obama transcripts july 24 2008

Transcripts of Barack Obama's conversation with reporters before a flight from Israel to Germany on July 24, 2008. They were on the plane awaiting take off. First transcript comes from the Obama campaign. The second was produced by USA TODAY's Kathy Kiely and The Washington Post's Dan Balz. There are slight differences because some parts of the conversations were audible to some people on the plane but not to others: First version: BO: Uh oh, Lynn has a tape recorder, I am just coming back here to say hello. Hello guys. There’s video cameras. Q: How much sleep did you get last night? BO: Not enough. How is everybody holding up? It was rowdier than the last time I was there. People sort of like (inaudible.) So anyway, you guys all survived? Doing ok? You know, well look he read a prayer that he had as a gift it was a book chronicling the whole, the wall and the process. Q: oh and he gave it to you? BO: Yes and it was nice. Q: So it wasn’t a holy book as our pool reporter told us? BO: The first one, no no the first one was a Torah, but then the big book was a gift. It was a nice coffee table book. Q: You want to tell us what your prayer was? BO: No. Q: Do you want to tell us what (color) it was? (second question being asked at the same time that was inaudible) BO: It’s packed in there. Well listen I suffered in these seats for an ample amount of time. Q: So did we. BO: You know there was not, in fact there was probably less leg room than this. My legs kept bumping up in the original configuration. Document3 Q: inaudible BO: We’ll bring some (inaudible- believe it is “some of you up there”) but I am sleeping right now. I am sleeping right now so you guys are not allowed. Q: How much sleep have you had so far on this trip? BO: You know not much. The way the schedule was structured I never got a chance to adjust my hours. So you know you get in, you get in bed at about 11 and then at 3 in the morning you just you know, has that been happening to anyone else. Now the difference though is in mid afternoon you are not in some briefing because it catches up to you. Q: So are you going to rest up tonight (inaudible—before the speech) ? BO: You know I think we have some down time. What are you guys going to do in Berlin? You got any big plans? You know Berlin pretty well? No. I have never been to Berlin so this will be, I would love to tour around Berlin. Q: Do you feel prepared to speak to a million screaming Europeans? BO: I doubt we are going to have a million screaming Europeans. Q: So half a million? BO: Let’s tamp down expectations here. If we get tens of thousands. Q: Let’s start a pool BO: We could. I did not realize my staff basically just told me that this space is bigger than I realized. Q: Is that a good or bad thing? BO: It is a potentially bad thing. We are sort of on the high wire all of the sudden. It’s like wait how many does this accommodate? You know I don’t know, you know that is true that might be (inaudible) why don’t you guys go hand out flyers. Is that a conflict, I guess. Q: inaudible BO: Yea. So but no, this is one of those areas where we have no idea what to expect. I am happy with the speech though. Q: Is there any chance (inaudible—I believe it was did you have a chance to talk to Iraqi’s)’ -2- BO: No and that is the, the tough thing about the war zone is that you can’t talk to the local population because it is just too controlled and that’s an advantage that the press has. You can particularly now that it is a little safer, there is a possibility to interact. The meetings that we had with the Sheiks and the (governor) and obviously they are public figures and officials but my sense was that they were closer to the ground and gave me a sense about ordinary Iraqi’s. Q: Senator what’s the highlight of your trip so far? BO: This. Yea. I had to earn it. I said when do I get a chance to go back and talk to the press. Q: What’s your second favorite? BO: Second favorite, you know the, I really get a kick out of spending time with the troops. I just, their morale is high, but they really appreciate acknowledgement of what they are doing. Everywhere we went in Afghanistan and Iraq they were just really eager to tell their story and what they were doing. It was moving you know. And it is neat to see the mix of the young bunch of 20 year olds and then the 40 year olds and 50 year olds who are in the guard, a Missouri banker who is helping to try to set up an agricultural project. That’s pretty spectacular. Q: Did some of them have politics on their minds? Did they say if they are voting this election? BO: You know they didn’t ask any political questions. Q: They didn’t ask what it is like to run (inaudible) BO: Yea, I guess