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Conversations with Bill Kristol

Robert Gibbs: Joe Biden and the Challenge of a Presidential Transition during a Crisis

Conversations with Bill Kristol

Conversations with Bill Kristol

News, Society & Culture, Government, Politics

4.71.7K Ratings

🗓️ 14 January 2021

⏱️ 71 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

While presidential transitions always present challenges, few take place in crisis situations like the one we confront today. What lessons can we learn from past transitions? How should the Biden administration navigate the complexities of the current moment? Joining us to consider these questions is Robert Gibbs, White House Press Secretary during the financial crisis and a key figure in the Obama administration. Gibbs reflects on lessons learned from that transition and experience. Turning to the present, Gibbs and Bill Kristol consider the Biden transition and the unique set of challenges the Biden administration confronts. The experience and insight Gibbs draws upon here is a valuable resource for thinking through how to navigate the tumultuous times we face.

Transcript

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0:00.0

And the Hi, welcome to Conversations. I'm Bill Crystal. I'm very pleased to be

0:19.0

joined today by Robert Gibbs, most famous I suppose, to the world, as President Obama's press secretary, the face

0:25.6

of the Obama White House for over two years and beginning at the beginning of the

0:29.8

Obama administration, which is in a way what I want to talk about today what's it like to

0:34.1

take over from a White House when in a crisis the country's in crisis and and you

0:40.2

you hadn't necessarily and the other party has been running things, but I want to say one word

0:44.6

about Robert, who has a long and distinguished career in elective politics, worked on the hill

0:50.1

before that, corporate America subsequently is now a consultant.

0:55.3

But I say this, I didn't tell you I was going to say this, but I will say this.

0:59.4

I always like to ask, have a company come to Washington myself as a staffer and been a staffer. I always like to ask have a company come to watching myself as a staffer and been a staffer.

1:04.0

I always like to ask other people, younger people I meet, you know, who that you've worked with do you admire or respect?

1:10.0

I'm just off the record kind of, you know, privately. And I will say that your name

1:16.1

is mentioned more often than, much more often than it would randomly be by young people

1:21.2

who've worked in Democratic politics and campaigns in the

1:24.2

Obama White House. I really think, you know, so I say this to people that a lot of

1:29.4

people in Washington, a lot of them are very intelligent. Some of them have better external

1:34.3

reputations and a little worse by you know a little less admired by people who

1:38.1

really know them but I think it's the you have a good reputation too obviously but

1:41.6

it I just wanted to say that

1:43.4

because it really has been I've been struck by this over the last several years so

1:46.2

wow that's uh you were a good boss apparently that's great to hear that's great to hear I feel uh

1:51.9

i don't know whether you're you, giving me a nice compliment so that, you know, this all goes downhill from here, but it's a good way to start.

...

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