(CNN) – Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to buy Sarah Palin's just-released memoir, but don't count President Obama among them.
In an interview with CNN's Ed Henry in China, the president acknowledged Wednesday he would not be reading the highly-anticipated memoir by his potential 2012 opponent.
"I probably won't, but I don't get a chance to read things other than briefing books very often these days anyway," he said.
Obama also suggested he views the former Alaska governor as a credible candidate should she decide to seek the presidency in a couple of years.
"You know, she obviously has a big constituency in the Republican Party," he said. "You know, there a lot of people who are excited by her."
But when it comes to the 2012 race, Obama didn't discount the possibility he may sit out on a reelection bid.
"You know, if - if I feel like I've made the very best decisions for the American people and three years from now I look at it and, you know, my poll numbers are in the tank and because we've gone through these wrenching changes, you know, politically, I'm in a tough spot, I'll - I'll feel all right about myself," Obama told CNN's Ed Henry during an interview in China.
Related: North Korea, trade on agenda as Obama visits South Korea
"I said to myself very early on, even when I started running for office, I don't want to be making decisions based on getting reelected, because I think the challenges that America faces right now are so significant," the president also said. "Obviously, if I make those decisions and I think that I'm moving the country on the right direction economically, in terms of our security interests, our foreign policy, I'd like to think that those policies are continued because they're not going to bear fruit just in four years."
But in the next breath the president quickly sounded like someone who would relish taking his case to the American people in 2012, saying he's tackling big issues like health care and Iran that he's confident will bear fruit in the future.
The last president not to seek reelection was Lyndon Johnson in 1968.
From CNN Politics
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I have the utmost faith in President Obama. I will support him in 2012. Sarah Pailin shouldn't be in the same room of such a man.
Why should he read Palins book of lies and give that air head any legitimacy. He was smart to paint her as an integral part of the Republican machine. The more people make that connection, the worse off the GOP chances will be in 2012 because only the die hard faithful is unwilling to stop thinking that Palin is not an air head. The rest of us know she is from the very first time she open here mouth.
And by the way CNN, I was wondering seriously why you keep talking about Palin on your TICKER , which can be correctly be renamed the PALIN TICKER,(despite the avalance of criticism) and I have figured it out. You dont care about your readers relatie to their comments. You want us all to come on here to talk about Sarah. In your corporate mind, she is the bait that keeps the fish coming. And who turn around and sell those numbers to your advertisers by saying...see...we have a lot of people who visit or website. Buy an advertising spot. Clever, but every day you do this CNN, the "most trusted name in the news" because less and less trustworthy. So carry on with the PALIN TICKER at your own bottom line. Some of us are not fools.
Sarah Bailin' is nobody. Why should Obama bother to read her drivel?
the media should not treat sarah palin with kid gloves any longer. someone in the media needs to challenge her on her agendas and ideas about the direction of the country,perhaps another interview with the dj`s from quebec.
I would be afraid for real if Our President said he would. I don't understand the hype. Maybe because Palin was the first GOP female
to run as a VP and she lost and has children to support ?
Does Wal- Mart have the book for less than $9.00?
Mr President, our country cannot afford another term of disasterous leadership like we had with Bush or that we would have with another republican. You're on the right track, the economy will turn we'll be fine. You've done positive more in 10 months than Bush did in 8 years.
It's good to look up to a president, I missed the pleasure for 8 years.
I'm with President Obama. I don't have time to read such drivel. It's all a fiction anyway and probably ghost-wriiten. WHat is there to write about? Her life has, in reality, be unremarkable. It took her five schools to get a simple degree, she was mayor of a small Alaskan berg (where she caused a lot of problems), she was governor of Alaska (a job she abandoned to pursue her unrealistic political ambitions), and was tapped to be a VP candidate only to counter the Hillary factor. This last move is widely considered the biggest political blunder by a presidential campaign in decades. Sarah Palin is no "rogue;" She's a blithering idiot, who has much too high an opinion of herself. She's proved already that she has no intention of serving all the people of this country, but only those few who share her sick, twisted and unbelievably narrow-minded worldview.
