Missing History & Opportunity in the Obama East Wing

What a heady and tumultuous eight months that whirled by with the first biracial president and African American first lady. My focus is the East Wing of the equation. For the Obamas, two cute and curious kids, an internationally famous puppy and so many inspirational firsts or twists on the past such as the incredible Michelle Obama Kitchen Garden that are now part of the American presidential fabric. But not the electronic strand that marks a spot for the current generation or future ones. It also takes time to coalesce all the moving parts of a White House experience in the first year especially with appointed staff learning the history of the People's House, its contents and all who lived there since the muddy time of John & Abigail Adams. The White House is an eighteen acre bubble shared by an energetic family, military trained attack dogs, eagle eyed snipers, priceless antiques, a rambunctious puppy, incredible works of arts, thousands of daily visitors, vintage trees, a one hundred member staff dedicated to the Residence and now, the newest first lady's bees. That's just the stuff you see if on the premises. It is for those who are not on the premises that my post encompasses.

After leaving the Vatican, the First Family heads to Air Force One to go to Ghana.

The only way to understand the White House is to read voraciously or look at the pictures or if one must, suffer through the soundbites the traditional media thinks are important. What endures is the White House legacy. To that end if one is reading this post online, one should also be able to go to the White House website and find the riches and beauty of the house. It takes a while before new first ladies find their sea legs. Only two first ladies had a relative to call upon to get a multitude of details on the operations of a White House, Louisa Adams had her mother-in-law Abigail Adams as Laura Bush had Barbara Bush.

The West Wing side of the Obama Administration shows savvy at the White House website with a blog, policy briefs, and a YouTube channel. Nothing like it exists readily for the Obama East Wing. Yes, there are a couple of photo albums for the first lady, Michelle Obama, but no blog, no fulsome history of each of the State Rooms, the extensive White House American Art collections, no White House Residence senior staff profiles, no details of events hosted by the first lady that resonate - the music series, the output of the $200 investment of the Kitchen Garden or the choices of China, silverware or floral arrangements used at events. Those things must wait for chronicling by a haphazard news media that misses points for posterity. These details are important and will be part of the record of Michelle Obama's tenure as first lady, especially as the first African American. (Photo courtesy the White House of Michelle Obama meeting the retired Chief Florist Nancy Clarke's new granddaughter at a staff party in the mansion.)

Content on the White House website is important and even the West Wing is struggling to capture everything and get pieces filled in. The East Wing should join alongside the West in providing rich, detailed content about state or official events at the People's House. A great piece has been the live streaming of events on the White House website by both the president and the first lady. Time marches rapidly and before we know it, a year will float by before attention turns to making information available on the website.

The Lincoln Sitting Room off the Lincoln Bedroom on the second floor of the Residence. Cataloging once again the art works for the public is critical.

Certainly Laura Bush had some gaps, but one thing about her being n ex-librarian is that it was extremely thorough on her side of the White House web ledger. It was beyond outstanding and a model that future first ladies should follow with attention to detail to pieces of furniture, pre-scheduled Ask the Staff live chats, individual first ladies portraits and biographies, 3 D tours of renovated spaces - including the Cabinet Room and the Situation Room. Interesting and shocking that President Obama can be comfortably ensconced in the Oval Office decor of President Bush but not the technology savvy displayed on his website. A news sighting of the changing of the White House fountains to Celtic Green for Saint Patrick's Day was duly noted by the press, but its not captured as part of the new thinking the first lady is bringing to White House traditions. I'm waiting, but patiently not so much, as too much history is going by too fast.

Michelle Obama oft repeats that she wants to bring the White House to people who have never seen it and offering up a robust web presence would do that for millions in this nation and millions if not billions more outside of it. Nothing has captured the imagination of global interest like her garden and the implications for nutritional value of home grown local food. Prince Charles waxed ecstatic about the Kitchen Garden and members of Congress along with other guests plus the family eat the fruits of the labor of the kids at Bancroft Elementary, Mrs. Obama, the White House chefs and the landscape crew. It would be great to talk about the garden in terms of healthy eating right at the site - rather than through the occasional news article prompted by a photo op.

Every White House Pet is special. There was a Barney Cam - yeah, he bit a reporter for which first lady Laura Bush wrote a handwritten apology, Socks was a superstar cat and Bo is threatening to need his own reporter assigned to him because he garners so much attention. It was a wonderfully weird presidential picture as the Obamas went on vacation to see a baby car seat (for Maya's infant daughter) and Bo leave a helicopter in the same image. The East Wing smartly came up with a Bo piece that went into bags for the troops. It was pretty cute to watch Malia intently read the doggy bio information before she placed it in the backpack she was supposed to be filling at a service event.

