Obama downplays controversy over Hillary Clinton's wealth comments

President Obama brushed off the controversy over Hillary Clinton's wealth, saying in an interview aired Sunday that he doesn't think her comments about it are going to have much impact politically.

"Over time, I don't think it's going to make a big difference," Obama said, in an interview aired on ABC's "This Week."

Despite Democrats hammering Mitt Romney over his personal fortune during the 2012 presidential campaign, top Democrats have defended Hillary Clinton as the potential 2016 presidential candidate's wealth emerges as an issue.

The former first lady touched off the debate when she said in an interview several weeks ago that she and husband Bill Clinton were "dead broke" after leaving the White House. The former first couple technically was in debt after leaving the White House but quickly made millions off speeches and memoirs.

She has tried to walk back that phrasing, but Obama said she's been to this "rodeo" before.

"As soon as you jump back into the spotlight in a more explicitly political way, you're going to be flyspecked like this, and she's accustomed to it," he said.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus told NBC's "Meet the Press" she's perceived as being "out of touch" and predicted the Clintons would face a backlash for what he described as an early run for the White House.

Bill Clinton defended his wife, speaking at a Clinton Global Initiative meeting in Denver. In remarks that were also aired on NBC's "Meet the Press," he said it's factually true they were several million dollars in debt upon leaving the White House, though acknowledged they did well for themselves in the ensuing years.

"She's not out of touch," he said of his wife.