Iowa Cafe Swamped With Orders For "Obama Cookie"

A plate of chocolate-chunk cookies sit out on the counter at Baby Boomers Cafe in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008. The chocolate-chunk cookies were popular with the family of President-elect Barack Obama, including daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, during the campaign season. (AP Photo/Kevin Sanders)

DES MOINES, Iowa — Want an example of the change Barack Obama is bringing to the country? Check out cookie sales at Baby Boomers Cafe in Des Moines.

Ever since word spread about the president-elect and his family's fondness for Baby Boomers' chocolate chunk cookies, the small downtown restaurant can't bake them fast enough.

"Two months ago I was giving these cookies away," said co-owner Rodney Maxfield. "Now, it's like, 'I need two dozen cookies. I need four-dozen cookies.'"

The Obamas were frequent visitors to the cafe in the summer of 2007 when the Illinois senator devoted much of his time to Iowa, where the state's precinct caucuses kick off the presidential nominating process. Obama's main office was next door to Boomers, and his staff made the cafe a second home.

His daughters, 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha, would stop by with their mother, Michelle, and Maxfield said they loved the cookies. During a stop in Iowa last month, Obama's staff ordered about a dozen cookies for the family. That's when word got out about their affection for the confection.

Suddenly, sales of 400 cookies in a good week soared to more than 1,000 a week, with requests coming from as far away as Mexico. Alas, the price is going up, from 50 cents to 75 cents a cookie to make up for the time it takes to make more each day.

"I think everybody just ... thought, 'Oh, great cookie, great president _ the world is a happy place. Barack's going to fix all the problems and if I have a bite of this cookie it's going to make me feel good,'" Maxfield said.

Your request is being processed... Obama: "Girly Dog" Not For Our Family

In his interview with ABC's Barbara Walters, Barack Obama talked to her about her dog and his own puppy preferences. Politico reports that the host actually sent the Obama's a photo of her pet, but it doesn't seem to be the President-elect's type.

Obama: "Cha Cha?"


Barbara: "It's short for Cha Cha Cha."

O: "What is a Havanese?"

B: "It's like a little terrier and they're non-allergenic and they're the sweetest dogs.."

O: [Face suddenly changes.] "It's like a little yappy dog?"

Michelle: "Don't criticize."

O: "It, like, sits in your lap and things?"

M: "It's a cute dog."

O: "It sounds kinda like a girly dog."

M: "We're girls. We have a houseful of girls."

O [with hand gestures]: "We're going to have a big rambunctious dog, of some sort."

What Will Obama's "Good Jobs in America" Mean for Women?

President-elect Barack Obama's economic agenda includes a goal of creating 2.5 million jobs by 2011. It's too early to know the details of the plan, much less what will be enacted by Congress and what its overall effects will be. But early indications are the plan will do more to improve the jobs outlook for men than for women (a problem suggested to me by sociologist Paula England, an expert on gender inequality).

Some general aspects of the agenda, such as small business and job creation credits, are ostensibly gender neutral. But what about the "immediate investments to rebuild America's roads and bridges and repair our schools"? According to government data, the construction industry employs 90% men. And the auto industry bailout? Motor vehicle and equipment manufacturing is a 73% male industry, car dealers' employees are 79% male. (The overall labor force is 54% male.)

Those may be worthy investments anyway, but what about the investment in human infrastructure? England suggests pre-K education. In a 2007 article, Makiko Fuwa and I listed the public childcare enrollment rates for 34 countries. In the U.S., 14% of preschool aged children are in public childcare, which is higher than some rich countries, like Australia (3%) or Japan (1%) - but lower than most, such as Britain (31%), and in a different league from Denmark (90%), Sweden (84%), and France (83%). Instead, the U.S. relies on a system of private care, which is spotty and unequally distributed. The Head Start programtripled in size in the 1990s, then grew only about 10% in the 2000s.

What does it mean to lag behind on this crucial investment indicator? The benefits of pre-k education are well known, as are the problems with its availability and quality in the U.S. Kids with good pre-k education are more likely to graduate high school, with less grade repetition and lower chances of being in special education programs or being arrested for a violent crime. When they grow up they are more likely to have jobs and earn higher wages. All this means the return on pre-k education investment is many-fold over the long run.

What would a universal pre-k program mean for women's employment? The direct effect is clear. Pre-k and kindergarten teachers are 98% female. Of course, these are low-paying jobs, but a shot in the arm from on high might help with that, too.

