President Obama discussed a wide range of issues in a sit-down interview with NBC's Savannah Gutherie including the controversy over his comments about Kamala Harris' appearance, Jay-Z and Beyonce's recent trip to Cuba and the Kermit Gosnell abortion trial.
The interview, which was recorded hours before the Boston Marathon bombing on Monday, aired on NBC's "Today" on Wednesday.
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When asked his thoughts about the Philadelphia abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell who is on trial for gruesomely killing seven newborn babies and a pregnant woman, Obama responded by saying he was "familiar" with the case but wouldn't comment directly because it was active.
"If an individual carrying out an abortion, operating a clinic or doing anything else is violating medical ethics, violating the law then they should be prosecuted," Obama said.
However, the president quoted former President Clinton, stating, "Abortion should be safe, legal and rare."
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Obama also addressed the criticism he received earlier this month at a political fundraiser when he called California's Kamala Harris the "best looking attorney general." The president said that although "Kamala knew where I was coming from," he took his joke with his long-time friend too far.
"I do think it was a useful teaching moment for me and for the country," he said. "As the father of two daughters I want to make sure that they're judged on the merits and not on their appearance."
"I've got no problem in people, I think, using what was intended as an innocuous comment to make this larger point that we want to make sure that women are judged based on the job they do and not how they look," he said.
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Gutherie asked Obama to clarify if the White House gave Jay-Z and Beyonce clearance to travel to Cuba, which Jay-Z professes in his new song "Open Letter." The president responded by noting that the Treasury Department handles such matters.
"I wasn't familiar that they were taking the trip. My understanding is I think they went through a group that organizes these educational trips down to Cuba," he said. "You know, this is not something the White House was involved with. We've got better things to do."
Watch a clip from the interview below.
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