AceShowbiz -

President Obama commented on Bill Cosby's sexual abuse scandal during a White House conference held on Wednesday, July 15. When asked about the petition posted on White House's website asking to revoke Cosby's Presidential Medal of Honor, Obama replied, "There's no precedent for revoking a medal. We don't have that mechanism."

At first Obama declined to comment further on Cosby's scandal, saying, "As you know I tend to make a policy not to comment on the specifics of cases where there might still be if not criminal then civil issues involved." But after a noticeable pause, Obama noted that the comedian's issue should not be taken lightly.

"I'll say this. If you give a woman - or a man, for that matter - without his or her knowledge a drug, and then have sex with that person without consent, that's rape," said the President of the United States, "And I think this country, any civilized country, should have no tolerance for rape."

Obama's comments came days after a petition titled "Revoke the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Bill Cosby" popped up on White House's website, pleading to revoke Cosby's Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Cosby admitted in a 2005 deposition that he gave women drugs for the purpose of sex. At that time, the star of "The Cosby Show" was asked, "When you got the Quaaludes, was it in your mind that you were going to use these Quaaludes for young women that you wanted to have sex with?" He then replied, "Yes."