they would ask that kind of question you know what is it like to travel around the country or missing your family. They would ask personal questions but there wasn’t a lot of issue stuff that they brought up. Q: Are there are a lot of democrats in that audience do you think? BO: I can’t tell, but the crowds were really big and responsive. So it is hard to say. Q: inaudible BO: You know I think if you get them outside of ear shot of the commanding officers or whoever they report to, a lot of times you can, I mean there are times where you are in a briefing where you can tell that there is restraint on their part. But generally I think the enthusiasm (inaudible) Q: (question about Petraeus inaudible) -3- BO; Yes, oh no, I mean this is the first time that we have spent that much time together. I found it very useful. He is a very smart guy and ambassador Crocker I think is just a real unsung hero in this whole process. Q: How so? BO: He is very savvy, but incredibly humble and (self…..inaudible) Q: inaudible BO: yes. Q: (something about the morning on the east coast to hear his speech) BO: You are not going to get that. Q: Is it going to be a shimmering, glimmering or is it a ten point policy (words missing in the question) BO: It is not a wonky policy speech. Q: Will you speak any German? BO: uh, you know, probably not. My German is not real good. (said something in German or completely inaudible English) but I don’t think the Germans would feel a lot of appeal to that. Q: Did you find the troops aware of your difference on Iraq and Afghanistan? BO: Sure they are well informed, especially because you know Garret’s on their home channel how is it that fox news has such an impact with armed forces television. Major: choice. BO: Is that the commander in chiefs choice? Q: how long ago did you start writing your speech? BO: We started working on it about two weeks ago. We started working on a draft. Alright guys have fun I just wanted to say hi. Q: thanks BO: oh, I’m sorry. Q: Is the speech formal? -4- BO: yea Q: when did you finish it? BO: We actually had it in pretty good shape even a couple days ago and now we are just doing tweaks. Q: When did you decide all of this on this trip because it is a pretty remarkable thing not having a white house staff BO: You know we had thought about the idea of taking a trip like this pretty early on on the campaign. Maybe not in this extent, we didn’t know whether, but I think the idea of spending some time certainly in Iraq and Afghanistan and then maybe one ore two other stops is something we anticipated for a long time. Q: inaudible BO: I’m sorry what’s that Q: Have you been surprised by all the crowds that come to your international events? The press? BO: You know what I think I anticipated was that I think the world is keenly interested in this election and I think they are hungry for a sense of where America’s going. So certainly there is a curiosity factor. Q: Would you describe this as a campaign speech tonight? BO: As opposed to. Q: Just asking? You are in a campaign, you are giving a speech, it would be ok to describe it as a campaign speech? BO: I am not speaking to the people of the crowd aren’t voters. So in that sense it is not designed to get them to the polls. You know it is not a political rally. Hopefully it will be viewed as a substantive articulation of the relationship I would like to see between the United States and Europe. Q: The audience is also back home right? Not just in the crowd. BO: Well, I mean, I am hoping to communicate across the Atlantic the value of that relationship and how we need to build on that. Q: Did you look to the Reagan and Kennedy? -5- BO: See what happens when I come back to say hi, and we are going to have a bunch of flights back and forth. So we will talk to some folks. Q: Did you look at the Reagan and Kennedy speeches in Berlin in framing your remarks, parallels? BO: They were presidents, I am a citizen but obviously Berlin is representative of the extraordinary success of the post world war II effort to bring the continent together and bring the west together and then later to bring the east and the west together. And so I think it is a natural place to talk about. Q: Did you see this speech as something (inaudible) if you were elected president? BO: No. it is just a speech. Alright guys. Second version: Obama Q. Decorum? I was expecting more .. BO:.. reverence. Decorum, yes exactly. So, anyway. You guys all surviving? Q. We're doing all right. Q. (Jake, inaudible) BO: He read a prayer from the Torah, but then he had, as a gift, there was a book chronicling the whole -- the wall and the process. Q. Oh and he gave it to you. BO: Yeah, which was nice Q. So it wasn't a holy book as our