Obama thought 'Yes we Can' was corny

But his wife convinced him to use the 3 words which defined his race for president

But his wife convinced him to use the 3 words which defined his race for president

When US President Barack Obama was first introduced to the now famous three-word call to arms that came to define his quest for the presidency Yes, we can! his initial response could be paraphrased as "No, I won't!".

Childish words

According to a new book, when the slogan was first suggested to him he blanched, because he felt that the phrase was "corny" and "childish".

Only when his wife Michelle intervened and convinced him that it would work did he relent and use it in speeches and campaign events.

"I don't like it. Come on,"u00a0 Obama is quoted as saying in Barack and Michelle: Portrait of an American Marriage, by Christopher Anderson, parts of which appeared in the US press yesterday. "It will work.

Trust me," the then future First Lady assured the candidate.

The campaign

The slogan was suggested by Obama's chief political adviser, David Axelrod, during the 2004 Illinois Senate race.

Obama was an influential figure during the campaign, and according to Anderson killed off the idea of Hillary Clinton becoming Obama's running-mate.
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"Do you really want Bill and Hillary just down the hall from you in the White House," she is understood to have asked her husband.

"Could you live with that?" She eventually chose Joe Biden, while Clinton is now Secretary of State.

Wedding woes

The 326-page book offers other insights into the Obama partnership, including an assertion that eight years into the marriage,u00a0Obama wondered if their union would fall victim to her husband's political ambition.

Obama allegedly bristled at his wife's "constant criticism" about his role at home. The two also struggled with fertility issues, and Obama discussed adoption with friends.

The book also talks about last year's heated campaign, with groupies passing their telephone numbers tou00a0 Obama. "He's never given me reason to doubt him,"u00a0 theu00a0 First Ladyu00a0 said.