Malveaux misrepresented Obama's statements about Clinton on Meet the Press

During the November 15 Democratic presidential debate, CNN co-host Suzanne Malveaux falsely claimed that Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) had said "in a TV interview just this past weekend" that he "didn't believe" Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) "was able to unite the country." However, during his interview with host Tim Russert on the November 11 edition of NBC's Meet the Press, Obama never said that he did not believe Clinton could unite the country. Rather, Obama asserted that, of all the Democratic presidential candidates, he believes he has "a better chance" of creating "a new working majority for change."

During the debate, Malveaux took a question from an audience member who asked of the candidates, "[A]ssuming you are elected, the day after you take the oath of office, what message will you offer the whole country to unite all of us behind you, so you can see us through this period of transition that we're in?" Malveaux then said: "I'd like to throw that to Senator Obama. Senator Obama, you said in a TV interview just this past weekend you didn't believe that Senator Clinton was able to unite this country. Why do you believe she can't?"

Obama replied: "No, that's not what I said. What I said was I thought I could do it better. That's why I'm running for president. If I didn't think I could do it better, then I wouldn't be running for president, because the stakes are too high, just as we heard."

In his November 11 appearance on Meet the Press, Obama had the following exchange with Russert:

RUSSERT: Do you believe that Hillary Clinton could win a November election?

OBAMA: Yes. You know, I'm not somebody who believes that she can't win. I believe that it's going to be harder for her to win, because I think a lot of voters go in with some preconceptions about her that are going to be very over -- very difficult to overcome. And I also believe, more importantly, I don't -- it's not just a matter of winning, it's: Can you create a new working majority for change? I want to provide health insurance to every single American. We can't do that with a 50-plus-one majority. I want to get serious about climate change. We can't do that with a 50-plus-one majority. I believe I've got a better chance of any of the other Democratic candidates to transform the political landscape in a way that has been done in the past.

As Obama's response shows, he at no point said that he "didn't believe" Clinton "could "unite this country." Earlier in the November 11 interview, Russert asked Obama about "differences" between him and Clinton. Obama responded by stating, "I believe that I can more effectively than any other candidate in this race bring the country together, overcome some of the same old arguments that we've been having since the 1990s":

RUSSERT: A year ago, you were asked about Hillary Clinton. And this is the exchange. "Where do you find yourself having the biggest differences with Hillary Clinton, politically?" Obama: "You know, I think very highly of Hillary. The more I get to know her, the more I admire her. I think she's the most disciplined -- one of the most disciplined people I've ever met. She's one of the toughest. She's got an extraordinary intelligence. She is -- she's somebody in this stuff for the right reasons. She's passionate about moving the country forward on issues like health care and children. So it's not clear to me what differences we've had since I've been in the Senate." Do you still hold to that? There aren't any differences?

OBAMA: Well, I think that I -- as I said earlier, I have admiration for Senator Clinton. I think she's a fine public servant. The reason I'm running is because I think we're in a unique moment in American history right now. The nation's at war; our planet is in peril. We've got a series of decisions that we're going to have to make. And I believe that I can more effectively than any other candidate in this race bring the country together, overcome some of the same old arguments that we've been having since the 1990s. I think I can reach out to Republicans and independents more effectively than any other candidate.

RUSSERT: What arguments do you want to put behind you?

OBAMA: Well, look, when we think about, let's say, foreign policy, we have had a tendency to, to argue along the spectrum of you're either a hawk or a dove. Either you're willing to engage in military action and oftentimes think military action first and diplomacy second, or you're a dove, you've got post-Vietnam syndrome, you're suspicious of any military action. I think that the way we have to think about it is to say that right now we live in a dangerous world. There are times where we're going to need to act militarily. We should not hesitate to act on behalf of the national interest. But we have to understand that we've got more power than just the military at our, our disposal, and that's something, obviously, the Bush administration has forgotten.

Having the ability to focus on getting the job done, as opposed to getting embroiled in ideological arguments, which have become so common in Washington, I think, is going to be important for the next president, and that's what I intend to do as president.

From the November 15 debate:

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Whether it's the continuing violence in Iraq, or if it's a potential confrontation with Iran, or even the emerging instability in Pakistan, nothing seems to be getting any better in the Middle East. It only seems to be getting worse. And if the upcoming election is anything like the last two elections, if any of you is elected, in all likelihood, you will be presiding over an extremely divided electorate. Almost half the country is not going to agree with you on the direction you want to take this country to meet those challenges in the Middle East. So my question to you is: Assuming you are elected, the day after you take the oath of office, what message will you offer the whole country to unite all of us behind you, so you can see us through this period of transition that we're in?

MALVEAUX: I'd like to throw that to Senator Obama. Senator Obama, you said in a TV interview just this past weekend you didn't believe that Senator Clinton was able to unite this country. Why do you believe she can't?

OBAMA: No, that's not what I said. What I said was I thought I could do it better. That's why I'm running for president. If I didn't think I could do it better, then I wouldn't be running for president, because the stakes are too high, just as we heard.

Here's what I would do immediately. I would convene a continuous advisory meeting with, not just Democrats, but Republicans, specifically on national security issues. Because there is a long tradition that our differences in foreign policy should end at the water's edge. And we have lost that tradition. And there are some wonderful Republicans -- [Sens.] Dick Lugar [IN], Chuck Hagel [NE] -- there are a group of them who have continued that tradition, but we have lost it because of the polarization of the Bush administration. So, I want Republicans and Democrats and independents to understand that as president, I am going to want to go before the entire world and say, America's back, we are ready to lead. But we're not just going to lead militarily, we're going to lead by building schools in the Middle East that teach math and science instead of hatred of Americans. We're going to lead by shutting down Guantánamo and restoring habeas corpus in this country so that we offer them an example. We're going to lead by talking to our enemies and not just our friends. And I believe that there are a lot of Republicans who hunger for that kind of bipartisan approach. That's what I will offer as president of the United States.