Some members of the GOP say Bin Laden's death shouldn't be used for politics, but it’s part of a new 7-minute Obama campaign video. AP’s Kasie Hunt and Reason magazine’s editor-in-chief Matt Welch discuss. >>> president obama and former president clinton acting like bffs at a big fund raiser last night in virginia, president obama talking up hillary clinton , former president clinton tearing down the xwchlt o. . just a few days ago, we saw bill clinton touting the commander in chief's success killing osama bin laden .
>> you hire the president to make the calls when no one else can do it.
>> but the gop is hitting back saying bin laden 's death should not be used for politics.
>> this is one of the reasons president obama has become one of the most divisive presidents in american history . took something that was a unifying event for all merns and he's managed to turn it into ady vice sif partisan political attack.
>> casey hunt is the national political reporter for the associated press and matt welch , good morning to both of you. so is there a fine line do you think between i guess playing politics with something like this and highlighting a legitimate accomplishment some we are in the political season.
>> yes, that we are. and you have to remember we're still in the very opening stages of this general election and this of course is all tied into the anniversary that's happening will this week of the killing of osama bin laden . so it's only natural that the obama administration would take advantage of that moment. but you have to remember this is going to be -- we still have several months left of this election season. so as we move forward, it's still going to depend a lot on the fundamentals of the economy. so whether or not the obama administration is able to sustain this conversation about bin laden , one that does help them in the long run, really is something that they would have to work really hard to do. and i think they'll be answering a lot of charges from the romney campaign on other issues as the campaign goes forward.
>> the obama campaigns that a new 7 minute video that outlines the president's first term in office. it will scroll through his accomplishments and the iraq war , libya liberated, osama bin laden dead, but i think what republicans really object to are statements like this.
>> just a few years ago, president obama then a candidate said in a speech that if we had actionable intelligence of a high value target in pakistan, we would go in and get that high valued target. mitt romney said that was foolish. he wouldn't do such a thing will. that he wouldn't move heaven and earth to get osama bin laden .
>> matt, what the campaign says is, look, we're just say thie stating th e facts. it is the one year anniversary. are they right?
>> they're right that it is the one year anniversary and that mitt romney said any number of things on the campaign trail back in 2007 and 2008 . i think the underlying fact is that this is not going to be an issue in the 2012 election. it wasn't in 2008 . we had a war hero and a hawk going against an absolute novice with an exotic name and we didn't really talk all that much about foreign policy will in 2008 . americans are much less scared about it than they were in 2008 this year. so it's not going to come up. and as for the republican charge of politicizing these things, let's never forget that the 2004 national convention was held as close as humanly possible to the anniversary of september 11th in new york city and the entire theme of that convention was about 9/11 and the response to it and the democrats in-effect all weak-kneed positioning on it.
>> there is a big special coming up and i want to play a clip of the president from the situation room interview.
>> there you are --
>> here i am sitt that's an intense look on your face. and everyone is intently watching this screen.
>> if i'm not mistaken, pete, this picture was taken right as the helicopter was having some problems. but you may not remember. that's what feels like because i remember hillary putting her hand over her mouth at that point. there's silence at this point inside the room.
>> when you look at it, what does it conjure up inside you?
>> that's the way i usually look when my husband drags me to an action movie . you know, what it conjures up is all of the emotions that were running through my and every other person in that small group . it was just an extraordinary experience and a great privilege to be part of.
>> look, casey , it's a great story. i think to matt's point, most people -- and we should say that will air wednesday on rock center at 9:00 eastern time . but to matt's point, this is an election that eventually will likely wise or fall based on the economy, but does will this legitimately say something to voters about how the president makes decisions?
>> sure. it absolutely does. and they know that. and it's also one of the biggest advantages of being the incumbent president. mitt romney does not have a situation room to invite one of the most television network anchors into to do a special on a decision that he made. that's something that as president of the yununited states, obama has as a huge advantage over his challenger.
>> and i want to bring in now steven clemens who is the washington editor-at-large for the atlantic. he writes about foreign affairs and politics and i just wonder what your thoughts were when you were watching that situation room interview.
