(Conducted July 7, 2010)

5:23 P.M. EDT

Q    President Barack Obama, shalom, and thank you so much for talking with us today.

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you very much. 

Q    I'd like to actually open up by asking you about hope, which was such a prominent notion
in your campaign and in your presidency.  And how can you convey that concept of hope to
Israelis, who’ve seen so many failed attempts at a peace process?

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, look, it’s always a challenge.  One of the things I used to say during
the campaign but also at the beginning of my presidency is, being hopeful is not the same as
being blindly optimistic.  I think you have to be clear-eyed about the situation. 

And Israelis, rightly, look at the past and have skepticism about what’s possible.  They see
the enmity of neighbors that surround them in a very tough neighborhood.  They see a track
record of attempts at peace where, even when concessions were made, a deal could not be
consummated.  They see rockets fired from Gaza or from areas in Lebanon, and say to themselves
that the hatreds or history are so deep-seated that changed is not possible.

And yet, if you think back to the founding of Israel, there were a lot of people who thought
that that wasn’t possible either.  And if Herzl or Ben-Gurion were looking at Israel today,
they would be astonished at what they saw -- a country that’s vibrant, that is growing
economically at a extraordinary pace, that has overcome not just security challenges but also
has been able to overcome challenges related to geography.  And so that should be a great
source of hope.

Q    Is a peace agreement, in your opinion, it can be reached in the first term of your
presidency?

THE PRESIDENT:  I think so.  I had an excellent meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu.  And I
think that he is somebody who understands that we’ve got a fairly narrow window of
opportunity.  On the Palestinian side, moderates like Abu Mazen and Fayyad are, I think,
willing to make the concessions and engage in negotiations that can result in peace.  But their
time frame in power may be limited if they aren’t able to deliver for their people.

There’s a constant contest between moderates and rejectionists within the Arab world.  And
then there’s the demographic challenges that Israel is going to be facing if it wants to
remain not only a Jewish state but a democratic state.  So you look at all these pressures and
you say to yourself, we probably won’t have a better opportunity than we have right now.  And
that has to be seized.  Now, it’s going to be wrenching.  It’s going to be difficult.

Q    Do you believe Benjamin Netanyahu is the right man?  Do you believe that he can bring
peace?

THE PRESIDENT:  I think that not only is Prime Minister Netanyahu a smart and savvy
politician, but the fact that he is not perceived as a dove in some ways can be helpful in the
sense that any successful peace will have to include the hawks and the doves, on both sides,
and in the same way that Richard Nixon here in the United States was able to go to China
because he had very strong anti-communist credentials, I think Prime Minister Netanyahu may be
very well positioned to bring this about.

And in our conversations yesterday, I had the impression that Prime Minister Netanyahu isn’t
interested in just occupying a space, a position, but he’s interested in being a statesman
and putting his country on a more secure track.

So I hope that opportunity is seized.  But ultimately, one of the things you learn very
quickly, whether you’re President or a Prime Minister, is that your power derives from the
people.  And it goes back to your first question                 -- the Israeli people are
going to have to overcome legitimate skepticism, more than legitimate fears, in order to get a
change that I think will secure Israel for another 60 years.

Q    You know, you met with him on Tuesday and you both said that the meeting was excellent. 
And, you know, perfect photo, an idyllic photo notwithstanding, it wasn’t exactly -- hasn’t
exactly been smooth sailing in your relationship so far.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, some of this has been greatly overstated.  I mean, the last time that
the Prime Minister came here, we had a terrific meeting.  It was so good that it spilled over. 
And the reports then came out that somehow I had snubbed the Prime Minister, when in fact what
had happened was the Prime Minister was interested and eager enough in working out some issues
that he wanted to convene with his team, and then I came back and we had this meeting.  That
--

Q    And the fact that there was no -- there were no briefings, no photo-ops in that meeting,
it doesn’t --

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, all of that fed this impression that somehow there were more strains
than there were. 

