England for Obama

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?!)

Look! They’ve added a plant! And a window!

Oh yes, and he talked about the economy and stuff. Something about “creating 2.5 million jobs”?

So how many of these do you want me to bring back with me?

(Coming next: limited edition 2012 London Olympics Oyster cards.)

*Whistles*

I said the other day how important the internet has been during this election; that it’s been the first truly 21st century election.

Andrew Sullivan takes it a logical step further:

“I don’t believe that Obama would have ever been able to become president in the era before the Internet.”

I think he could be right. Although not so much in the sense of the money raised, but more importantly in the spreading of information. Can you imagine how the African-American candidate Barack Obama would have fared in a country dominated by the agenda of Fox News and right-wing radio talk shows? With no blogs, no independent news sites and no YouTube to back up his case, spread information and correct lies told about him? Doesn’t bear thinking about, does it? Hurrah for this here interweb thingy!

This has been on the cards for some time - well, ever since the presidential candidate became the President-elect - but now it’s been confirmed. Barack Obama’s chief campaign strategist, David Axelrod, has been named his Senior Advisor. Or adviser, as they say - or rather, write - over in America.

Here’s what the Senior Advisor does. And here was Axelrod talking on Countdown about the battle for the swing states, back in October. Ahh, remember the battle for the swing states?! *Goes all misty-eyed* :

(A quick reminder: Obama did, indeed, win Indiana. Just.)

Some David Axelrod trivia:

- He says he became interested in politics at the age of 5, when he watched John F. Kennedy become president.

- Before becoming a political consultant, he spent eight years as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, where he became the youngest political writer and columnist in the paper’s history.

- He first met Barack Obama in 1992. And says of his boss: “He’s not just a client, he’s a very good friend of mine. We share a worldview, and we share sensibilities.”

- His phone’s ringtone when Obama calls is Signed, Sealed, Delivered.

- He cried throughout Obama’s DNC acceptance speech in Denver. Aww!

…after Thanksgiving. And it must be true, because I just heard it on BBC Radio Four. And now I just read it on Politico.

Looks like Bill passed the test, then.

The Rachel Maddow Show - which is still missing Rachel Maddow (I like to imagine that she’s sunning herself on a Mexican beach with Keith Olbermann right now) - covered the latest on the Bill/Hillary Clinton story on Monday night:

Say what you like about the Obama team, but at least they’re applying the same standards to absolutely everybody who wants a job in the new White House administration. To wit, the final section on their application form:

“Please provide any other information, including information about other members of your family, that could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the president-elect.”

All the Bill shenanigans aside: it’s a bit of a tricky one, that, eh? I mean, who’s to know what Barack himself would find embarrassing? Let alone your own family, without declaring it to them in the first place. Are people telling their loved ones about all the naughty things they’ve got up to, in case they get a job in the White House (and imagine how gutting it would be to tell your folks about that incident with the goat, only to not even get an interview for that internship)? Or are applicants just revealing all on this form - and if so, are the HR team at Obama HQ, in fact, acting like a confession box? Wow. I mean, I know he’s not the Messiah. But who knew Barack was so pope-like?

No, not due to cold. But due to Democrat Mark Begich beating Alaskan favourite (and convicted felon) Ted Stevens in the senate race. The votes have finally been counted and Stevens has conceded.

This is a Very, Very Good Thing.

Everyone’s favourite Vice President-elect turns 66 today. Gawd bless ya, Joe!

Here’s how it was celebrated in Obamaland:

“Obama surprised his No. 2 after their weekly lunch Wednesday at the transition office in Chicago. According to staff, Obama presented Biden - a Delaware senator with decades of foreign policy experience - with a dozen cupcakes decorated with candles and teased, “You’re 12 years old!”

Staff reported that Biden, ever astute in the art of politics, laughed at the his boss’s joke. He responded: “Maybe in dog years!”

Obama led the rest of the staff in song, then handed over some Chicago-themed gifts: a White Sox cap, a Bears cap and a bucket of Garrett’s popcorn, a hometown favorite.”

“Laughed at his boss’s jokes”? “Led the staff in song”? See what sort of anarchy has reached the White House?! Next thing we know, they’ll be spreading the cupcakes around.

The man is Eric Holder. Here’s the story.