could it really be him? yeah, probably
it has been only two months since the obamas moved into the white house, but here in the nation’s capital, some people are already asking: have you bumped into your president and first lady yet?
this is no idle question. during the bush years, washington got used to a homebody president who preferred bringing friends into the executive mansion to venturing outside it. but these days, president obama and his wife, michelle, are popping up all over this city.
like basketball? there was mr. obama sitting courtside recently alongside astonished fans at the verizon center as he cheered on the chicago bulls in a losing battle against the washington wizards.
enjoy the performing arts? the obamas have been to the kennedy center twice, once to see the alvin ailey dance troupe — with daughters malia, 10, and sasha, 7 — and once for a musical tribute to senator edward m. kennedy.
how about a tasty meal? the obamas have enjoyed white-tablecloth dining at equinox, bobby van’s steakhouse, b. smith’s and georgia brown’s, and street-corner casual at ben’s chili bowl and five guys burgers and fries.
they have gone to parent-teacher conferences, school sporting events and visited working-class and gentrifying communities that have rarely served as stomping grounds for american presidents and first ladies — speaking to students at a charter school in a predominantly hispanic neighborhood, and worshiping in a black church, among other activities. (the president and friends also tossed a basketball around at a city-run recreation center.)
“everywhere you go, you’re wondering whether or not you’ll run into them,” said washington’s mayor, adrian m. fenty, who has lunched with the president and first lady.
political observers are still debating whether this out-and-about style simply reflects the personal inclinations of the obamas or some political calculus (or both). but one thing is clear: no other modern president has reached out so widely to so many corners of the city, says doris kearns goodwin, a presidential historian.
that is no surprise to friends of the first family. the obamas, after all, are city people, former community organizers who have long felt at home in the urban landscape. mr. obama is the first president since richard m. nixon to be elected while living in a city neighborhood, in his case, chicago’s racially and economically diverse hyde park. and the obamas are now eager to explore the city beyond the white house walls.
“they want their lives not to be confined solely to the white house but rather to become a part of the urban, vibrant fabric of d.c.,” valerie jarrett, a senior adviser to the president and a close family friend, said in an interview.
of course, the social schedule of the president and first lady is also a powerful political tool, a way to nurture political alliances and to cultivate political narratives. the obamas can enjoy their time out on the town while, at the same time, reaping potential dividends by reinforcing their promise to bring change to washington and honing an image of openness and accessibility, some washington watchers say.
“let’s face it: it’s very good for getting re-elected,” letitia baldrige, the white house social secretary to jacqueline kennedy, said of the obamas’ socializing. “it’s a great bank of good will in which they’re making deposits every day.”
political analysts say that the images of mr. obama hooting and hollering during a basketball game, eating a hot dog at ben’s chili bowl and watching the ballet with his wife and daughters — pastimes routinely broadcast to a national audience — may humanize a politician who is sometimes viewed as too cerebral and distant.
dee dee myers, a former press secretary for president clinton, said the outings allow mr. obama to project “an accessible glamour” and to convey a message of hope during bleak economic times. (she said that even the gregarious clintons never got out this much.)
“it’s very humanizing and very encouraging to people,” ms. myers said. “and it’s valuable for him politically.”
some warn, however, that such a schedule can also carry political risks, particularly if it undermines the mystique of the presidency, the image of power and command that a president needs to enact an ambitious agenda. americans love the idea of the common man in a position of political power. (think jimmy stewart in “mr. smith goes to washington.”) but they can also lose some respect if a politician seems too familiar. (think jimmy carter in his cardigan.)
“every once in a while it’s great, but there’s a chance of overexposing yourself socially,” said bradley a. blakeman, a former aide to president george w. bush. “people scratch their heads and say, “doesn’t the president have other things to do, especially in a crisis?’ ”
it is certainly a shift from historical precedent. in the 19th century, washington was mostly viewed as a humid, uninviting town that presidents escaped from when they could.
in modern times, said michael beschloss, a presidential historian, the notion of presidential engagement with washington has typically meant “going to parties in georgetown or making friends on capitol hill, in other words, engaging with the permanent political establishment here.”
“this is really different,” said mr. beschloss of the obamas forays into casual restaurants and working-class neighborhoods.
the obamas know that it’s different. as the first african-american couple in the white house, they want to reach beyond the prosperous, predominantly white corridors of washington.