Now, I don't want to be disingenuous.  There have been differences.  I think that our view on
settlements, for example, is consistent with all previous U.S. administrations.  But the fact
of the matter is, is that that view was always voiced not in the spirit of trying to undermine
Israel’s security, but to strengthen it -- because we believe strongly that if we can achieve
calm on the ground, that will help in the negotiations that lead to peace.  And in fact, the
moratorium that’s been in place I think has been conducive to us rebuilding trust on all
sides.  And as a consequence, I’m more optimistic about the ability to get into direct
talks.

Q    Will you, by the way, extend -- request that Israel extends that settlement freeze after
September?

THE PRESIDENT:  You know, what I want is for us to get into direct talks.  As I said
yesterday, I think that if you have direct talks between Abu Mazen, Netanyahu, their teams,
that builds trust.  And trust then allows for both sides to not be so jumpy or paranoid about
every single move that’s being made, whether it’s related to Jerusalem or any of the other
issues that have to be dealt with, because people feel as if there’s a forum in which
conflicts can get resolved.  And the problem, what we've had over the last several years is
just a constant erosion of trust that has been counter productive.
Q    Now, I must ask you this, Mr. President, there are people in Israel who are anxious about
you --
THE PRESIDENT:  Right. 
Q    -- and who -- you know, I'm quoting their sentiments -- feel like you don't have a
special connection to Israel.  How do you respond to that?
THE PRESIDENT:  Well, it's interesting -- this is the thing that actually surfaced even before
I was elected President, in some of the talk that was circulating within the Jewish American
community.  Ironically, I've got a Chief of Staff named Rahm Israel Emmanuel.  My top political
advisor is somebody who is a descendent of Holocaust survivors.  My closeness to the Jewish
American community was probably what propelled me to the U.S. Senate.  
And my not just knowledge but sympathy and identification with the Jewish experience is rooted
in part because of the historic connection between the African American freedom movement here
in the United States and the civil rights efforts of Jewish Americans and some of the same
impulses that led to the creation of Israel.
And so I think what this arises from -- some of it may just be the fact that my middle name is
Hussein, and that creates suspicion.  Some of it may have to do with the fact that I have
actively reached out to the Muslim community, and I think that sometimes, particularly in the
Middle East, there's the feeling of the friend of my enemy must be my enemy.  And the truth of
the matter is, is that my outreach to the Muslim community is designed precisely to reduce the
antagonism and the dangers posed by a hostile Muslim world to Israel and to the West.
Q    So that fear, the tangible fear that some Israelis have that their best ally in the world
might abandon them is --
THE PRESIDENT:  Well, it's pretty hard to square with the fact that not only have I in every
speech that I've ever given talked about the unbreakable bond to Israel, not only did I
describe that special relationship and condemn those who would try to drive a rift between us
in Cairo in front of a Muslim audience, but if you look at our actions -- and Prime Minister
Netanyahu will confirm this, and even critics I think will have to confirm that the United
States under my administration has provided more security assistance to Israel than any
administration in history.  And we’ve got greater security cooperation between our two
countries than at any time in our history.  And the single most important threat to Israel --
Iran, and its potential possession of a nuclear weapon -- has been my number one foreign policy
priority over the course of the last 18 months.

So it’s hard to, I think, look at that track record and look at my public statements and in
any way think that my passions for Israel’s survival, its security, and its people are in any
way diminished.

Q    You mentioned Iran, and obviously you instituted tough sanctions against Iran.  You said
that in the meeting with Netanyahu.  How long are you going to give the Iranian President, and
what are you willing to do if he continues with his nuclear program?

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, what I’ve said consistently is, is that it is unacceptable for Iran to
possess a nuclear weapon, that we’re going to do everything we can to prevent that from
happening.  What I’ve also tried to do is build an international consensus so that Iran
can’t somehow play a victim, can’t suggest somehow that they’re being singled out by the
West.  They are the only country that has not been able to convince the International Atomic
Energy Agency that they are pursuing nuclear power for peaceful means.  It’s not hard to do,
but they haven’t been able to do it because all indicators are that they are in fact pursuing
a nuclear weapon.

So we just pursued the toughest sanctions that have ever been applied against the Iranian
government.  We followed those up with U.S. sanctions that are going to be tough.  Allies and
partners are following up with those sanctions.  We want to continually ratchet up the costs of
them pursuing this nuclear program.

