Cheney to China: The Obama interview
(CNN) — As his popularity has dropped to 45%, the lowest in a year and a half, President Barack Obama talked with PBS’ Charlie Rose.
The president covered a world of issues, including how some critics now liken him to a particular Republican adversary. Here are his thoughts on seven of the topics he discussed on Monday evening.
Obama as the new Dick Cheney?
When asked if there is enough transparency in how government seeks secret court orders to obtain phone records, Obama abruptly brought up former Vice President Dick Cheney, who served under President George W. Bush.
“Some people say well, Obama was this raving liberal before, now he’s Dick Cheney. Dick Cheney sometimes says, ‘Yes, you know, he took it all, lock stock and barrel,’” Obama said, referring to the Bush-Cheney security agenda.
Obama bristles at suggestion he has shifted on snooping
“My concern has always been not that we shouldn’t do intelligence gathering to prevent terrorism but rather are we setting up a system of checks and balances?” Obama added.
His administration has advanced checks on security initiatives, he said. “You know, what amuses me is now folks on the right who were fine when it was a Republican president but now Obama’s coming in with a black helicopter,” Obama added.
Obama asserted that the process of securing secret rulings from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act court is transparent and is examined by the U.S. Justice Department and Congress.
On surveillance
In the wake of revelations that his administration secured a secret court order to obtain Verizon phone logs, the president assured Americans that the National Security Agency isn’t listening to phone calls or targeting personal e-mails — unless the government has a specific court order to do so.
Obama’s job is to balance national security and personal freedom.
“To say there’s a trade-off doesn’t mean somehow that we’ve abandoned freedom. I don’t think anybody says we’re no longer free because we have checkpoints at airports,” Obama said.
“My job is both to protect the American people and to protect the American way of life, which includes our privacy. And so every program that we engage in, what I’ve said is, let’s examine and make sure that we’re making the right tradeoffs,” Obama added.
His top priorities
National security is Obama’s No. 1 priority, he said, but he quickly added he hasn’t forgotten you — the working person now reeling in the recession’s aftermath and struggling to find or keep a job.
That’s why he became president in the first place, he said.
“The biggest challenge we face right now, in addition to the ongoing challenge of national security, is having recovered from the worst recession since the Great Depression, having dug our way out, with the economy now growing, jobs being created, auto industry back, stock market back, housing recovering by about 10% in terms of prices,” Obama said, “how do we now go back to the issue that led me to run for president in the first place — which is the fact that the economy is not working for everybody, that we have the structural problems that could lead us to second-rate status if they continue.”
Growing economic inequality and declining wages for middle-class families is occurring in the United States — and “worldwide,” Obama added — because of globalization and technology.
“We’ve got to address that if we are going to continue to be the greatest nation on Earth,” the president said. “And that is the thing that I’m going to be focused on for the remainder of my presidency, along with the basics like making sure nobody blows us up.”
Iran’s new president
Obama noted how the newly elected president of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, is a centrist, which gives Obama optimism that Iran may now want to seriously address its nuclear program, which many feel is being used to eventually build weapons. In response, Iran is now being internationally punished with “the most powerful” economic sanctions ever applied against it, Obama said.
“The Iranian people rebuffed the hardliners and the clerics in the election who were counseling no compromise on anything, anytime, anywhere,” Obama said. “Clearly you have a hunger within Iran to engage with the international community in a more positive way.
U.S. takes ‘wait and see’ stance on Iran’s new president
“Our bottom lines have been, show the international community that you’re abiding by international treaties and obligations, that you’re not developing a nuclear weapon.”
Supporting Syrian opposition
Though his administration has declared that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons in his country’s two-year civil war, and as a result he has pledged military support for the opposition, Obama avoided specifying what kind of military support that will be.
What complicates the matter is how some of the Syrian opposition is affiliated with al Qaeda.
G8 leaders agree on need but not methods to stop Syrian bloodshed
“One of the challenges that we have is that some of the most effective fighters within the opposition have been those who, frankly, are not particularly friendly toward the United States of America. And arming them willy-nilly is not a good recipe for meeting American interests over the long term,” Obama said.
He also spoke of avoiding a sectarian Islamic quagmire between Shiites and Sunnis in Syria.
The United States has learned some hard lessons from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, he said.
“We know what it’s like to rush into a war in the Middle East without having thought it through. And there are elements within the Middle East who see this entirely through the prism of a Shia/Sunni conflict and want the United States to simply take the side of the Sunnis. And that I do not think serves American interests,” Obama said.
“Now on the other side there are folks who say, ‘You know we are so scarred from Iraq, we should have learned our lesson, we should not have anything to do with it.’
“Well I reject that view as well because the fact of the matter is that we’ve got serious interests there and not only humanitarian interests. We can’t have a situation of ongoing chaos in a major country that borders a country like Jordan, which in turn borders Israel. And we have a legitimate need to be engaged and to be involved.”
Meeting with China on alleged hacking
Last week, Obama met with new Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The U.S. president broached the serious allegations of hacking against China.
