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President Obama said Saturday that Hillary Rodham Clinton would make an excellent president, lauding his former secretary of States record on foreign and domestic policy on the eve of her long-expected announcement of another White House run.

Though he didnt quite offer Clinton a full endorsement when asked about her candidacy at a news conference here, Obamas effusive praise of his former rival contrasted with his silence when asked about a still-possible campaign by Vice President Joe Biden.

Clinton, Obama said, was a formidable candidate in 2008, and then a great supporter of mine after she ultimately conceded the Democratic nomination to him. She was an outstanding secretary of State. She is my friend. I think she would be an excellent president, he said.

But when asked later about whether the Democratic field was wide-open, and about Bidens possible interest, Obama demurred.

Not only have I run my last election, but I am not in the business of prognosticating on future of elections, he said. Obama was in Panama to attend the VII Americas Summit.

Clinton is expected to make her candidacy official first through social media, perhaps Sunday afternoon, followed by campaign appearances in key states next week.

Republicans will be quick to target Clinton not only for her own well-worn record in public life but also for her connection withthe outgoing president.

But, in response to Republicans who might suggest a Hillary Clinton presidency would represent an Obama third term, Obama said: Im not on the ballot.

Shes going to be able to handle herself very well in any conversations and debates around foreign policy, he said. And her track record with respect to domestic policy is, I think, one that cares about working families.

If she decides to run, if she makes an announcement, shes going to have some strong messages to deliver.

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Obama: Hillary Clinton would be an 'excellent president'

Apr. 11, 2015: US President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro shake hands during their meeting at the Summit of the Americas in Panama City, Panama. (AP)

President Obama held a historic formal meeting with Cuban President Raul Castro Saturday, the first between US and Cuban leaders in over half a century, pledging to 'turn the page' and develop a new relationship between the two countries.

The two leaders shook hands Friday at the start of the summit and met Saturday on the sidelines of the a Panama City convention center.

Obama and Castro met for about an hour, with Obama telling reporters before the meeting that, after 50 years of unchanged policy, it was time to try something new and to engage with both Cuba's government and its people.

"What we have both concluded is that we can disagree with a spirit of respect and civility," Obama said. "And over time, it is possible for us to turn the page and develop a new relationship between our two countries."

Obama thanked Castro "for the spirit of openness and courtesy that he has shown during our interactions" and pledged to do whatever he could to "make sure that the people of Cuba are able to prosper and live in freedom and security."

Castro, for his part, said he agreed with everything Obama had said. However, he added the caveat that they had "agreed to disagree" at times. Castro said he had told the Americans that Cuba was willing to discuss issues such as human rights and freedom of the press, maintaining that "everything can be on the table."

"We are disposed to talk about everything -- with patience," Castro said in Spanish. "Some things we will agree with, and others we won't."

Not since 1958 have a U.S. and Cuban leader convened a substantial meeting. Dwight Eisenhower and Fulgencio Batista met that year, and the following year, former Cuban President Fidel Castro met with Richard Nixon, who was vice president at the time.

The flurry of diplomacy was aimed at injecting fresh momentum into their months-old plan to restore normal relations between their countries.

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Obama holds historic meeting with Cuba's Raul Castro, pledges to 'turn the page' - Obama, Maduro have brief meeting at ...

Reuters US President Barack Obama holds a news conference at the conclusion of the Summit of the Americas in Panama City, Panama 11 April 2015.

US President Barack Obama has said his meeting with Cuban President Raul Castro will help both countries "turn the page" after decades of hostility.

He described the meeting on the fringes of the Summit of the Americas in Panama as "candid and fruitful".

Mr Obama said that the former foes would continue to have differences but could advance mutual interests.

The meeting was the first formal talks between the two countries' leaders in more than half a century.

"What we have both concluded is that we can disagree with a spirit of respect and civility," said President Obama. "Over time, it is possible for us to turn the page and develop a new relationship between our two countries."

His remarks came at the end of a regional summit which has been dominated by the historic thaw between US-Cuba relations.

Cuban leader Raul Castro said that the two countries had "agreed to disagree" when necessary.

"We are disposed to talk about everything, with patience," he said. "Some things we will agree with, and others we won't."

AP President Maduro has said that Venezuela has come to the summit in a "constructive spirit"

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Obama-Castro summit caps Cuba thaw

President Barack Obama declared his refusal Saturday to refight the Cold War battles while Cuban President Raul Castro rallied to his defense, absolving Obama of fault for the U.S. blockade in a stunning reversal of more than 50 years of animosity between the United States and Cuba.

"In my opinion, President Obama is an honest man," Castro said -- a remarkable vote of confidence from the Cuban leader, who praised Obama's life and his "humble background."

Turning the page on the longstanding U.S. policy of isolation, Castro and Obama were expected to meet later Saturday on the sidelines of the Summit of the Americas -- the first substantial meeting between a U.S. and Cuban president in more than five decades.

The flurry of diplomacy, which kicked off Friday evening with an historic handshake between Obama and Castro, was aimed at injecting fresh momentum into their months-old plan to restore normal relations between their countries.

"The Cold War has been over for a long time," Obama said. "And I'm not interested in having battles frankly that started before I was born."

Castro, in a meandering, nearly hour-long speech to the summit, ran through an exhaustive history of perceived Cuban grievances against the U.S. dating back more than a century -- a vivid display of how raw passions remain over American attempts to undermine Cuba's government.

Then, in an abrupt about face, he apologized for letting his emotions get the best of him. He said many U.S. presidents were at fault for that troubled history -- but that Obama isn't one of them.

"I have told President Obama that I get very emotional talking about the revolution," Castro said through a translator, noting that Obama wasn't even born when the U.S. began sanctioning the island nation. "I apologize to him because President Obama had no responsibility for this."

Speaking just before Castro, Obama acknowledged that deep differences between their countries would persist. Yet he said he was uninterested in getting bogged down in ideology, instead casting the thaw in relations as an opening to create "more opportunities and resources for the Cuban people."

"The United States will not be imprisoned by the past," Obama said. "We're looking to the future."

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Obama and Castro vow to pursue new future for US, Cuba

Obama Pushes To End Gay Conversion Therapy
Source: https://www.youtube.com/user/PBSNewsHour April 09, 2015 - In our news wrap Thursday, the NAACP called for a federal investigation of the North Charleston police force after officer...

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