President Obama ready to go after Eight years

A reflective President Obama, with his presidency winding down, said that as much as he has loved life in the Oval Office, a third term, even if he could run again, would have no appeal.

“Look, the bubble is the hardest thing about the presidency,” Obama told CBS News in an interview broadcast Sunday. “And I don’t think anybody with sense ever gets used to it. It’s the thing that makes me happiest about my tenure coming to an end.”

After seven years on the job, Obama said he is excited about his last 12 months in office. But when his time is up, he said, he’ll be ready to go.

“Look, there are times where you get tired,” Obama said. “You know, this is a big sacrifice and a great privilege, but it takes a toll on family life.

“Yet, there has not been a day that I have not walked into the Oval Office and understood that at no point in my life will I ever have the chance to do as much good and make as much of a difference in the lives of people as I do right now.”

But he also regrets that he wasn’t the unifying force he thought he’d be, adding the polarization between the Democrats and Republicans has gotten worse.

“It’s gotten worse over the last several years. And I think that in those early months my expectation was ... that we could pull the parties together a little more effectively,” he said.

Obama spoke to CBS in Detroit, on one of the first legs of a yearlong victory lap last week. Obama was reminding Americans of how automobile manufacturers rebounded after he pushed a government bailout of the industry.

“I might have benefited from being young and a little brash and not being as scared as I probably should have been,” Obama said, laughing. “You know, there was probably some benefit to me thinking, ‘Oh, we can fix this. We’ll figure it out.’ ”

As for what’s on his postpresidential plate, Obama said much of that is up in the air.

“When I turn over the keys to the next occupant ... and maybe why I don’t feel obliged to yearn for a third term, is ... I’m very confident I’ll be able to say that things are a lot better now than they were when I came into office,” Obama said.