The notion that Obama would sit out an election is funny. He craves the limelight light a tabloid celebrity. He gave more speeches that he had days in office for the first 4 months of his tenure.
Secondly, how EXACTLY is he tacking the Iranian issue...sticking his fingers in his ears and chanting la, la, la la??? I can't think of a single success on that front.
Ed Henry is an idiot! No self-respecting person with any intelligence is going to read Palin's piece of crap! Asking a smart man like President Obama if he's going to read this useless tome was, frankly, juvenile. Ed ... you're a brain-less twit!
First, I think Palin should send a signed copy with a very cordial note to the White House.
Second, did I see that Obama say he does NOT make decisions based on getting re-elected? HAHAHAHAH
Glad to see President Obama isn't going to waste a single second of his time reading that junk. That woman's 15 minutes needs to end very soon.
What kind of a hackneyed "news" article is this.
Splashy headline: OBAMA WON'T READ PALIN'S BOOK!!!
Truth of matter: Obama demurs on stupid question.
Sensationalistic claim: OBAMA MIGHT NOT RUN FOR REELECTION!!!
Truth of matter: Obama said he makes decisions on the basis of what's best, not on whether it will win him reelection.
Standard fare, packaged as much more of it is by a pathetic news network.
WHAT A BUNCH OF BULL !!!!!!!!!!!!!
Obama's own narcicism won't allow that. He likes to look at himself in the mirror and is intoxicated with the resonance of his own verbosity.
Well, I'm not going to read her book either. At this point, who needs to buy her book, it seems that its content is all going to exposed by the media anyway.
CNN has again, today, started publishing articles to give additionall opportunities to Liberals to batter Palin! The Burly Men at CNN need to batter Palin with Black Eyes everyday to work up their manhood.
Oh, and did anyone notice the big typo on her book cover? Shouldn't it be "Going Rogue: An American Lie".
i will glady follow President Obama's example and not read Palin's book.
How did Sarah even manage to write a book, given that she doesn't read books? By the way, to address the predictable posts by conservatives that are sure to be here... we're not scared of Palin... only 30% of people think she's qualified and only 15% of people care about her book. CNN covers Palin because every news source has a funnies section. Palin is a joke that never gets old.
Obama, like him or not, is a great man. I do believe he is trying to do the best for America. He is right not to waste his time reading drible, lies, and extreme right wing egotistical thinking about a dim wit: Sarah Palin
He would be better off reading the Winnie the Pooh since it makes more sense than Palin's garbage of a book
Sarah Pailin is complain about Newsweek cover.
I have yet to see photograph pose like her of any women politician.
No wonder male republican voters like her.
Why would anyone think that President Obama has time to read that blather? He has to spend all his time cleaning up a Republican mess.
Sure he's NOT......I believe that, like I believe his jobs report.
He's too busy spending us into bankruptcy. He's on course to outspend Bush and that's some feat. The U.S. accumulated $6 Trillion in debt from 1791-2002. From 2002-2009 the accumulated debt isnow $12 Trillion. The debt doubled in just seven years. Does this explain anything to the people who are confused by the TEA Party movement. The debt is forecast to be $14 Trillion in 2010. This is insane and very, very dangerous. The U.S. government is largely responsible for the bubbles that are bringing down our country. First the S&L bubble, then the dot com bubble, then the housing bubble that almost took us down. Now they are building another bubble that will kill the dollar and ruin our financial condition beyond repair. Spending money we don't have at this rate is irresponsible, period.
Why is Obama quoted in paragraphs, with every "you know" included, while Bush was quoted in sound bites that left out much of the really bad grammar and generally questionable statements he made? Is this a media bias? Or just a level of expectation being reset?