pooler reported. Q. Looked holy to me. BO: Well, the first one was the Torah. But then the big book was a gift. It was a nice coffee table book. -6- Q. Do you want to tell us what your prayer was? BO. Uh, no. Q. How do you like your new plane? BO. It's crowded. It's packed. Q. There's a little more room up there though isn't there, a little more leg room. Q We saw your barcalounger.. BO. I'm not going to lie to you, guys but listen, I suffered in these seats for an ample amount of time. Q. So did we. BO. There was not, in fact there is probably less leg room than this. My legs kept on bumping up in the original configuration. Q. Oh, woe is us. You're not going to let us take turns in the barcaloungers though are you. BO. You want to come back? Sure, we'll bring some press up. But I'm sleeping right now. I'm sleeping right now so you guys are not allowed. Q. How much sleep have you had so far on this trip? A. You know. Not much. Because the way the schedule was structured, I never got a chance to adjust my hours. So you get in, you get to bed about 11 and then at 3 in the morning -- Has that been happening to anybody else? Or are you just sort of like --. Q. We didn't go to bed tonight. BO:. The difference though is, sort of mid- afternoon, you're not in middle of some briefing, trying to you know, as it catches up to you. -7- Q.(inaudible) A I think we've got some downtime. What are you guys going to do in Berlin? Huh? Dowd? You got any big plans? Q You want to do something? A I don’t know. Do you know Berlin pretty well? No? I have never been to Berlin. So this would be-- I would love to tool around a little. Q. How do you feel about speaking to a million screaming Germans? A I doubt we're going to have a million screaming Germans. Let's tamp down expectations here. If we get a few tens of thousands -Q. 900,000. Q. Let's start a pool. BO: We could! Why don’t you guys -Q. And whoever wins, gets to sleep in the barca. BO: I did not realize, my staff basically just told me, that this space is bigger than I realized, so -Q. Is that a good or bad thing? BO. That's a potentially bad thing (laughs) if nobody shows up. We're sort of on the high wire out there. I was like, I'm sorry, how many does that accommodate? Q. So you're going to be out scouring up a crowd this afternoon, A Well that's true- that might be -Q. Go around and hand out those fliers? A. Why don't you guys go around and distribute some fliers. Does that present a conflict for you guys?. Not really!. -8- Q Tell the McCain campaign. A Yeah. So, but - uh, no, I mean this is one of those where we really have no idea what's going to happen. It’s sort of a crap shoot. I'm happy with the speech though. Q. Did you get any chance in Iraq to speak with any people? A. No, that's the tough thing about the war zones, you just, you can't talk to the local population. It's just too controlled. That's an advantage that the press has, particularly now that it's a little safer, there's a possibility in interacting. The meetings we had with the sheiks and the governor, I mean obviously they're public figures and officials, but my sense was they're closer to the ground and it gave you a better sense of how ordinary Iraqis are thinking about it. Q (high point of trip) A. This (laughter). I had to earn it. I said, when do I get a chance to go back and talk to the press? (more laughter) Uh, yeah. Q. What's your second favorite moment? Q. Leaving.[the press cabin]. A. You know I really get a kick out of spending time with the troops. Their morale is high, but they really appreciate acknowledgement of what they’re doing. You know everywhere we went in Afghanistan and Iraq they were just really eager to tell their story, what they were doing. And it was moving. And it's neat to see the mix. You have a bunch of 20-year olds and then you'll get a 40-year old or 50-year old who's in the Guard; a Missouri banker who's helping to try to set up a agricultural project. You know, that's pretty spectacular. Q. Did some of them have politics on their mind. They're going to vote in this election A. You know, they didn't ask any political questions. -9- Q. They didn't ask you what it's like to run or anything like that? A. Yeah, I mean, some -- I guess they’d ask that kind of question -- you know, what's it like traveling around the country and do you miss your family. You know, I mean, they'd ask personal questions. But there wasn't a lot of issue stuff that they brought up. Q. Were there a lot of Democrats in the crowd? A. I can't tell but the crowds were really big and responsive. So it's hard to say Q. When you talk to the troops and you're a senator, much less a presidential candidate, do you feel like you get the straight story from