(b. 1961–)
44th president of the United States“…I’m extremely happy with her, and part of it has to do with the fact that she is at once completely familiar to me, so that I can be myself and she knows me very well and I trust her completely, but at the same time she is also a complete mystery to me in some ways. And there are times when we are lying in bed and I look over and sort of have a start. Because I realize here is this other person who is separate and different and has different memories and backgrounds and thoughts and feelings. It’s that tension between familiarity and mystery that makes for something strong, because, even as you build a life of trust and comfort and mutual support, you retain some sense of surprise or wonder about the other person.”
more infosource: “A Couple in Chicago,” interview by Mariana Cook, The New Yorker, January 19, 2009.
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category: love, marriage, memory, Michelle Obama, partnership, politics, relationship, trust
medium: interview
notes: Interview originally conducted on May 26, 1996 by Mariana Cook, who visited the Obamas in Hyde Park as part of a photography project on couples in America.
“The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented.”
more infosource: “Obama statement on death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs,” Washington Post, October 5, 2011.
category: apple, inventor, Steve Jobs, technology, visionary
medium: White House statement
“What a week. As some of you heard, the state of Hawaii released my official long-form birth certificate. Hopefully this puts all doubts to rest. But just in case there are any lingering questions, tonight I’m prepared to go a step further. Tonight, for the first time, I am releasing my official birth video.”
more infosource: The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, April 30, 2011.
medium: Speech
notes: Obama's
“There are very few moments in our lives where we have the privilege to witness history taking place. This is one of those moments. This is one of those times. The people of Egypt have spoken, their voices have been heard, and Egypt will never be the same.”
more infosource: remarks on Egypt, delivered in the Grand Foyer of the White House, February 11, 2011.
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category: Cairo, democracy, demonstration, Egypt, history
medium: speech
“In fact, to every young person listening tonight who’s contemplating their career choice: If you want to make a difference in the life of our nation; if you want to make a difference in the life of a child—become a teacher. Your country needs you.”
more infosource: State of the Union, January 25, 2011.
category: career, education, politics, state of the union, teacher
medium: speech
notes: full transcript here
“When we promised during the campaign ‘change you can believe in,’ it wasn’t ‘change you can believe in in 18 months.’ It was ‘change you can believe in—but we’re going to have to work for it.’ ”
more infosource: “In ‘Daily Show’ Visit, Obama Defends Record,” by Sheryl Gay Stolberg, The New York Times, October 27, 2010.
category: campaign, change, politics
medium: television interview
“This shit would be really interesting if we weren’t in the middle of it.”
more infosource: Game Change by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin (New York: HarperCollins, 2010), p376.
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category: election, politics, president
medium: nonfiction
President Barack Obama