“we were taught you have to get to know the community you’re in, and you have to be a part of that community,” mrs. obama said during a visit to mary’s center, a health clinic that serves a predominantly hispanic neighborhood. “d.c. is our community now, and it’s our home.”
the president says he hopes to serve as a bridge in a town long divided between the haves and have-nots. “i want to see if we can bring those two washingtons together,” mr. obama said in an interview on the abc program “this week with george stephanopoulos.”
for ordinary people, the unexpected encounters with the new president and first lady are astonishing.
joe clark, a corporate lawyer who sat near the president at the basketball game, described the experience as “surreal.”
“i couldn’t believe that he was so accessible that i could literally shake his hand and heckle him about needing to suit up because his team was losing,” mr. clark said.
that is not to say that the obamas can live anything close to a normal life here.
“there really is no going out in public and blending in anymore,” said ari fleischer, a former press secretary to mr. bush, describing the challenges facing any president. “that really is one of the burdens of the job. you go into the restaurant and everyone stands up and applauds. you always have to shake hands.”
“but when you’re sitting at the table, either out of fear of the secret service, respect for the office or old-fashioned decency, people usually leave you alone,” mr. fleischer said. “you still can have a nice meal with your friends.”
the obamas are clearly scoping out varied restaurants and places to visit.
mr. fenty said it was the president who suggested lunching at ben’s chili bowl, a well-known black-owned restaurant. eleanor holmes norton, washington’s delegate to congress, said mrs. obama suggested lunch at b. smith’s, also black-owned, a southern-style restaurant near the capitol.
mrs. obama and her staff also visited miriam’s kitchen, a soup kitchen, where the first lady bumped into bill richardson, a 46-year-old homeless man. mr. richardson was so stunned that he could barely stammer thank you as mrs. obama scooped a helping of mushroom risotto onto his plate this month.
“i was expecting some lunch, but this is the president’s wife; this is her right here,” said mr. richardson, who said he planned to get to a phone as soon as he could. “i’m going to be like, ‘mom, you’re never going to guess who i’ve seen.’ ”
原文链接：
奥巴马搬进白宫只有短短两个月，但是在首都华盛顿已经有人经常在问：你遇见总统和第一夫人了吗？
