the conundrum of racism since being in office.
While the 44th President of the high office spoke head-on about hefty issues, he did offer commentary on what it was like to sing Al Green, but this go-round he left out any digs against Kanye West (thank goodness ).
Here are some excerpts from the interview:
On what he needs to do, in order to be re-elected:
“Now, the burden on me is going to be to describe for the American people how the progress we’ve made over the past three years, if sustained, will actually lead to the kind of economic security that they’re looking for. There’s understandable skepticism, because things are still tough out there. You still have an unemployment rate that’s way too high, you have folks whose homes are underwater because the housing bubble burst, people are still feeling the pinch from high gas prices. The fact of the matter is that times are still tough for too many people, and the recovery is still not as robust as we’d like, and that’s what will make it a close election. It’s not because the other side has a particularly persuasive theory in terms of how they’re going to move this country forward.”
On the Republican Party:
“Frankly, I know that there are good, decent Republicans on Capitol Hill who, in a different environment, would welcome the capacity to work with me. But right now, in an atmosphere in which folks like Rush Limbaugh and Grover Norquist are defining what it means to be a true conservative, they are lying low. My hope is that after this next election, they’ll feel a little more liberated to go out and say, “Let’s redirect the Republican Party back to those traditions in which a Dwight Eisenhower can build an interstate highway system.”
On if racism has gone away:
“Look, race has been one of the fault lines in American culture and American politics from the start. I never bought into the notion that by electing me, somehow we were entering into a post-racial period. On the other hand, I’ve seen in my own lifetime how racial attitudes have changed and improved, and anybody who suggests that they haven’t isn’t paying attention or is trying to make a rhetorical point. Because we all see it every day, and me being in this Oval Office is a testimony to changes that have been taking place.
On singing Al Green at the Apollo Theater:
“I can sing. I wasn’t worried about being able to hit those notes… Everywhere I go now, somebody wants me to sing. My whole point is that the fewer the performances, the higher the ticket price, so you don’t want to overdo it.”
You can check the President’s full interview in Rolling Stone’ May issue out today.
Meanwhile, President Obama is being criticized by Jon Stewart for his Jimmy Fallon Show appearance on Tuesday when he “Slow Jam The News.”
Stewart, who hosts Comedy Central, dubbed the late-night singing as un-presidential adding, “Somebody’s got to be an adult around here!” “Mr. President, you’re the president. You don’t have to do this s— anymore.”
Do you think Stewart has a point or is the President just having fun?