Indirectly, childcare problems put the squeeze on women's ability to get and keep jobs. Studies show that the costs of childcare for pre-school-aged children have strong negative effects on mothers' employment rates, especially single mothers. Lowering childcare costs to improve women's employability might even see lead to more women getting those good construction jobs Obama plans to subsidize.

Obama says he wants to address the immediate economic crisis in a way that supports long term goals. If one of those goals is reducing gender inequality, then universal pre-k education might be a good place to start.

Obama Offers Condolences To Mumbai Victims

Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of the American citizens who lost their lives in the outrageous terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Our thoughts and prayers are with them, and with all who have been touched by this terrible tragedy.


These terrorists who targeted innocent civilians will not defeat India's great democracy, nor shake the will of a global coalition to defeat them. The United States must stand with India and all nations and people who are committed to destroying terrorist networks, and defeating their hate-filled ideology.

There is one president at a time. I will continue to closely monitor the situation on the ground in Mumbai, and am grateful for the cooperation of the Bush Administration in keeping me and my staff updated. We fully support the Bush Administration's efforts to protect American citizens and assist the government of India during this tragic time.

Obama Cabinet to be nearly complete by Christmas

(CNN) — Barack Obama will have nearly named his entire Cabinet by Christmas, a top aide to the President-elect's transition team said.

John Podesta, a former chief of staff for President Clinton, told Bloomberg News' Al Hunt "virtually the whole Cabinet" will be in place by the end of the year.

Earlier this week President-elect Obama announced he was nominating New York Fed chairman Timothy Geithner to be his Treasury Secretary. He has also reportedly settled on Sen. Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson for Commerce Secretary, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano for Homeland Security Secretary, former Sen. Tom Daschle for Heath and Human Services Secretary, and Eric Holder for Attorney General. Obama also reportedly favors keeping Defense Secretary Robert Gates in his current position.

Though Gates currently appears to be the only Republican set to hold a leading cabinet post under Obama, Podesta said there will be "multiple Republicans" in the administration.

Filed under: Barack Obama
Michael November 28th, 2008 8:39 pm ET

Stop bashing Obama's change. This is like a Catch-22, He'll get criticized for picking people who have ZERO experience but hey, they're fresh faces. Or he picks people with experience who have the talents to get us out of the Republican-involved mess, but they aren't fresh faces. So what if we've seen them before? Just shut it and let Pres-Elect Obama do his job. (Hell, he hasn't even been inaugurated yet!)

Obama: I Want To Make The White House "Green"

President-elect Barack Obama, second from right, his wife Michelle Obama, left, and daughters Sasha, 7, second from the left, and Malia, 10, second from the right, greet people at a food bank, sponsored by the Greater Chicago Food Depository, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008, at St. Columbanus Catholic Church on the South Side of Chicago. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, said their young daughters will still have to do chores in the White House and won't get out of doing homework just because they're the president's children. In an interview with Barbara Walters, the Obamas said Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10, will have lives as normal as possible. That means helping out around the house.

"That was the first thing I said to some of the staff when I did my visit," Michelle Obama said. "I said, 'You know, we're going to have to set up some boundaries,' because they're going to need to be able to make their beds, and clean up."

The girls, who will be attending the prestigious Sidwell Friends School, also will be expected to do their homework as usual. Although, the president-elect said, Malia has her eye on a special spot to write important papers.

When she came back from her White House visit recently, she told her dad that she plans to work at the desk in the Lincoln bedroom.

Obama, who is known to be an avid reader of Lincoln history, said his daughter told him "I'm going to sit at that desk, because I'm thinking that will inspire big thoughts."

During the interview, Obama described the desk as being the spot where Lincoln signed the Gettysburg Address. While there is a copy of the address on display in that room, it actually was the Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves that Lincoln signed there.

Obama will be sworn in on Jan. 20, and he said he wants to work quickly to make the White House "green."

The president-elect said he plans to sit down with the chief usher for the presidential mansion and do an evaluation of its energy efficiency.

"Part of what I want to do is to show the American people that it's not that hard," Obama said.

Asked whether he'll be tiptoeing around at night, turning off the lights, Obama said he isn't going to be obsessive about it.

"But I do that in my current house," he added, "and there's no reason why I wouldn't do it in my next one."

The full interview airs Wednesday at 10 p.m. EST.

Obama's Second Economic Conference: Names Budget Director, Promotes Restraint

CHICAGO -- President-elect Barack Obama named Peter Orszag as his budget director on Tuesday and said his job will be to conduct a thorough review of federal spending programs, "eliminating those programs we don't need and insisting that those we do need operate in a cost-effective way."

