President's Presser: The Highlights

From today: THE PRESIDENT: You're trying to get me to be the pundit again. Look, you all figure that out. Q But first of all, are you suggesting, or are you worried that, in fact, Medvedev is a puppet for Vladimir Putin? And -- THE PRESIDENT: No, I wouldn't say that. That's your conclusion, not mine. Yes, Bill. Q But -- THE PRESIDENT: No, next turn. Q But the question about -- THE PRESIDENT: Nice try. (Laughter.) Q Mr. President -- THE PRESIDENT: You obviously haven't been here long. John, where have you been, Jonathan? (Laughter.) Q Across the river. THE PRESIDENT: Yes, okay, yes. Welcome to the other side. (Laughter.) Read the rest after the jump... Q Not yet. But just given all the concerns about the economy that people have, do you feel like you could win in a state like Ohio if you were running again for President? THE PRESIDENT: Landslide. (Laughter) Q Mr. President, thank you. I want to bring you back to Senator Obama's comment on Iraq. Do you believe that his comment was naive? THE PRESIDENT: I believe Senator Obama better stay focused on his campaign with Senator Clinton, neither of whom has secured their party's nominee yet -- nomination yet. And my party's nomination hasn't been decided yet either. And so there will be ample time to discuss whoever their candidate -- the positions of whoever their candidate is. Nice try, Sheryl. Would you like to try another tact, another question? Q Well, you said it was an interesting comment. Okay, I'll follow on it. About Iraq, you have said in the past -- (laughter) -- that you want to leave a sustainable policy -- THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Q Wait a minute -- Q I'd like to have another question. THE PRESIDENT: Okay. Q You want to leave your -- THE PRESIDENT: Well, it was just -- give her -- should we vote on whether she gets another question? (Laughter.) Q Can I follow up on that, sir? THE PRESIDENT: Maybe. Q The -- THE PRESIDENT: I guess you are -- I haven't said yes. (Laughter.) Q Thank you, sir. Now that you've found a location for your presidential library, you've got to find the money to build it. Reports indicate that you may be trying to collect as much as $200 million. Is that figure accurate? Do you believe it's important for the American people to know who is giving that kind of money to their President? Will you disclose the contributions as they come in? And will you place any restriction on who gives money and how much they can give? THE PRESIDENT: No, yes, no, yes. (Laughter.) Next question. (Laughter.) I haven't -- phew, man. You obviously haven't asked a question in a long time. It was like, you know, -- one, I haven't seen the final budget. Two, as Donnie Evans said, who is the chairman of the foundation, we'll look at the disclosure requirements and make a decision. You know, here's -- there's a lot of people -- or some people; I shouldn't say "a lot" -- some people who like to give and don't particularly want their names disclosed, whether it be for this foundation or any other foundation. And so we'll take that into consideration. Where does the people's right to know this fit into all that? THE PRESIDENT: We're weighing, taking a look, taking consideration, giving it a serious consideration. Nice try, though. Q Sir, do you think Hillary Clinton will be the nominee? THE PRESIDENT: Pardon me? Q You still think Hillary Clinton will be the nominee? THE PRESIDENT: I'm not talking about politics. Q You said that before, though -- THE PRESIDENT: Trying to get me to be pundit-in-chief. Q Are they qualified to be commander-in-chief? THE PRESIDENT: I appreciate you doing that. Jackson -- Jackson, nice to see you. (Laughter.) Glad to see you back. (Laughter.)

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President's Presser: The Highlights

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