Now, will that work?  We don’t know.  And we are going to continue to keep the door open for
a diplomatic resolution of this challenge.  But I assure you that I have not taken options off
the table.

Q    Are you concerned that Prime Minister Netanyahu might try unilaterally to attack Iran?

THE PRESIDENT:  You know what, I think that the relationship that -- the U.S. and Israel is
sufficiently strong and that neither of us try to surprise each other but we try to coordinate
on issues of mutual concern.  And that approach is one that I think Prime Minister Netanyahu is
committed to.

Q    You know I must ask you -- I was -- forgive me for getting nostalgic -- I was here --
well, not here -- in Chicago the night of the election.  And I remember seeing that great mass
of people and looking at them and looking at you, and thinking, there is no man on Earth that
is capable of living up to those expectations.  (Laughter.)    Do you feel that burden every
day?

THE PRESIDENT:  Oh, absolutely.  Look, our campaign I think became a repository for a lot of
hopes and a lot of dreams -- and I think that’s a good thing.  But we understood that
governance is different from campaigning.  It’s hard.  It’s complicated.  It involves
making choices, some of them not very attractive choices, and that at any given stage there are
going to be some people who are disappointed. 

But what keeps me hopeful is not any oversized view of my own capabilities; what keeps me
hopeful is that the more I meet people here in this country, the more I meet people abroad, the
more convinced I am that there’s a common humanity, a common set of aspirations that people
have for their children.  I think there’s a core decency to people that sometimes history,
institutions, lack of opportunity prevent from being realized, and that the general trajectory
of history is in a positive direction.

But it takes time.  And so my job is to do my small part to move the ball forward.  One of my
favorite phrases is from Martin Luther King, who said, “The arc of the moral universe is
long, but it bends towards justice.”  And I believe that.  And I think that that's consummate
with Jewish traditions, that sense that if we are working hard, if we apply the principles of
Tikkun and repairing the world, that it’s possible for us not to create a perfect world, but
one that's a little more just, a little more fair, a little better for our children.  I
continue to believe that.

Q    My final question, Mr. President.  Much has been made about, obviously, your victory and
being the first African American President.  Can I ask you to share with us that moment, where
the enormity of the historic significance sort of hit you?

THE PRESIDENT:  I don't think it still has hit me yet.

Q    Really?

THE PRESIDENT:  We were just talking about how you broke some ground as a woman anchor, and
I'm sure that’s not what you think about every day; you think about, can I get this story
done?  Am I performing in a way that meets my standards?

And that's how you feel when you're in the presidency.  I think you have a lot of
responsibilities and a lot of concerns, and each day you are just trying to make sure that you
are, A, doing the best you can; B, making sure that you're making decisions for the right
reason.

And I do think that there have been moments in the presidency when I'm making a decision about
deploying young men and women into the battlefield, or we're making very consequential
decisions about the world economy, where the answers are not always a hundred percent obvious,
and you're making judgment calls -- and it’s during those moments where you are reminded that
you can't behave like a politician.  You can't put your finger out to the wind, you can't base
your actions on polls.  You have to make a decision on what you think is right, and then let
history judge how you did.

Q    Can you tell us what is the thing you miss most about your life before the presidency?

THE PRESIDENT:  Taking walks.  There is a value to anonymity in terms of just being able to
wander around, sit on a park bench, take your kids to get ice cream without having Secret
Service and helicopters over you.  That part of this life I'll never get used to.  In fact, I
remember when I first visited Jerusalem, I could wander through the Old City and haggle for
some gifts to bring back to Michelle, or stand at the Wailing Wall, and people didn’t know
who I was.  And that is a profound pleasure that is very hard to experience now.

The last time -- the second time I went to the Wailing Wall, I put my prayer -- and somebody
pulled it out, and the next thing I know it was printed in the newspaper.  (Laughter.)  And
that I think was --

Q    We have to do our job.  (Laughter.) 

THE PRESIDENT: -- that was a pretty good metaphor for the changes that you experience as time
goes on.

Q    Indeed a change.  Thank you so much, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  I enjoyed it.  Take care.

END
5:45 P.M. EDT