Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Yes we can!

I had another post drafted out for today but it just didn't seem suitable. Australia had a full afternoon's coverage of the U.S. elections. Of course, I know all the details of the policies each party has been claiming they will implement but I still enjoyed the speeches by both John McCain and Barrack Obama. Even Aaron seemed to have a fun afternoon. He cheered when the people on the TV cheered and then during Obama's speech, he chimed in at every "Yes we can!"

Here are a few of the questions we had in our house as we watched and waited:

Does George W Bush already have all his bags packed and when does he move out? Or HAS he already moved out? Is Obama's bag packed as well?

Does the entire staff currently working at the White House have to leave their jobs?

The US ambassador to Australia has already announced his resignation. Do all the other US ambassadors in the world have to do that too? Or just the Republican ones? Or maybe they currently are all Republican....we don't know.

What happens between now and January 20, 2009? Who is responsible for the U.S.?

Do they repaint the living areas of the White House whenever somebody new moves in?

Does the outgoing family take all their bed sheets with them and then the new ones pick out their own ones? Will they bring sheets that they currently own or do they buy new ones? What about cutlery? What belongs to the White House and what belongs to the families that reside there.

OK. Enough of all that. We wondered about all sorts of stuff. Somebody should do a documentary about the details of what goes into moving into the White House.

Yes, the speeches were gracious and stirring but, my favorite quote from today was from the news anchor saying something like "they will be moving into government housing shortly...." I just couldn't stop laughing at how they put it!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I liked John McCain's football broadcaster imitation saying," He - Can - Go - All - The - Way to the White House" vs. to the end zone for a touch down.

Mike said...

To many questions to answer here right now. Myself or Bilbo can come back or even do a whole post on your questions.

Anonymous said...

I can't answer all of these, but I can answer some.

George Bush is still in charge until January 20th. He lives at the White House until then. Right now, Obama is President-Elect. He doesn't take power until he is sworn in.

Yes, it is almost an entirely new staff.

The Ambassadors will be reappointed, but some of them will keep their jobs.

Bilbo said...

Sarah's answers are correct. Senator Obama is not the president until he finishes taking the oath of office on January 20th...Mr Bush is the president until then, although he may choose to consult with Mr Obama on issues (I doubt it).

I believe that ambassadors who are professional foreign service officers remain in place, but those who are political appointees submit their resignations and expect to be replaced. All cabinet officers and many second-and third-tier officials who are political appointees submit their resignations, although the new president may retain some or all of them, as he wishes (he usually doesn't). Federal and Supreme Court judges are not affected. The White House staff people who are part of the President's executive staff leave; the housekeeping staff (except for the executive chef) generally stays. The incoming first family can redecorate the White House family quarters as they like, and as far as I know they bring their own sheets.

Take all this with a grain of salt. I think it's right, but will check it out and tell you more later.

Bilbo said...

Oh, yes ... I thought both the Obama victory speech and the McCain concession speech were masterful. I hope everyone on both sides was listening.

Jean-Luc Picard said...

I think they all lose their jobs. Hardly job security is it?

Unknown said...

Amanda,

Not a doco, but a reality show, you get voted into the house not out of it. Then you could throw in Sarah Palin and a moose as the intruders.
I think I have a winner here, where is channel Ten!!!!!

Amanda said...

Mike, I knew that either you or Bilbo would know at least some of the answers :)

Bilbo, Sarah, Thanks for taking the time to answer those questions. I shared them with my parents and they were very satisfied :)

JLP, I was thinking exactly the same thing.

GJ, That would be an interesting twist on a reality TV show. There's your new job :)