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Obama calls Afghanistan troop decision his toughest yet

In a CBS '60 Minutes' interview, the president rejects criticism that the plan is confusing. He also discusses jobs, healthcare and the White House gate-crashers.

December 14, 2009|By Sebastian Rotella

"Seven presidents have tried to reform a healthcare system that everyone acknowledges is broken," Obama said. "Seven presidents have failed up until this point. We are now that close to having a bill that does all the things that I said and most experts said needed to be done when we started this process."

As for White House gate-crashers Tareq and Michaele Salahi, Obama admitted that he was angry with his staff over the couple's infiltration of a White House state dinner for the Indian prime minister last month. The Salahis, who aspire to join the cast of the upcoming Bravo reality show "The Real Housewives of D.C.," have said they thought they had been invited, but they have refused to testify before a congressional committee investigating the security breach.

The Secret Service has taken the blame for admitting the couple, but some critics have pointed fingers at the administration because no member of the White House social staff was at the gate to determine who was on the guest list.

On "60 Minutes," Obama expressed good-humored exasperation with the media frenzy. And, asked if he was unhappy with White House social secretary Desiree Rogers, who is part of the Obamas' inner circle, he said:

"I was unhappy with everybody who was involved. . . . That's why it won't happen again."

sebastian.rotella@latimes.com

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