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Obama not bothered about his security
Soon-to-be president Barack Obama said he is not worried about his own security, despite a higher level of threats against him than any other president-elect in history.
- AP
- Published: 23:27 November 27, 2008
- Obama with his daughter Malia, 10, wait to greet people at a food bank at St Columbanus Catholic Church on the South Side of Chicago.
- Image Credit: AP
Chicago: Soon-to-be president Barack Obama said he is not worried about his own security, despite a higher level of threats against him than any other president-elect in history.
Since Obama's election, law enforcement officials have seen potential threatening writings, racist Internet postings and other troubling activity popping up. But Obama said in an interview with Barbara Walters for ABC television that he never thinks about his safety.
"Part of it because I've got this pretty terrific crew of Secret Service guys that follow me everywhere I go, but also because I have a deep religious faith and faith in people that carries me through the day," he said. "And my job is just to make sure I'm doing my job, and if I do, I can't worry about that kind of stuff."
In all the stress of the transition, Obama said he is trying to eat healthy food, work out regularly and refrain from smoking now that the campaign is over, but he did not say he has quit cigarettes entirely.
Obama, a smoker who has quit but admitted occasional relapses, said in the interview that he fell "off the wagon during the campaign" a few times.
Intense pressure
He did not directly answer Walters' question about whether he is sneaking an occasional cigarette now amid the intense pressure of building his administration and the countdown to his swearing-in on January 20.
"Part of what I think comes with this role as president is that you're not perfect but hopefully you're trying to set a good example for people, and that starts with my two kids," Obama said in the interview that aired Wednesday night on ABC-TV.
He said he has been trying to stay healthy since the days of burgers on the campaign trail. The president-elect works out nearly every day, and says he is watching his diet too.
"I've been trying to stay fit," he said.
Girls must scoop it
President-elect Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, said their young daughters will still have to do chores in the White House, including picking up after their new puppy.
Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10, will have to "scoop the poop," the president-elect said in an interview with Barbara Walters broadcast on ABC-TV on Wednesday. "We've been talking to them about that. We don't want litter on the White House lawns. They're going to have to do their job."
The Obamas long ago promised that the girls could get a dog after the election, but the family has not yet chosen what kind. Walters suggested one like her Havanese named Cha Cha.
The president-elect grimaced and said it sounded like a "little yappy dog," the type that seems a little "girly."
"We're girls, we have a house full of girls," his wife shot back.
He pledged the family would "have a big, rambunctious dog of some sort."
Either way, walking the dog and cleaning up its messes will be the girls' responsibility. The Obamas said the children will also help out around the house.
"That was the first thing I said to some of the staff when I did my visit," Michelle Obama said. "I said, 'You know, we're going to have to set up some boundaries,' because they're going to need to be able to make their beds, and clean up."
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