Obama wanted to smack Joe Wilson after the congressman from SC yelled ‘You lie’
Barack Obama did not hold back in an interview Sunday, when the former president recalled restraining himself from hitting South Carolina’s Joe Wilson back in 2009.
During an interview with “CBS This Morning’s” Gayle King to promote his new book, “A Promised Land,” Obama said he wanted to “smack” the South Carolina Republican who yelled “You lie!” at the president during the State of the Union address 11 years ago.
Wilson, who recently was reelected to a 10th term in Congress representing South Carolina’s 2nd District, broke decorum and shouted as Obama was discussing plans to reform health care.
“I am shocked,” Obama said of the subject he also addresses in the new book. “And my initial instinct is, ‘Let me walk down and smack this guy on the head. What is he thinking?’ ”
Obama kept his composure and continued to lay out plans for the Affordable Care Act after saying to Wilson “That’s not true.”
Obama said he got an apology from Wilson, who was censured by the House of Representatives with a resolution of disapproval. But the former president also pointed out that Wilson benefited from the outburst.
“He called afterwards to apologize — although, as I point out in the book, he saw a huge spike in campaign contributions to him from Republicans across the country who thought he had done something heroic,” Obama said.
Obama touched on a wide range of topics in the interview.
Wilson continues to represent parts of Aiken, Barnwell, Lexington, Orangeburg and Richland counties.
This story was originally published November 15, 2020 at 2:54 PM.