Malia is reading every detail.

All great things in good time, I suppose. Please, Obama East Wing staff - please pay attention to the mound of details about the White House, its environs and the furniture of history that many in the public are acutely interested in for the first time. It is an opportunity so many want and few have have to make such a lasting impact on learning about the White House and its internationally famous first family. The archives of what Laura Bush did is an excellent example from where to start and innovate. We need more information, history lessons and access on the White House website - Please, Please, PLEASE with a vermeil candelabra on top. (Michelle Obama in her East Wing office with her new Chief of Staff, Susan Sher.)

A First Lady's Political Combat Unit

An East Wing's organizational structure tells much about the First Lady's operation, but not everything. Lucy Mercer was Eleanor Roosevelt's choice as a personal Social Secretary in 1913. It was Miss Mercer's ongoing intimate relationship FDR that makes the factual history books. In the 21st century, the media climate is a mite overheated in their obsession over celebrity infotainment news or anything that may remotely affect the president in order to make their deadlines and meet profit hopes. It is no surprise that the current East Wing Team, with one notable exception, prefers to do their work as mysterious and powerful Elves skilled at knife fighting behind the scenes. Mixing in photogenic Obamas with an engaged republic makes for hiring the best experienced staff with great political chops an imperative for a Harvard educated lawyer, Michelle Obama. One recent precedent is the straight up firing of Hillary's Clinton's choice as Executive Chef, Walter Scheib, by Mrs. Bush when she switched out Social Secretaries in preparation for a second term. It is definitely not all lace doilies and cut flowers in the East Wing - thank goodness. (Lucy Mercer circa 1915)

A year ago, Michelle Obama had a serious image problem. The Obama brain trust brought in hired guns to do jujitsu by placing her in situations that showcased her as feminine, not hard charging. The obvious subtlety became commonplace when the mainstream press finally noticed America's hearting of her following an appearance on ABC's The View in a dress that set off a shopping frenzy just as Italian Vogue launched its first ever edition featuring models only of African descent with that causing an American Conde Nast publishing train wreck as demand crushed supply. A perfect beautiful storm in the worlds of fashion and politics at the same time evoked more Camelot comparisons as it became quite noticeable a mystique was forming around the future First Family, especially after the first night of the August DNC convention with a great speech and two little girls charming an American audience of tens of millions.

The best first ladies are able to meet the demands of the volunteer role while aligning with the times and circumstances in which they live. Powerful folks behind the scenes in the East Wing make magical things happen. Letitia Baldridge as Social Secretary for the Kennedy's helped define a political and cultural brand that endures almost fifty years later. Mrs. Baldridge was in the midst of the Camelot Court, but not a central focus with klieg lights turned on her.

Mrs. Obama has yet to give an official press conference. She retains control of every aspect of the Obama Family brand. Undeterred, The Washington Post brought back their style reporter, Robin Givhan, to cover the blooming first lady beat in the midst of cutbacks at the media conglomerate. Handling the questions about Mrs. Obama is Press Secretary Katie McCormick Lelyveld (in car) with strategic advice from Special Assistant to the President and Director of Communications for the First Lady, Camile Johnston (2nd from left). Chicagoan Katie has two years under her belt handling tough questions about Michelle Obama. She was a former Hillary Clinton intern working for Stephanie Cutter during senator Kerry's 2004 run. Californian Camille worked for Tipper Gore with a quick stint at WBBM in Chicago as a Communications Director and on to the LA Dodgers as a Senior Vice president before landing at 1600. Camille works alongside a deputy, Semonti Mustaphi.

Samantha Tubman at campaign event 2008, left - Melissa Winter, right

Not yet 30 years old, Samantha Tubman is the Assistant Social Secretary after serving on the much lauded Obama campaign advance team. Jackie Norris shared a van and conversation with Michelle Obama many times on lonely stretches of highways crisscrossing her adopted home state of Iowa throughout 2007. The former teacher is Mrs. Obama's Chief of Staff and has presidential political experience rooted in Al Gore's run at the White House. Melissa Winter, Ms. Norris's Deputy Chief of Staff presidential experience arises from being Joe Lieberman's 2004 Director of Scheduling before spending almost two years on the campaign trail with Michelle Obama. She is highly skilled in the ways and means of Washington DC and was Michelle Obama's first official hire. (Jackie Norris pictured, right)

Many of this First Lady's power brokers attend policy meetings and other discussions in the West Wing ensuring synergy and message control. A few report in a matrix fashion to the president and the first lady. These are just a few of the power brokers on the East Wing, with more to be named later, to put a name on the work product coming from the individuals making it the People's House.

