Bob Schieffer Discussses His Interview With Barack Obama That Imus Did Not Watch

Proving that honesty is maybe sometimes the best policy, Imus confessed to Bob Schieffer, host of CBS's Face The Nation, that he had not watched yesterday's edition of the show where Schieffer interviewed President Barack Obama. In fact, no member of the Imus in the Morning staff watched it.

"I was taking kids to the airport, that's an all day deal," Imus said, referring to the first go-round of kids at the Imus Ranch. "Charles's TV was repossessed. Bernie was locked out of the house. It was Lou's birthday and he was still drunk."

Said Schieffer, laughing, "You don't have to bring a note from the teacher!"

Schieffer believes that every president has a moment when "it really sinks in" what the awesome responsibilities of the office are, and that Obama's arrived last week.

"I can't remember interviewing a President when there were more serious and different issues on his plate at one time," said Schieffer, who has spoken with nine Presidents.

Schieffer had called Afghanistan "Barack Obama's war," but Obama had corrected him, saying it was "America's war." He told Schieffer his goal is not necessarily to install a Western democracy in Afghanistan; instead, he aims to eradicate Al-Qaeda.

"They believe the same people are still trying to work on plots to do something again like 9-11," Schieffer said. "If he's right about that, then this is the right decision for him."

To Imus, a more aggressive plan in Afghanistan, where the terrain is so difficult, does not seem like a great idea. "Al-Qaeda is all over the world!" he exclaimed.

Obama owned up to the difficult task ahead. "He said, 'If this were easy, somebody would have already done it,'" Schieffer said, adding that the President was on television nearly every single day last week, from his 60 Minutes interview on the economy on Sunday, to outlining his Afghanistan strategy on Friday. "This was a major week in the Obama presidency, and a major week in the history of this country."

Asked how Obama compares to the other Presidents he's interviewed, Schieffer remarked on his communication skills. "I haven't seen anybody really trip him up," he added.

The President did not tell Schieffer that he was going to essentially force Rick Wagoner, the CEO of General Motors, to resign, but he emphasized sending the right message out to the rest of the country.

"He's doing everything he can to keep that huge industry from going down," Schieffer said, referring to the automakers. "Most of this is symbolic, but sometimes symbolism is very important."

Having called Imus right after an appearance on The Early Show, Imus wondered whether the host of that program had admitted not watching Face The Nation.

"I love you because you're a candid man who tells the truth, Mr. Imus!" Schieffer proclaimed.

Let's not get carried away, Bob.

-Julie Kanfer