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President Barack Obama was a guest on ESPN's The Herdwith Colin Cowherd Friday, and he addressed a number of pressing issues in the world of sports.

Chief among them was his take on the NFL's handling of domestic violence situations. Former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended indefinitely before winning an appeal, and the president was critical of the league seemingly being out of touch with the issue, according to Zeke Miller of Time:

He hammered that point home by suggesting the NFL was behind the times in that regard, per Angela Keane of Bloomberg News:

Obama's focus eventually shifted toward college football and the excitement surrounding the inaugural College Football Playoff to determine a true national champion.

Controversy persists with Baylor and TCU being left out of the Top Four, so while the president supports the CFP, he believes it will eventually expand, according to Justin Sink of TheHill.com:

The president is also a huge basketball fan, and one of the biggest news stories surrounding the NBA currently is the decision by many players to wear "I Can't Breathe" shirts in support of Eric Garner, who died in July while being apprehended by police.

Per Meredith Shiner of Yahoo News, however, Obama glossed over that topic:

What he did discuss, though, was the play of his hometown Chicago Bulls. According to Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com, the president favors the Bulls to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals, health permitting:

Few presidents have been as open as Obama about their sports fandom, so it was certainly refreshing to hear him provide some informed opinions regarding the sporting landscape.

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Obama on Rice: NFL Was Behind Curve

President Obama said Friday that professional and college football have been a little bit of an old boys network but that he thinks sports franchises are now establishing clear policies to address the off-the-field behavior of their athletes.

This is not unique to the NFL, Obama said in an ESPN radio interview. There have been some blind spots that are rooted not just in pro football but back into college football.... Certain behaviors have been tolerated.

Obama noted the case of Ray Rice, the former Baltimore Ravens running back caught on video in an elevator assaulting his then-fiancee, whom he has since married.

Asked whether NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had too many men around him as he was handling the matter, Obama made an argument for all leaders including presidents to promote women and have people of diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds on their staffs.

His remarks came in an interview with ESPN radios Colin Cowherd, who asked several questions about politics in sports, starting off with a reference to Cavaliers forward LeBron James decision to help promote healthcare.gov, the website where people can sign up for insurance through the federal governments marketplace established under Obamas landmark healthcare law.

James also made news this week for wearing a T-shirt during pregame warm-ups reading I Cant Breathe, a reference to the dying words of Eric Garner, the Staten Island man who was put in a deadly choke hold by a police officer trying to take him into custody. Garners death and a grand jurys decision not to indict the officer stoked the tensions that had emerged in recent months after the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo.

Some of our greatest sports heroes Muhammad Ali, Bill Russell, Arthur Ashe they spoke out on issues that mattered at pretty critical times, Obama said. Athletes are entertainers, he said, but theyre also citizens.

Still, he acknowledged, he spends most of my time watching ESPN as he gets ready in the morning and doesnt want to be inundated by chatter about politics.

For more White House coverage, follow @cparsons

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Obama: Pro, college football a 'little bit of an old boys' network'

Published December 12, 2014

People walk past a billboard encouraging people suffering from symptoms linked to Ebola to present themselves at a health facility for treatment in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/ Michael Duff)

President Barack Obama says the U.S. must remain vigilant in the Ebola fight even though there have been no recent domestic transmissions.

Obama says as long as the disease is spreading in West Africa, it's likely to come back to the United States. He said, "This is not a problem that's going to go away any time soon."

Obama made the remarks at the White House as he met with his national security and public health teams to receive an update on the Ebola response.

The president emphasized that while Ebola has faded from the headlines in the U.S., it is still necessary to ensure that hospitals and medical professionals are prepared for possible cases. He hailed the response of health agencies, the military and health workers for their remarkable response in getting ahead of the disease in Liberia.

Fortunately, we continue to see extraordinary efforts by healthcare workers around the world, Obama said, acknowledging that more work must be done in Guinea and Sierra Leone, where there has been an uptick in cases.

Until we have snuffed out the last case of Ebola in West Africa, theres always the prospect, the likelihood that it spreads and could end up coming back to the U.S., he said.

The U.N. Ebola chief said Thursday it will take several more months before the outbreak in West Africa is under control, an assessment that makes clear the U.N.'s goal of isolating 100 percent of Ebola cases by Jan. 1 won't be met.

The president also applauded Time Magazines decision to choose health care workers for their annual Person of the Year award. He said the courage, skill and professionalism they display makes him proud.

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Obama says more work to be done in fight against Ebola

Obama Announces $1B for Early Childhood Learning
President Barack Obama followed up Wednesday on a promise to expand early education opportunities for tens of thousands of children by announcing $1 billion in public-private spending on ...

By: Associated Press

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Obama Announces $1B for Early Childhood Learning - Video

Obama Cat (Created with @Magisto)
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Obama Cat (Created with @Magisto) - Video