Obama to press corps: be skeptics not sycophants, ‘America needs you’
In his final press conference as president on Wednesday, Barack Obama congratulated the White House Press Corps for not being “sycophants” during his administration, but acting as “skeptics” whose reporting “keeps us honest.”
“I have enjoyed working with all of you. That does not, of course, mean that I’ve enjoyed every story that you have filed, but that’s the point of this relationship. You’re not supposed to be sycophants, you’re supposed to be skeptics, you’re supposed to ask me tough questions. You’re not supposed to be complementary, but you’re supposed to cast a critical eye on folks who hold enormous power and make sure that we are accountable to the people who sent us here, and you have done that.” (Emphasis added, The Dispatch)
On the possibility of Donald Trump’s administration moving the press briefing room out of the White House, the current president remarked: “And having you in this building has made this place work better. It keeps us honest. It makes us work harder. You have made us think about how we are doing what we do and whether or not we’re able to deliver on what’s been requested by our constituents.”
President Barack Obama makes a point during a meeting with senior staff in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, May 18, 2016. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Newsbusters claims Obama received a continuous stream of fawning and sycophantic media coverage leading up to and throughout his presidency.
Obama told the group of journalists: “America needs you and our democracy needs you.”
Back to Trump: “We need you to establish a baseline of facts and evidence that we can use as a starting point for the kind of reasoned and informed debates that ultimately lead to progress. And so my hope is, is that you will continue with the same tenacity that you showed us to do the hard work of getting to the bottom of stories and getting them right and to push those of us in power to be the best version of ourselves.”
Obama concluded his statement: “I’m looking forward to being an active consumer of your work rather than always the subject of it. I want to thank you all for your extraordinary service to our democracy and with that I will take some questions.”
President Barack Obama concludes a National Security Council meeting in the Situation Room of the White House in advance of his trip to Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and Germany, April 19, 2016. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
