Obama: A First Citizen in more ways than one

When Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th US president yesterday, he brought a whole slew of firsts to the White House, beginning with being the first black president of the country.

Obama: A First Citizen in more ways than one

> Enters the White House with a literate and introspective memoir behind him

> Has a foreign father
> Grew up in Hawaii, the 50th state
> Whose parents earned doctoral degrees
> Could once speak the Indonesian language
> Was president of the Harvard Law Review
> Has parents of different races
> Has a sister from Asia and a sister from Africa and a wife from the black working-class South Side of Chicago.
> Despite being the first African-American president, has no slaves, but a few slaveholders in his ancestry.

Michelle Obama wearing Isabel Toledo
Michelle Obama (pictured right) wore a sparkling gold sheath dress with matching coat by Cuban-born American designer Isabel Toledo to the inauguration. Barack Obama was wearing a red tie and white shirt with his suit.
Toledo is considered among the more avant garde US designers. Michelle has been noted for choosing unexpected fashion designers.

Moving day magic by 93 pairs of hands

While the transfer of power unfolded at Capitol Hill, at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, another sort of miracle occurred: moving day.

Between the time the Bushes left the White House for the inauguration and the Obamas entered it in the afternoon, the White House would look like the new first family had always lived there, with clothes folded in drawers, pictures on dresser tops and walls and stuffed animals on beds.

The highly orchestrated quick-change operation, conducted by the 93-member White House residence staff, has no parallel.

"It's controlled chaos," said Ann Stock, who was social secretary in the Clinton White House. "They have about four to five hours to unpack, put everything away in closets, put up the family pictures and to make the house the Obamas' home by the time they come in from the parade. It's an extraordinary switchover."

Gary Walters, who retired in 2007 as the White House chief usher, the official responsible for overseeing the executive residence, said, "In the morning, the president and first lady are saying their goodbyes. Then the staff has to turn right around and become the staff of the Obamas by the afternoon. It's not an easy task."

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