“You know, when you’re having a conversation like this I don’t think you ever expect a Chinese leader to say, ‘You know what? You’re right. You caught us red-handed. We’re just stealing all your stuff and every day we try to figure out how we can get into Apple,’” Obama said.
‘New model’ for U.S.-China relations
But, he added: “We had a very blunt conversation about cybersecurity” with the Chinese president.
Ben Bernanke on way out?
Asked if he is going to reappoint Ben Bernanke to a third term as Federal Reserve chairman, Obama sidestepped a direct answer, opening the door to speculation that Bernanke’s tenure may be ending.
“He’s already stayed a lot longer than he wanted, or he was supposed to,” Obama said. “He has been an outstanding partner along with the White House in helping us recover much stronger than, for example, our European partners from what could have been an economic crisis of epic proportions.”
Bernanke led the central bank’s response to the global financial collapse that began in fall 2007, keeping interest rates at historic lows and shepherding a massive Fed intervention in the government bond market.
He became chairman in February 2006 as an appointee of President George W. Bush. Obama appointed Bernanke to a second term in 2010. Bernanke’s term expires on January 31, 2014.
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President Obama and Tiger Woods enjoyed a round of golf in Palm Beach, Florida in February this year. The press were left disappointed though, as it was a strictly private affair.
Woods spoke at “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at The Lincoln Memorial” in January 2009 for the president-elect.
In May 2013, the president took on a group of U.S. Senators, also at the Andrews Air Force Base.
Butch Harmon walks the course with Woods at the British Open in 2002. Harmon turned professional in 1965 and won one event on the PGA Tour before becoming a coach, helping Tiger to the first eight of his 14 major wins.
Harmon and his son Claude III working with Adam Scott in 2009. Four years later the Australian won his first major title at the Masters. The Harmons have also helped President Obama refine his swing.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th president of the United States, was one of a number of commander in chiefs to tee up with Claude Harmon Snr.
Former U.S. President Gerald Ford, seen here with Jack Nicklaus, was the first Honorary Chairman of the Presidents Cup in 1994. He also has history with the Harmon family, having played with Claude Snr.
William Taft was the the first president to openly admit to his love of golf, which had previously been depicted as a sport for the rich.
George W. Bush was a common face on the golf course, usually with media in tow.
Mathew Goggin of Australia hits his second shot on the first hole during a continuation of the first round of the 113th U.S. Open at the Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, on Friday, June 14. Rain delayed the round on June 13.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland hits from a bunker on the 15th hole on June 14.
Luke Donald of England walks with caddie John McLaren on the 17th hole on June 14.
Tiger Woods of the United States putts on the 14th hole on June 14.
Jose Maria Olazabal of Spain hits his second shot on the 17th hole on June 14.
England’s Ian Poulter tees off at the second hole during the first round on Thursday, June 13.
Roger Tambellini of the United States hits his second shot from a bunker on the first hole on June 13.
Bill Haas of the United States ponders a putt on the 10th hole on June 13.
Ryan Yip of Canada hits his second shot out of a bunker on the 10th hole on June 13.
On the fourth hole, Aaron Baddeley of Australia tees off on June 13.
Lucas Glover of the United States tees off on the 11th hole on June 13.
The gallery takes in the U.S. Open from the 17th hole at Merion Golf Club on June 13.
Steve Stricker of the United States tees off on the 13th hole on June 13.
Rain begins to fall and play is suspended on June 13.
A man looks out over the 18th hole after play was suspended during a storm on June 13.
People traverse the 18th fairway during a weather delay on June 13.
Jason Day of Australia, Rickie Fowler of the United States and Matteo Manassero of Italy play on the 17th green on June 13.
Scott Stallings of the U.S. shoots from a bunker on the 15th hole on June 13.
On the 17th hole, Padraig Harrington of Ireland makes his second shot on June 13.
Cheng-Tsung Pan of Taiwan tees off on the 11th hole during on June 13.
Dustin Johnson of the U.S. tees off on the 18th hole on June 13.
Phil Mickelson of the U.S. watches his shot from the tee of the second hole on June 13.
The famous wicker basket flagsticks will be on full view again at the 2013 U.S. Open on the East Course at Merion.
The history of golf at the Merion club dates back to 1896, with the East Course being completed in 1912.
Merion is regarded as one of the most picturesque courses in world golf, and this sunset view from the 10th tee takes in the ninth green with the fourth green in the background. 
Merion’s trophy cabinet reflects its staging of 18 USGA events and a host of important tournaments.
Ben Hogan plays his famous one-iron approach to the final green in the 1950 U.S. Open at Merion. It is acknowledged as one of the greatest shots in golfing history and he went on to win the tournament in a playoff. 
The U.S. Open trophy is paraded next to the plaque on the 18th hole which marks the point from which Hogan played his famous shot. 
The club used by Hogan is on public display in the USGA museum, having been stolen but then found by a collector.
A plaque in the clubhouse is dedicated to the course’s designer, Scotsman Hugh Wilson, who was a member at Merion. 
A commemorative stone on the par-four 12th on the East Course marks the hole on which the great Bobby Jones completed golf’s first “grand slam” in 1930 by winning the final of the U.S. Amateur.
