Steve Falcone, opinion editor for the Reno Gazette-Journal, who led the interview, said he didn't give the comment much thought until it blew up with Bill Clinton's retort.

"I was surprised by the way it got spun," Falcone said.

"To me, it was in the context of the need for change and leadership," he said. "It was an example that a lot of people can appreciate, that Reagan created a coalition because he had ideas. I didn't think at the time that he was aligning himself with any Republican ideas. It never occurred to me listening to it that he (Obama) was agreeing with the politics of Ronald Reagan."