people? A. You know, I think if you get them outside of earshot of their commanding officers or, you know, whoever they're reporting to, and I think a lot of times you do. There are times where you're in a briefing where you can tell there's, uh, there’s, there’s restraint on their part in terms of offering their views. But generally I think their enthusiasm for their work is genuine. Q. Had you had small group sessions with Gen. Petraeus before. A. Yeah - oh, oh. No. I mean this is the first time that we had spent that much time together, just he and I and Sen. Reed and Hagel. So, I found it very useful. He's a very smart guy Ambassador Crocker I think is just a real unsung hero of this whole process. Q. How so? A. Very savvy but incredibly humble and self-effacing. Q You feel like you could work with Petraeus? A Yes. I mean he’s an extraordinarily capable person. Q Senator, because morning is going to arrive on the East Coast before you give your speech, what’s in it? Can you give us a preview, a thumbnail sketch. - 10 - A You’re not going to get that. Q Will it be soaring rhetoric, or are you going to do like a 10-point policy briefing. A. (laugh) No, it's not, it's not a wonkish policy speech. Q. (will he speak German) A. Probably -- My German is not real good. I can speak Ba'hasa (phonetic)Indonesia, but I don't think the Germans -- there would be a lot of appeal for that. Q) cross talk A. Sure … especially if it's - there it's on their own time. How is it that Fox News gets the hookup with Armed Forces television? Is that the commander in chief’s choice or (laughing) Q. When did you start writing the speech? A. We started working on it about two weeks ago. We started working on it then. Alright guys, have fun, I just wanted to say hi. Q Thanks, senator. Thanks for coming back. see you later I just wanted to come back and say hi. A. I'm sorry? Q. She said, is the speech finished? A. Yeah. Q. When did you finish it? A. We actually -- it was in pretty good shape even a couple of days ago. Now we're just going to twirl it around a little bit Q. When did you start planning this trip because this is a pretty remarkable thing for not having a White House support staff. Pulling this off. - 11 - A. we had thought about the idea of taking a trip like this pretty early on in the campaign. Maybe not to this extent, but I think the idea of spending some time, certainly in Iraq and Afghanistan was -- and then maybe one or two other stops was something that we had anticipated for sometime Q. Are you impressed by all the international reaction and crowds that you’ve gotten in each – A I’m sorry? What’s that. Q Have you been surprised y all the crowds that have come to your international events? A Um, you know, what I think – I anticipated was that – I think the world is keenly interested in this election. And I think they're hungry for a sense of where America's going. So, certainly there's a curiosity factor involved. Q Does this… a campaign speech tonight? A As opposed to? Q you’re in a campaign, you’re giving a speech, would you describe it as a campaign speech? A Well, I’m not speaking to – the people in the crowd aren’t voters so in that sense it’s not designed to get them to the polls. It’s not a political rally. Hopefully it will be viewed as a substantive articulation of the relationship I ‘d like to see between the United States and Europe. Q The audience is also back home, though, too right? The audience is not just the crowd. You hope people in Ohio are watching. A Well I’m hoping to communicate across the Atlantic the value of that relationship and how we need to build on it. All right. Okay guys. See what happens when I just come back and say hello. And we’re going to have a bunch of flights back and forth so we’ll give time to some folks. Q Did you [look to] the Reagan and Kennedy speeches about Berlin at all in shaping your remarks. Do you see any parallels? - 12 - A They were presidents. I am a citizen. But obviously Berlin is representative of, um, the extraordinary success of the post-World War 2 effort to bring the continent together and to bring the West together and then later to bring East and West together. So I think it’s a natural place to talk about – Q Do you see the speech as one aspect for proving yourself and what you can be if you were elected president. A No, I’m just giving a speech. All right guys. Q Don’t you think this week is still part of the run up – you still want the American audience to get something from the speech? A There’s no doubt that I want, uh – there’s no doubt that part of what I want to communicate on both sides of the Atlantic is the enormous potential of us restoring a sense of coming together. All right. Gotta go. - 13 -