England for Obama

Yes, this weekend, the Obamas up sticks and move to Washington. Malia and Sasha start at their new school on Monday; and of course the inauguration takes place in 16 days, 14 hours, 24 minutes and 15 seconds… no, 7 seconds… no…

The Obamas are bucking tradition and won’t be staying at Blair House - the official President’s ‘guest house’, as featured in the very final episode of The West Wing - but not because they’re maaaavericks or anything. No, it’s because Blair House is “unavailable, booked solidly through Jan 15, the Bush administration said”. Yes, really. Presumably, it took them by surprise, the whole ‘new president being elected’ thing.

Instead, the Obamas are staying at the fancy-schmancy Hay-Adams Hotel between now and inauguration day (or at least until Jan 15, presumably). According to its blurb, the Hay-Adams “offers 145 guestrooms, including 20 suites, with spectacular views of the White House, Lafayette Square or St. John’s Church, the “Church of the Presidents.” And they’re not kidding:

“Choose from king-bedded rooms overlooking the White House, queen-bedded rooms with interior/courtyard views, connecting rooms, rooms with two double beds, or rooms and suites with pull-out sofas,” continues the blurb, in a room-tastic way.

“Whether you are an executive in DC for a business meeting, a family on a sightseeing trip, or someone about to be inaugurated, you are sure to find an option at the Hay-Adams to suit your needs.” It continues. Sort of.

And can’t you just imagine Barack, sleeping in his king-bed, walking through his connecting king-rooms, and breakfasting in sub-zero temperatures on his king-terrace overlooking the King White House? I know I can.

Speaking of king-beds - I keep thinking of that great Mitch Hedberg gag (seen here at 4:18-4.30):

Two little girls:

And Joe Biden for VP!

Well,I guess Joe is used to the whole ‘public transport route to DC’, eh?

Yes, like many of us, the new First Family and Vice-First Family will be travelling to Washington by train on the weekend before the inauguration. Let’s hope they at least put up a few balloons and a bit of bunting in their carriage.

Here was yesterday’s press release from the Presidential Inauguration Committee:

President-Elect and Vice President-Elect to Host Events in Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore on Weekend Before Inauguration

Obama, Biden and Their Families Will Travel to DC by Train on Jan. 17th

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Committee announced that the President-elect, Vice President-elect and their families will travel - via railroad — to Washington, D.C. on Saturday, January 17th and host events along the way in Philadelphia, Wilmington, and Baltimore.   The trip marks the final leg of a journey that began on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Illinois and will culminate on the steps of the United States Capitol.

“As part of the most open and accessible Inauguration in history, we hope to include as many Americans as possible who wish to participate, but can’t be in Washington,” said Emmett S. Beliveau, Executive Director of the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Committee.  “These events will allow us to do that while honoring the rich history and tradition of previous inaugural journeys.”

In the tradition of past Presidents-elect, the daylong trip will include a series of events on the way to Washington, DC. Saturday morning, President-elect Obama and his family will hold an event in Philadelphia before boarding a train bound for Wilmington, Delaware, where he will be joined by Vice President-elect Biden and his family.  Together, the families will travel to Baltimore, Maryland, and hold another event, before finally arriving in Washington, D.C. on Saturday evening.

In keeping with the theme of the 2009 Inauguration, “Renewing America’s Promise,” the President-elect and Vice President-elect will hold events in some of the cities instrumental to that promise: Philadelphia, where that promise was realized; Baltimore, where that promise was defended, then immortalized in our national anthem; and Washington, where Americans of all backgrounds will gather over four days, united in common purpose and resolved to renew that promise once more.

It’s been announced that The Cutest Children Not In My Family, Malia and Sasha Obama, will attend the private Sidwell Friends school in Washington - the same school that Chelsea Clinton went to when her parents were in the White House.

It’s also the school that Joe Biden’s grandchildren go to - and according to the HuffPo report:

“Al Gore III, the son of former Vice President Al Gore, also attended Sidwell, where tuition is $28,442 at the lower school and $29,442 at the middle and upper schools.”

Al Gore III? Who knew?! (Not that he went to Sidwell - but that there’s an Al Gore III?!)

Thought you liked these two people before? Watch this:

Watch CBS Videos Online

Note 1: Don’t worry if you’re thinking, “I’d love to watch it, but I don’t have an hour”. The interview only takes up 40 minutes of the aforementioned 60.

Note 2: If you’re not distracted by the clock, the theme, erm, noise to 60 Minutes sounds spookily as if it’s about to burst into Zoo Station by U2.

Note 3: It’s a nice touch that the advert playing in the breaks is one helping people to stop smoking. What with that being Barack’s promise to Michelle, should he run for office.

Note 4: Isn’t it nice to see a First Couple who are bright, articulate, thoughtful, measured, compassionate, warm and grounded?

And I’m not going to list this as a ‘Note’, because it’s far too serious: but Barack’s re-commitment to closing Guantamo and ending torture was, for me, the most important thing he said in this interview, and was an utter relief to hear.

Thought that Zoe Bartlet’s codename ‘Bookbag’ was cute in The West Wing?  Well, that ain’t got nothing on seven-year-old Sasha Obama’s.

Yes, the secret service codenames for the Obama family have been revealed, and they are… <Drumroll>…

Barack Obama - Renegade

Michelle Obama - Renaissance

Malia Obama - Radiance

Sasha Obama - Rosebud

It’s alright. It’s OK to go “Aww!”.

Oh, and while we’re at it:

Joe Biden - Celtic

Jill Biden - Capri

The secret service have actually been giving the Obamas protection, and therefore using these names, for some time now - since during the primaries - and of course, secret service codenames aren’t secret in themselves. It’s secret service, see. As opposed to secret (service) codenames.

The codenames are chosen by the White House Communications Agency and used so that secret service staff can know who they’re talking about quickly, easily and without ambiguity. A quick look at Wikipedia reveals the names of White House inhabitants past and (just about) present - and yes, alliteration has always been the (code)name of the game. Here are some examples:

John F. Kennedy - Lancer

Jackie Kennedy - Lace

Caroline Kennedy - Lyric

Richard Nixon - Searchlight

Pat Nixon - Starlight

Ronald Reagan - Rawhide

Nancy Reagan - Rainbow

Bill Clinton - Eagle (clearly Bill Clinton was winning the ‘Coolest Secret Service Codename’ game until Barack Obama came along. Doh!)

Hillary Clinton - Evergreen

Chelsea Clinton - Energy

Al Gore - Sawhorse or Sundance

Karenna Gore - Smurfette (can’t work out if this is the best or worst codename)

George W Bush - Tumbler (was this because of his previous drinking habit? A little facetious, no?)

Laura Bush - Tempo

Jenna Bush - Twinkle

So there you have it. Coming soon: your family’s Random Secret Service Codename Generator. Why not pick a letter and play along at home?!