Nov 182008
Having heard on the news all the phony reasons as to why President-elect Obama must give up his Blackberry, I was planning to write down my strong opinions here. But, it’s no longer necessary… it appears that Newsweek has done it, and I agree with them on all counts: Obama should keep his Blackberry, as it is time for the United States to have a 21st century president.
From the link;
“his desktop computer in the Oval Office. (He will be the first president to have one).”
Fine, I get it that the POTUS has people that look after things for him but how truly odd to think of working in an office the last 16 years (Clinton and Bush) and not having a PC on your desk. Might be a good thing though. Let’s hope Obama doesn’t become the next Carter obsessing over the budget using Excel data tools or doing his own PowerPoint decks!
The problem with Clinton wasn’t so much what wasn’t going on under his desk, but what WAS underneath it. Wocka.
Ultimately, whether he chooses to keep a Blackberry or not will amount to little more than a public gesture of the populism that ‘Change’ was good at embodying. Stay in touch with friends (as the article mentions)? Great. But is that really the job of POTUS anyway? Newsweek’s suggestion that the Iraq imbroglio wouldn’t have occurred if W. had been able to keep his Hotmail seems a bit far fetched to me. I can only assume that Air Force One and the White House have the necessary array of sat phones, telexes, signal lamps etc. to allow the President to keep in touch with the people who really matter; Putin, King Abdullah, Elders of Zion et al. that a Blackberry is probably unnecessary.