The president has apologized to California Attorney General Kamala Harris for remarking that she was the "best looking" attorney general in the United States. Critics complained the president had objectified a powerful woman politician.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney revealed that Obama reached out to Harris Thursday evening. "He called her to apologize for the distraction created by his comments," Carney said. "And they are old friends and good friends and he did not want in any way to diminish the attorney general's professional accomplishments and her capabilities and I would note that he called her in those same comments, brilliant, dedicated and tough and she is all those things."
What did he say about Harris to warrant the apology?
“She’s brilliant and she’s dedicated, she’s tough, and she is exactly what you’d want in anybody who is administering the law, and making sure that everybody is getting a fair shake," Obama said at a Democratic National Committee event in California Thursday, adding "She also happens to be, by far, the best looking attorney general.”
Obama had the chattering class buzzing not long after he made the remarks, with some arguing he "crossed the line" and needed "gender-sensitivity training."
And he found defenders in an unlikely place: Fox News. On Friday's Fox & Friends Gretchen Carlson said "She's pretty! So what?" Later conservative radio host Monica Crowley defended the president as well. "What he said was sincere, it was honest, it was very sweet," she said.