CBS' Katie Couric interviews Valerie Jarrett, Barack Obama's senior adviser:
When Karl Rove worked for President Bush, he had so much influence that some called him "Bush's Brain." Valerie Jarrett is the woman known as the other side of Barack Obama's brain. Jarrett, a 51-year-old business leader and single mother, just may be the most powerful woman in Chicago besides Oprah. And she's earned the complete confidence of Barack and Michelle Obama.
Jarrett talks about her 17 years with the Obamas and gives an inside perspective on one the most memorable moments in the campaign:
Katie Couric: I understand you were critical when it came to the controversy over his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright. What did you advise him to do?
Valerie Jarrett: It was a very personal and painful experience for both he and for Michelle. And I think, you know, to have your pastor say things with which you totally disagree, that you have never heard him say before, and to say things that weren't so kind to you on a national platform which turns into an international platform was painful. And I did encourage him to give the speech that he gave on race. I encouraged him to, you know, just speak from the heart, which he did. I think it will go down in history as one of the great speeches ever.
Watch the video:
Read the whole interview here.
