As his second term as President of the United States nears its end, Barack Obama reflected on the role friendship has played in his life in a wide-ranging exit interview with his friend and former senior adviser David Axelrod, saying his relationships have given him “serenity.”
“One gift I do seem to have is getting really, really good friends around me who’ve got my back. And that gives you a certain serenity in the midst of a lot of foolishness,” Obama said in the latest episode of “The Axe Files” podcast.
He also expressed gratitude for his relationship with his wife, First Lady Michelle Obama, and how her honesty and support have helped him remain grounded through difficult times and political losses.
“And you know, Michelle, I can’t underestimate the degree to which having a life partner who is so grounded and so strong and steady and fundamentally honest helped,” Obama said.
The President added that like his relationships with his immediate family, his relationships with his close friends remained intact amid his challenges and his successes.
“Their relationships with me never depended on my success or outward success. They didn’t — my best friends from high school don’t operate any differently with me now than they did when I was …”
“And they’re around a lot. You — you have them here a lot,” Axelrod interjected, pointing out that Obama’s personal friends never refer to him as “Mr. President.”
“They do not,” Obama said.
To hear the full conversation and others with Axelrod, click on http://podcast.cnn.com. To get “The Axe Files” podcast every week, subscribe at http://itunes.com/theaxefiles.