President Obama and outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sat down for a rare dual interview, trading compliments, talking about a friendship that emerged from the 2008 primary battle -- and dodging questions about whether Clinton will run again for president in 2016.

60 Minutes's Steve Kroft noted at the top of the joint interview that it was Obama's idea. 

"I just wanted to have a chance to publicly say thank you, because I think Hillary will go down as one of the finest secretary of states we've had," Obama said.

The two talked about Obama's decision to offer Clinton the job, their working relationship and administration successes and failures in foreign policy. But they rebuffed a question about whether the interview constituted an endorsement of Clinton.

"You guys in the press are incorrigible," Obama said in the interview, taped Friday at the White House. "I was literally inaugurated four days ago. And you're talking about elections four years from now."

For her part, Clinton offered that she and Obama "care deeply about what's going to happen for our country in the future.

"And I don't think, either he or I can make predictions about what's going to happen tomorrow or the next year," she said.