However, the real power in the East Wing is neither a volunteer first lady nor its dedicated staff for this group. It's the grand lady who lives on the third floor of the White House residence that cares for her grandchildren who live downstairs.

Will Bo Get White House Holiday Treatment?

First ladies love their pets.  According to her Thursday speech at the Hilton before 2000 spouses of congress members, Supreme Court justices, cabinet secretaries and other family and friends, Michelle Obama made it clear she was doing the o'dark thirty Bo walking. Her kids are getting good grades and hitting the snooze alarm as Mrs. Obama learns a new parenting/puppy lesson. Another first lady who loved her dog Millie enough to take dictation, translating dog bark into a book and bequeathing one of the 1989 puppies to her son W, liked the immortalized and sculpture technique proudly displayed in the Bush White House beneath her ground floor portrait. One way to pay pet tributes is during the Holidays, but the East Wing Staff needs a lot of prep time to execute the theme flawlessly.  (White House photos courtesy Tina Hager)

Historic pet motifs arise out of past incidents, mischief or a loving theme to make interesting displays during the White House holiday season. Famed Pastry chef, Roland Mesnier created Socks, the cat, peeking from one of the White House windows in one of his exclusive gingerbread architectural wonders for a Clinton Christmas to showcase the White House.  There is Nelson, George Washington's beloved Revolutionary War steed prancing above a Christmas garland bedecked mantle in the East Room.  Calvin Coolidge of the Teapot Dome fiasco had a presidential pooch, Rob Roy with a proud lineage of sheep herding that turned into a quivering mass of NO when it came to riding the White House family elevator.  But the most famous of their pets were Rebecca and Reuben, the family raccoons.

Now is the time 2009 Christmas plans are drawn in further fine detail in the East Wing.  During the transition, First lady-to-be Michelle Obama received a thorough briefing of the traditions of the White House; Easter Egg Roll, Spring (April) & Fall (October) Garden Tours, the upcoming holiday season Thanksgiving through January 1, 2010. The themes are chosen well in advance for the holidays to allow artisans enough time to craft and get their work to the White House.  In 2003, Laura Bush chose to pay holiday homage to White House Pets, past and present.  Even though Mrs. Obama may choose another theme, somewhere Bo will show up either in a pastry or as a holiday ornament and maybe just maybe on the first official Obama White House greeting card.

Rob Roy on Ground Floor display. Woodrow Wilson's sheep depicted in East Room

Lafayette's gift of an alligator lived in the bathroom of John Quincy Adams East Room.  Liberty was famous for being President's Ford's favorite golden lounge lizard in the Oval Office. In the mid 1970's Liberty gave birth to presidential puppies. Theodore Roosevelt son's pony Algonquin was more fearless than Coolidge's Rob Roy by getting squashed into the elevator by another sibling undetected by White house staff to visit Archie.  The Roosevelts also had a colorful macaw.  In 1944, Cousin Franklin, was a wee bit absentminded and left Fala behind on some Aleutian island and you bet the president sent a Navy destroyer to go fetch his dog.  Him and Her, I am not sure whether to pity them or just admire their longevity alongside Yuki - a Texas gas station find by his daughter Luci.  When President Johnson lifted his pet Beagle, Him, up by the ears, America was horrified. 

President Warren Harding's dog, Laddie Boy held court in his own chair at cabinet meetings.  Senator Ted Kennedy and his wife Vicki gave Bo, the Portuguese Water Dog to the Obama family following a great White House tradition.  Checkers was a gift to Vice President Richard & Pat Nixon while Pushinka (Russian = fluffy) came to Caroline Kennedy courtesy of pound the kitchen table shoe guy and Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev.  Bo's antics will cause the White House's chefs to come up with something uniquely his for the holiday season.  The key is where will his icing and cake plaster likeness show up in a place of honor, Ground Floor, East Room or greeting guests for the holidays at the East Gate? 

(Photo Pete Souza/White House) White House Deputy Mosteller tries to save his latest shoeshine in Cabinet Room.