More in the cross-post on the MRC's NewsBusters blog.
In his final press conference as president on Wednesday, Barack Obama laughably congratulated the White House Press Corps for not being “sycophants” during his administration, but acting as “skeptics” whose reporting “keeps us honest.”
At the start of the farewell presser, he proclaimed:
I have enjoyed working with all of you. That does not, of course, mean that I've enjoyed every story that you have filed, but that's the point of this relationship. You're not supposed to be sycophants, you're supposed to be skeptics, you’re supposed to ask me tough questions. You're not supposed to be complementary, but you’re supposed to cast a critical eye on folks who hold enormous power and make sure that we are accountable to the people who sent us here, and you have done that.