>> well, i think that what we now know is that so many people around president obama sounded a lot like mitt romney used to in the last campaign, that they had doubts and concerns that they thought that the gamble was too high. and we saw the president of the united states make a decision, take a very high risk shot at what he saw as to the one of the most symbolic and important challenges facing the united states . and i think what they're trying to convey out in this campaign is that many others thought that risk was too high. obama took it, he succeeded and i think now they're calling in what to do. i think it's also what's important to remember is that under the bush/ cheney year, cheney had no qualms at all talking about national security and wrapping this tell around the political choices people made. i think matt welch is absolutely right that there was no resistance at all among gop circles in doing what they're now accusing president obama of doing. but i think what's different is that obama would be a done president had he failed, had that helicopter had a disaster and had people come out with either casualties. so it's a remarkable gamble and i think they're trying to show that when obama weighs all the issues, he acts like a commander in achiechief and sets things in motion even amidst differences of opinion around him.
>> two things this brings up. one is the decision making and he was decisive and he made the right decision in this case. but the second thing is has it made uts safer. obviously osama bin laden was symbolic of the al qaeda movement. the question was how much influence was he having at that point. let me read for you part of an op-ed from the " wall street journal " today. the headline is al qaeda is far from defeated. seth jones points to yes, ma'am men and somalia and pakistan where he says al qaeda is regrouping and writes, al qaeda is far from dead, acting as if it were whether not will not make it so. is there a fine line that the white house is walking with this? or is it all up side for help?
>> i have a lot of respect for seth jones . and you could also add to the mix david petraeus now head of the cia has asked for expanded military authority to expand the drone attacks against targets in yes, ma' yemen. but i think there is an industry out there, a kind of terrorism industrial complex , if you will, that just refuseds to sort of talk about degrees of let. yes, there are al qaeda members up there that have now been inspired to take action and that build up largely occurred during the bush/ cheney years and what president obama has been doing, and i was skroekijoking around, i was with many of those people at the white house correspondents dinner a year ago. i talked to leon pa net tarks de panetta, dennis mcdonough was at a reception and he was just drinking mine ral watmineral and they knew something was up. so a lot of steel nerves were in this. and what i wrote either about the attack, i said that if they did not succeed in immediately identifying the connections and the ecosystem in which bin laden operated, then this would be a failure. but what we've seen is a very steady roll up targeting of many other senior al qaeda lieutenants, executives, plot managers, and we've seen the december city nation of the original al qaeda network and many of the affiliates.city nation of th e original al qaeda network and many of the affiliates. it's not over and done, but the mother ship has been wiped out. the seth jones of the world again whom i admire and who benefit a lot from some of the trimp issues that we're dealing with are interest what remiss i think in giving credit to the administration for doing what they should have done, gathering the intelligence and rolling up this network continuing to operation. so i think the momentum has been on the side of the administration and the pentagon and cia and our allies frankly who have been key partners in this in really taking down what was such a horrible threat for so long.
>> and obviously this is serious business, but you you bring up the white house correspondents dinner in part because it was about the one year anniversary. it wassed for forejokes including this one by the president.
>> last year at this time, in fact on this very weekend, we finally delivered justice to one of the word's most notorious individuals.
>> not a bad opening, right?
>> i was there, and the president -- i actually have a lot of pity for any comedian in this case it was jimmy kimmel , but any comedian that has to follow the president because his lines were so good.
>> casey , let me bring you back in. when you look at that iconic situation room photo, the polls tell us the most popular person in it is hillary clinton and last newt was tight was the first of three joint fund-raisers. the president said hillary a have spemts tnt the last 3 and a half years cleaning up after other folks' messes. what do you make of that?
>> the video that you showed earlier of the obama administration talking about other victories here in getting osama bin laden features former president bill clinton . so it's very clear that there is a thaw there. they've been competitive over the years. very acrimonious in 2000 # a8 and hillary has been dropping hints that she's considering a run for president in the future and this is clear lay is it tly is step that show s that president obama is recognizing the fact that the clintons have really contributed throughout his administration and that he's on board going forward with whatever their futures might hold.
>> and speaking of that changing relationship, the president also had a great line about hillary at the white house correspondents did dinner.
>> four years ago, i was locked in a brutal primary battle with hillary clinton . four years later, she won't stop drunk texting me from cartagena.
>> obviously, matt, as secretary of state, she won't be out on the campaign trail, but how interesting is it how he's using her any way, right?
>> yeah. he's trying to gather the democratic base, the flock all together under the same banner. using any stick necessary, including a running on his aggressive and strong foreign policy stance. after initially campaigning as the guy who was going to sort of draw us back from the executive power of bushes and cheney . we don't hear much about that anymore nor do we hear about the most trarnsparency presidency in history anymore. he's patting himself on the back and making sure we don't see ever the photos of osama bin laden 's corpse. they are stage managing this stuff and we should recognize that even while assessing positively those aspects of the record that have been positive.
>> so that note, matt, casey , steven, great to talk with all of you.
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