Exclusive Interview with President Barack Obama

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 10, 2011 – In an exclusive, wide-ranging interview from the Oval Office on Wednesday afternoon, President Barack Obama spoke to Latina magazine about the state of the U.S. economy and what he is doing to ease concerns.

On whether he will call Congress back from recess: “The issue for Congress isn’t simply being back in town if all they are doing is engaging in the same gridlock that we saw before. That’s not going to increase people’s confidence. Congress is going to have to come up with a bipartisan approach that not only deals with the short-term challenge with jobs, but also with the long-term challenges with our debt and our deficit. … The solution to our economic challenges is right there before us. It does require a level of cooperation between the parties in Congress that we have not seen so far, but that I will continue pushing for.”

On what he wants Americans to know about the economic crisis: “The situation we are going through is not simply a matter of people knowing that their President is concerned because obviously for the last two and a half years all we have been working on is how we can rebuild this economy from the worst recession since the Great Depression. … The challenges we have had is that over the last couple of months, Congress and Republicans in the House of Representatives in particular play brinkmanship with respect to the debt ceiling. That has shaken a lot of confidence so that’s some repair work that needs to be done.”

President Obama also answered tough questions about whether he feels there is an education crisis among Latino students and why his administration continues to deport DREAM Act-eligible students, before revealing what he loves about Latino culture. The President’s interview will appear in Latina magazine’s November issue, which hits newsstands on October 18th. This interview marks the first time a sitting U.S. President has spoken with Latina.

“This groundbreaking interview truly reflects the growing impact and influence of Latino voters in America today,” says Galina Espinoza, co-president and editorial director of Latina Media Ventures. “In this, our 15th anniversary year, we are honored to be recognized by the White House as a leading authority for the Hispanic audience.”

An audio excerpt of President Obama’s remarks on the economy is posted on Latina.com. Media outlets wishing to use any portion of the audio, must credit Latina magazine and link back to the following address: http://www.latina.com/lifestyle/news/exclusive-president-obama-tells-lat...

NOTE - Photo Courtesy: Official White House photo by Pete Souza

Media Contact: Javier Morgado Vice President, Business Development & Communications 212-642-0226 media@latina.com