Obama: I deserve a second term
In this Feb. 1, 2012, file photo President Barack Obama speaks in Falls Church, Va. Credit: AP
President Barack Obama said Sunday that he deserves a second term, despite suggesting in a similar interview three years ago that if he didn't turn around the economy in three years, his presidency was going to be a "one-term proposition."
"We've made progress," Obama told NBC's Matt Lauer. "The key right now is to just make sure we don't start turning in a new direction that could throw that progress off."
GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney and other Republicans have used Obama's remarks to argue he hasn't met his own criteria for re-election.
Obama doesn't agree. "I deserve a second term," he said. "But we're not done."
The timing of the interview was fortuitous for the president. His administration received a surprisingly robust jobs report Friday, allowing Obama to claim significant progress on the economic front before a Super Bowl pregame audience.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
