We have an important clarification to make: President Barack Obama doesn’t like Katy Perry.

He LOVES her.

HuffPost’s Jen Bendery was the pool reporter during an event Thursday in which the president sung the praises of Perry, who would perform that evening at a White House event for the Special Olympics.

“I like Katy Perry,” Bendery’s initial pool report quoted the president as saying. “She is just a wonderful person. I just met her mom, now I know why she’s such a wonderful person.”

Committed to getting the story right, Jen gave the audio another listen and found the president actually has stronger feelings for the “California Gurls” singer-songwriter:

There was a lot of love to go around at the event. Jen also caught this unforgettable moment and shared it via Twitter:

During Obama’s remarks at Special Olympics event, this athlete got up, gave Obama a hug and said, “I love you Obama.” pic.twitter.com/7Gd7UFsJNZ

— jennifer bendery (@jbendery) August 1, 2014