Players will take aim at the wicker basket targets rather than the conventional flags, making it harder to judge the wind direction.
The wicker basket flagsticks are gathered up each night by a special machine before being put out the next morning. 
Leading PGA Tour professional Rickie Fowler (left) was among the victorious American Walker Cup team which beat Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the last major event to be staged at Merion in 2009. 
The legendary Lee Trevino won the U.S. Open at Merion in 1971 after beating Jack Nicklaus in a playoff. He has fond memories of the unique course. 
The changing room at Merion has a old-fashioned qualities, with massive metal lockers as the main feature.
Players will tee off at the U.S. Open right in front of the dining patio in the clubhouse.
When the original Merion club was founded in 1865, it was used for the traditional British sport of cricket. 
The toughest of five courses at Bethpage State Park on Long Island, Bethpage Black joined the U.S. Open roster in 2002 after the USGA decided to bring its flagship tournament to a public venue. Green fee: $130 weekdays, $150 weekends.
Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr. and opened for play in 2007, this 7,165-yard, par 72 stunner on the shores of Puget Sound hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur. It will host its first U.S. Open in 2015. Green fee: $219.
Erin Hills hosted the U.S. Amateur in 2011 and will host the U.S. Open in 2017. The 7,823-yard, par 72 course is a walking-only course, with neither motorized nor pull carts allowed. Green fees: $200. 
Jack Nicklaus said: “If I had only one more round to play, I would choose to play it at Pebble Beach. It’s possibly the best in the world.” Green fees: $495. 
Pinehurst No. 2 hosted a PGA Championship in 1936, a Ryder Cup in 1951 and its second U.S. Open in 2005. Next year, it will become the first venue to host a U.S. Open and a U.S. Women’s Open in subsequent weeks. Stay-and-play packages from $488.
Tiger Woods won the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines after hobbling his way around the course with a knee injury, then dispatching Rocco Mediate on the first sudden-death playoff hole. Green fee: $183. 
Tiger Woods regains the No. 1 spot in world golf rankings with a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Monday, March 25. Here, he plays a shot at the tournament in Orlando on Sunday, March 24. Check out what Woods has been up to since the last time he was the top-ranked golfer nearly 2½ years ago:
Woods appears dejected after losing to Lee Westwood and Luke Donald in the 2010 Ryder Cup competition in Wales in October 2010. That month, he lost his No. 1 ranking to Westwood, a position he had held for 281 consecutive weeks. He had taken a break from golf earlier that year after reports of marital infidelities emerged in late 2009.
Woods misses a putt at the Frys.com Open in October 2011. That month, he dropped out of golf’s Top 50 players list for the first time in almost 15 years. Woods reportedly lost millions in endorsements after sponsors ended their ties with him in the wake of a sex scandal.
Woods misses the U.S. Open in July 2011, citing knee and Achilles tendon injuries. Here, he plays in the tournament in 2008.
Woods plays at the 2011 Emirates Australian Open in Sydney in November 2011. That year, he remained the highest-paid American athlete on Sports Illustrated’s “Fortunate 50″ list.
Woods drops his caddy of 12 years, Steve Williams, in July 2011. “I want to express my deepest gratitude to Stevie for all his help, but I think it’s time for a change,” Woods said. Here, the two share a laugh during a practice round two months before Williams was let go. 
After a nearly three-month break, Woods returns to golf at the Bridgestone Invitational in August 2011.
Woods hits out of the bunker on the ninth hole during the first round of the PGA Championship in August 2011. He failed to make the cut at the PGA championship for the first time in his career. 
Woods plays his tee shot on the 18th hole at the Presidents Cup in Melbourne, Australia, in November 2011. The previous month, Woods landed Rolex as a sponsor despite not having won a major tournament in nearly two years. “Rolex is convinced that Tiger Woods still has a long career ahead of him,” the high-end watchmaker said. 
Woods lines up his putt at the Honda Classic at PGA National in March 2012. He shot a 62, his lowest final round as a professional, at the Honda Classic, but he tied for second in the tournament.
Woods earns his first win since November 2009 at the Chevron World Challenge, a non-PGA tour event, in December 2011.
Woods signs autographs at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March 2012. His win there marked his first PGA tour victory since September 2009.
Woods drops the ball on the 15th fairway during the final round of the ATT National in July 2012. He overtook Jack Nicklaus for second place on the all-time PGA Tour list with his victory at the ATT National.
Woods hits his tee shot on the 12th hole during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January 2013. He lost his title the previous year as the world’s top-paid athlete, dropping to third place on Sports Illustrated’s “Fortunate 50″ list.
Woods hits the ball on the 18th hole during the second round of the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston. He became the first PGA Tour participant to earn $100 million when he finished third and won more than $500,000 at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Woods and champion skier Lindsey Vonn announced they were dating on Facebook in March 2013. Vonn recently divorced Thomas Vonn, who was also her coach, and Woods split up with his wife, Elin Nordegren, in 2010.
Woods tosses his ball to his caddie at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January 2013. He started the new year in fine form by winning his 75th PGA Tour title in the Farmers Insurance Open. 
