Obamas' pet to be a part of first family tradition

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Obamas' pet to be a part of first family tradition
By ANN SANNER – 6 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House has been mostly a dog house when it comes to presidential pets. And President-elect Obama intends to keep it that way.

During the presidential campaign, Obama had promised his daughters a pet no matter the outcome of the election. He told them Tuesday night they'd be getting a pooch.

"I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House," Obama told Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, during his victory speech in Chicago.

As a Washington guessing game, trying to predict what breed of dog the Obamas will select doesn't rank up there with whom the president-elect will pick for his Cabinet, but anticipation about a new first dog is high nonetheless.

Will it be a Labrador racing around the White House grounds? Or something in the lapdog range? Perhaps something in-between. Pound puppy or purebred?

The poodle was the top choice for the Obamas in an American Kennel Club survey of more than 42,000 people, the organization said.

President Bush's two Scottish terriers, Barney and Miss Beazley, and cat, Willie, currently occupy the residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Barney, who on Thursday bit a reporter's finger as he tried for an "interview," even has his own Web page on the White House Web site and stars in an annual Christmas video.

First pets have long been a tradition with first families. Dogs are among the most popular picks.

"If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog," Harry Truman once said.

George Washington got his dog, Vulcan, from the Marquis de Lafayette, a Revolutionary War hero, as a gift. James Garfield named his dog Veto as an indirect warning to Congress. Abraham Lincoln's beloved dog, Fido, was killed by a knife-wielding drunk.

The Kennedys had Marcaroni the pony. The Clintons had Buddy, a chocolate Lab, and Socks, a cat. President Clinton once told reporters the dog curled up with him when his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, wasn't home.

"He sleeps with me when Hillary's not here," the former president said. "He's my true friend. We have a great time."

Had Republican Sen. John McCain been elected on Tuesday, more than 20 pets, mostly fish, could have moved in.

Presidential pets are often attention grabbers in their own right.

The first President Bush's spaniel, Millie, had a best-seller, "Millie's Book, As Dictated to Barbara Bush," that outsold Bush's own memoirs.

Fala, Franklin Roosevelt's Scottish terrier, received more mail than many presidents. A statue of the pooch is also part of his presidential memorial in Washington.

"Ever since President Hoover there have been dogs at the White House who have been major photographic stars," says William Bushong, historian at the White House Historical Society and curator of their exhibit on White House pets.

Pets "are part of painting a whole picture of a president's life," says Bushong, and since we consider pet lovers to be people who are warm and giving, they can be good publicity. For example, Hoover's dog, King Tut, accompanied him in campaign photos, which improved his image with the public.

President Nixon's dog, Checkers, is credited with saving his political career.

In 1952, Nixon defended his candidacy for vice president when a story spread that he had a secret slush fund. In a nationally televised address, Nixon did admit to taking one "gift" — his dog.

"The kids love the dog, and we're going to keep it!" an emotional Nixon said in an outburst known to the day as the Checkers speech.

Freelance writer Linda Lombardi also contributed to this report.

Obamas' pet to be a part of first family tradition