--- title: Barack Obama Surprises Josh Earnest at Final Press Briefing description: President Obama offered up praise of his third and final press secretary canonical: https://time.com/4636826/president-obama-surprise-josh-earnest-final-briefing/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-01-17T21:33:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-07T07:13:48.868Z article:section: Politics og:title: Watch President Obama Surprise Press Secretary Josh Earnest at Final Briefing og:description: President Obama offered up praise of his third and final press secretary og:url: https://time.com/4636826/president-obama-surprise-josh-earnest-final-briefing/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7cdd288dd612a938/6988b5ce97cdff2b506af1fb/ap_17017628598735.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Obama og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Watch President Obama Surprise Press Secretary Josh Earnest at Final Briefing twitter:description: President Obama offered up praise of his third and final press secretary twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7cdd288dd612a938/6988b5ce97cdff2b506af1fb/ap_17017628598735.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Watch President Obama Surprise Press Secretary Josh Earnest at Final Briefing > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=fb79596c-a30c-4bb3-b14a-7e0366f8fc15&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Watch President Obama Surprise Press Secretary Josh Earnest at Final Briefing [Watch (HLS stream): Watch President Obama Surprise Press Secretary Josh Earnest at Final Briefing](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/U6g41IMK.m3u8) (2:05)  _Published 2017-01-17. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest held his final White House press briefing on Tuesday, an occasion that warranted a drop-in by the commander-in-chief_ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Jan 17, 2017 9:33 PM UTC by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Jan 17, 2017 9:33 PM UTC White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest held his final [White House](http://time.com/4634675/obama-white-house-virtual-reality-tour/) press briefing on Tuesday, an occasion that warranted a drop-in by the [commander-in-chief](http://time.com/4634700/barack-obama-kids-children-photographs/). Shortly after Earnest took the podium in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, [President Obama](http://time.com/4633826/joe-biden-obama-presidential-medal-freedom/) entered and offered up praise of his third and final press secretary. The president said he was initially stricken by Earnest’s “all American” good look when they met in Iowa, and said he had a “face made for television.” But, the president also said he has always felt Earnest to be a man of integrity. “What struck me most in addition to his smarts and maturity and actual interest in the issues was is integrity,” Obama said Tuesday. “There are people you meet who, you have a pretty good inkling off the bat, are straight shooters.” Obama added, “he is not only a great press secretary, he is a really, really good man.” Earnest participated in, by some counts, his 354th press briefing on Tuesday. The topics ranged from the [presidential transition](http://time.com/4618844/donald-trump-barack-obama-israel/) to the involvement of [Russia in the 2016 presidential election](http://time.com/4631349/donald-trump-news-conference-russia/). Earnest also confirmed reports that the Obamas would be going on vacation in Palm Springs, Calif. after the inauguration of Donald Trump. He would not, however, say how long they’ll be saying. The press secretary was also pressed on the future of the briefing, given statements by the incoming administration that they’d consider either moving the briefing out of the James Brady Press Briefing room or changing the way it is handled. Earnest said he had advised incoming Press Secretary Sean Spicer to engage with the White House Correspondents’ Association and added that while press access may be “uncomfortable” at times, “it’s important.” ## Transcript I have now know this guy for 10 years almost and I've watched him grow and I've watched him advance and I've watched him marry and I've watched him be a father. And I've watched him manage younger people coming up behind him and He's never disappointed. He has always been the guy you wanted him to be. And I think that, you know, if you're the President of the United States and you find out that this is the guy who Has been voted the most popular press secretary ever by the White House press corps, that may make you a little nervous. [ LAUGH ] Thinking well maybe the guy's kind of being too solicitous towards the press. But the fact is, is that He was worthy of that admiration. He was tough, and he didn't always give you guys everything you wanted, but he was always prepared, he was always courteous, he always tried to make sure that he could share with you as much of our thinking and our policy And our vision as possible. And tried to be as responsive as possible and that's how he trained the rest of his team to be. So of the folks that I've had the great joy and pleasure of working with over the last ten years on this incredible journey. This guy ranks as high as just about anybody I've worked with. He is not only a great press secretary but more importantly, he is a really really good man and I'm really really proud of him. So Josh, congratulations. Thank you sir. [ APPLAUSE ] I love you. 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