Devils at the White House

The Duke Blue Devils visited President Obama today to accept his congratulations on being NCAA champions and to show him how to fill out his bracket. . . I was glad to see the president enjoying himself as I am sure that is rare these days.

Obama at Notre Dame

E.J. Dionne has a good column on the controversy at Notre Dame - not about poor Charlie Weis but about the speaking invitation to Obama.

Tax problems

I have to admit I am disgusted by Obama's [would-be] appointees who have tax or other illicit issues, and really wish that Geithner, in particular, had stepped aside. Surely he must have been mortified to be pilloried on SNL? In addition, hearing that the White House vetting process has practically come to standstill just makes me wonder why they didn't accept my offer to come help with the Transition? I have no doubt that the piles of resumes (including mine) vetted to do the vetting are in a pile somewhere while everyone else is pushing the Obamas as a brand (but not as dolls, that got canceled) . . .

No Facebook!!

It is somewhat funny to read that Obama's new White House staff are being told they can't have personal email accounts on their classified computers - no Facebook!

Less amusing was hearing allegations that the Clinton staffers removed the Ws from their computers before leaving eight years. Hey, those are my tax dollars!

This is more amusing: "The Bush daughters showed Sasha and Malia Obama around [the White House]," [comedian Mark] Russell joked. "Barbara showed them where all the bedrooms were, and Jenna showed them how to make a fake ID."

Inaugural Language and Media

As my Latin teacher, Miss Cox, used to say, "Nihil novi sub sole," - there is nothing new under the sun, and this interactive from the New York Times measures all the buzz words used since George Washington's first inaugural address.

The publishing industry is in terrible shape, and several of my friends at B&N.com were laid off last week. Can we take hope from the fact that Obama is a big reader? Will he be able to do anything to promote literacy and book purchasing, whether by individuals or by libraries?

Michiko Kukatani writes that "Mr. Obama’s first book, “Dreams From My Father” (which surely stands as the most evocative, lyrical and candid autobiography written by a future president), suggests that throughout his life he has turned to books as a way of acquiring insights and information from others — as a means of breaking out of the bubble of self-hood and, more recently, the bubble of power and fame."

However, it isn't enough for Obama to be a much needed literary president and for adult readers influenced by Obama rush out to buy books about Lincoln. I wish he would share the books Malia and Sasha are reading so that parents buy these books for their children (although the books need to be read, too).

The Boston Herald offers a list of must-see presidential movies. Embarrassingly, I have only seen one of them! Maybe it is time to join Netflix!

The Obamas' temporary home

I like the idea of Malia and Sasha having pillow fights in the Presidential Suite of the Hay-Adams hotel in DC!

Political Appointments

It is so exciting to see former Harvard basketball player Arne Duncan be named Secretary of Education and Tony Blinken from Kirkland House, previously Biden's staff director on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will follow his boss to the White House, where he will serve as Biden's national security adviser.

If You Were President ...

Help Obama pick his Cabinet! Although I can't imagine Hillary taking a job in this administration, unless perhaps it was a Supreme Court nomination. As yet, the only Cabinet position I feel strongly about is Secretary of State; since my brother works for the State Department, I do think it could be potentially helpful to have the Secretary be someone he interned for in high school (although it would have been better had Kerry been elected in the first place, obviously)! I think Obama owes John Kerry any position he wants, having first provided the opportunity for him to become a household word at the Democratic Convention.

Colin Powell once judged a chili contest for youthful members of the Foreign Service, then told them he wished he could stay to eat it with them but was expected at the White House for lunch! As I recall, my brother thought he said it with real regret.

First Dog

Now that Obama has been elected president, the first order of business is to find the right puppy for his daughters, and apparently the whole country is weighing in...

"Most advised going to a shelter, as the Obamas have said they intend to do. 'As a volunteer at the local shelter, I think it would be a great message to the country about the benefits of adopting a dog, and I like the political spin that in America, any dog can make it to the White House,' one wrote."

Rays or Phillies? do we care?

It is hard to decide who to root for in the World Series, partly because I just don't care now that my team has been eliminated. Overall, I am for the Rays because I like Carlos Pena, who played for Northeastern and briefly for the Red Sox, and Rocco Baldelli, who is from Rhode Island. And how can anyone root for the Phillies when their fans are so unpleasant (at least, the Flyers and Eagles fans seem to be nasty and surely it is primarily the same fan base). But I do like Jamie Moyer who is pitching tonight for the Phillies. His wife is still very beloved by the Boston radio announcers although it must be many years ago that he pitched for the Red Sox.

I like this endorsement by Ron Howard for Obama.