这不是随便问问的。在布什当政期间，华盛顿已经习惯了一位爱家的总统。布什喜欢把朋友请进总统府而不愿意冒险到外面乱走。但是如今，奥巴马总统和夫人米歇尔会在城里到处闲逛。
你喜欢篮球吗？最近总统奥巴马和吃惊不已的球迷们一起坐在verizon中心的球场边上，在一场芝加哥公牛队败北于华盛顿奇才队的比赛中，他为芝加哥公牛队喝彩。
想欣赏艺术表演吗？奥巴马已经两次光临肯尼迪中心：一次是和两个女儿，10岁的玛利亚和7岁的莎撒去观看艾尓温.艾尓利的舞蹈，还有一次是参加答谢参议员爱德华.m.肯尼迪的音乐会。
出去好好吃一顿怎样？奥巴马已经光顾过的餐馆还真不少：铺着白桌布的高档餐馆有伊奎若克斯、鲍比.凡牛排馆、b.斯密斯和乔其.布朗餐馆；街角小店有贝恩的“辣味碗”和“五汉”汉堡，还有炸鸡店。
总统夫妇参加家长会，学校运动会，探访劳工阶层和改良社区，这些地方以前难得有总统夫妇踏足。在一所西班牙社区的一贯制学校，奥巴马对学生们发表讲话；在黑人教堂他和其它信众一起做礼拜，总统和他的朋友们还在市属娱乐中心玩篮球。
政治观察家们还在争论不休，奥巴马这种喜欢外出的风格是他本人个性的反映，还是出于政治方面的算计，或者两者兼而有之？但是正如总统历史学家道利斯.基恩斯.古德维所说，有一点很清楚，没有一位现代总统如此广泛地外出，到过城里这么多的角落。
对第一家庭的朋友们来说这并不奇怪，奥巴马家庭毕竟是城市居民，他们以前是社区组织者，长久以来熟识城市的每一道风景。奥巴马是自理查德.尼克松总统以来第一位住在城市社区中当选的总统，奥巴马住在芝加哥种族和经济多元化的海德公园。现在奥巴马家庭急于探索白宫墙外的城市。
“他们不希望把自己的生活仅仅局限于白宫之内，渴望成为华盛顿特区活跃城市生活的组成部分。”奥巴马的家庭密友，总统高级顾问范勒利.嘉来特在一次访谈时说。
当然，总统和第一夫人的社交日程也是强力的政治工具，是培育政治盟友和编织政治故事的方式。有些华盛顿观察家们说，奥巴马家庭在享受城市生活的同时，强调他们要给华盛顿带来变化的诺言，树立开放和平易近人的形象，由此获得看不见的潜在收获。
白宫杰奎琳.肯尼迪的社会秘书莱迪特亚.鲍尓特立奇这么说奥巴马家庭的社交，“让我们面对事实：能再次当选是一件大好事。社交是一家储存善意的大银行，他们每天往里储存一点。”
政治分析家们说，奥巴马在篮球赛上大喊大叫，在贝恩“辣味碗”吃汉堡，和妻女一起看芭蕾——各种日常消遣活动通常会通过广播传达给全国听众，会将一位被看作名人和成功人士的政治家人性化。
前克林顿总统的新闻秘书邸.迪.迈尓说，经常外出使奥巴马有一种平易近人的人格魅力，在经济不景气时期传达出充满希望的信息。她说，即便是爱好社交的克林顿也来从没有这样经常外出。
迈尔小姐说，“奥巴马非常人性化，这对人民是很大的鼓舞，在政治上对他极有价值。”
然而，有人警告说，这样的平民作风也可能带来政治风险，特别是会损害总统的神秘性，总统执掌权力、发号施令和治理国家所必须的形象。美国人喜爱由普通人执政，（想一想在“斯密斯先生前往华盛顿”中的吉米.斯特沃特）但是假如政治家看上去太平常，他们也会少了一点尊敬心。（想一想吉米.卡特穿着他的开襟羊毛衫）
“每一次这样做都很了不起，但是也可能使自己在社会上暴露过多。”前布什总统助理巴拉德利.a.博莱克蒙说，“人们会挠着头问，‘难道总统没有别的事情做吗？现在是危机啊。’”
从历史上的总统看来，这肯定是一个变化。在十九世纪，华盛顿被大多数人看作一个潮湿和令人讨厌的小城，总统们一有机会就会逃出城外。
总统历史学家米歇尔. 贝思克劳斯说，在现代，总统与华盛顿之间的典型交往是“去乔治镇参加派对，或者到国会山结交朋友。换句话说，就是与这里永久性的政治构筑间的交往。”
对于奥巴马光顾寻常餐馆，探访劳工阶层社区，贝思克劳斯说，“这完全不是一回事。”
奥巴马家庭也知道这不是一回事。作为首对进入白宫的非洲裔美国夫妇，他们想要越过华盛顿以白人为主的，富裕和成功人士的圈子和界限。
“我们从小受到这样的教育，你必须了解你所在的社区，并且成为社区的一部分。”奥巴马在访问玛丽中心，一家以西班牙社区为主的健康诊所时说，“华盛顿特区现在是我们的社区了，它是我们的家。”
总统先生说，在一个长久以来富人和穷人分开的城市，他希望自己能成为一座桥梁。“我想看见，自己能不能把两个华盛顿合并到一起来。”奥巴马是在abc “本周与乔治.斯蒂夫鲍罗斯在一起”节目做访谈时说这番话的。
对普通百姓来说，与新总统和第一夫人不期而遇总是一件令人惊喜的事情。
公司律师乔.科拉克在观看一场篮球赛时坐在总统附近，他说这样的经历似乎有点“不真实”。
科拉克说，“他如此平易近人，真是难以相信。说实在的，我可以和他握手，也可以要他穿起衣服，因为他的队已经输了。”
但并不是说奥巴马可以过上一个平常人的生活。
“不要再有到外面公众中去的事情了。”前布什总统新闻秘书艾利.弗莱斯克描述总统面对的挑战时说，“那其实是一种工作负担。你到了一家餐馆，所有人都站起来鼓掌，你免不了到处握手。”
“但是当你在餐桌边坐下后，不知是害怕特工，还是出于对总统的尊重，或者是老派的绅士风度，人们往往不再干扰你了，你仍可以和朋友享用美餐。”弗莱斯克说。
很明显，奥巴马家庭仔细研究过前去访问的各式餐馆和各种地方。
冯迪先生说是总统建议到贝恩的“辣味碗”吃午饭，那是一家著名的黑人餐馆。华盛顿众议员艾利诺.霍尓姆斯.诺顿也告诉人们，奥巴马曾建议到b.斯密斯吃午饭，也是一家黑人开的南方风味餐馆，在国会山附近。
奥巴马夫人和随员本月也去过米莉姆厨房，一家专做汤菜的厨房，第一夫人在那里遇见了46岁的流浪汉比尔.理查德森。第一夫人把一份蘑菇炖菜盛进理查德森先生的盘子里时，流浪汉简直完全惊呆了，连一声谢谢也说不出来。
“我想要一些食物当午饭，但是在这里遇见了总统夫人，她就在这里。”理查德森先生说，他说他打算马上找到一架电话。“我想对母亲说，‘妈，你永远想不到我遇到了谁！’”