With the economy in crisis, Obama said, "Budget reform is not an option. It's a necessity."

Echoing Abraham Lincoln, Obama added, "I will ask my economic team to think anew and act anew."

Orszag is the director of the Congressional Budget Office, a man who the president-elect said "knows where the bodies are buried."

Obama's focus on careful federal spending marked something of a contrast from Monday, when he declared that restoring the economy to health took priority over the budget deficit. He called on Congress to prepare an economic stimulus program for him to sign as soon after Inauguration day as possible. Estimates of the measure range from $500 billion to $700 billion over two years.

"We are going to have to jump-start the economy ... but we have to make sure that those investments are wise. We have to make sure we are not wasting money in every area," he said Tuesday, defining the two objectives that will guide his economic program.

Elected in an Electoral College landslide, Obama claimed "a mandate to move the country in a new direction and not continue the same old practices that have gotten us into the fix we are in."


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Obama's Second Economic Conference: Names Budget Director, Promotes Restraint
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AP | BETH FOUHY and JIM KUHNHENN | November 25, 2008 07:54 AM
Read More: Bailout, Barack Obama, Economic Stimulus Package, Economy, Federal Reserve, Finance, Financial Crisis, Obama Economic Stimulus Plan, Timothy Geithner, Business News
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CHICAGO -- President-elect Barack Obama named Peter Orszag as his budget director on Tuesday and said his job will be to conduct a thorough review of federal spending programs, "eliminating those programs we don't need and insisting that those we do need operate in a cost-effective way."

With the economy in crisis, Obama said, "Budget reform is not an option. It's a necessity."

Echoing Abraham Lincoln, Obama added, "I will ask my economic team to think anew and act anew."

Orszag is the director of the Congressional Budget Office, a man who the president-elect said "knows where the bodies are buried."

Obama's focus on careful federal spending marked something of a contrast from Monday, when he declared that restoring the economy to health took priority over the budget deficit. He called on Congress to prepare an economic stimulus program for him to sign as soon after Inauguration day as possible. Estimates of the measure range from $500 billion to $700 billion over two years.

"We are going to have to jump-start the economy ... but we have to make sure that those investments are wise. We have to make sure we are not wasting money in every area," he said Tuesday, defining the two objectives that will guide his economic program.

Elected in an Electoral College landslide, Obama claimed "a mandate to move the country in a new direction and not continue the same old practices that have gotten us into the fix we are in."
Story continues below

At the same time, he said, after gaining only 53 percent of the popular vote," we enter into the administration with a sense of humility and a recognition that wisdom is not the monopoly of any political party."

He added, "I think what the American people want more than anything is just commonsense, smart government. They don't want ideology, they don't want bickering."

Along with Orszag, Obama named Robert Nabors as deputy budget director. Nabors has been the top staff aide on the House Appropriations Committee, which prepares spending legislation.

The president-elect said he would have additional appointments to his economic team in the coming days.

At first glance, his roster of economic officials so far embodies what seem to be mutually exclusive goals. Timothy Geithner, Obama's choice for treasury secretary, Lawrence Summers, who will head the National Economic Council, and Orszag all have links to Robert Rubin, who as President Clinton's treasury secretary pushed for a balanced budget.

But all three will also be part of an administration that will drive deficits to new heights with an economic plan designed to save or create 2.5 million jobs and redirect the economy over the next two years. Economists from across the political spectrum, including some who have served as informal advisers to Obama, have put the size of an economic recovery package as high as $700 billion over those two years.

Obama summed up the challenge Monday.

"The way to think about it is short term, we've got to focus on boosting the economy and creating 2.5 million jobs, but part and parcel of that is a plan for a sustainable fiscal situation long-term, and that's going to require some reforms in Washington," he said during a news conference in Chicago to introduce Geithner and Summers.

"To make the investments we need," he said at another point, "we'll have to scour our federal budget, line by line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices, as well, something I'll be discussing further tomorrow."

Obama is already starting in the red. The federal government reported a record deficit of $237.2 billion in October, which reflected only a portion of the $700 billion Congress approved last month to rescue the financial markets. The government's red ink has been rising over the past eight years, reversing a surplus achieved during the Clinton administration.

Leonard Burman, director of the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, said Geithner and Summers reflect both the need for a large-scale stimulus to the economy and for fiscal restraint once the economy shows signs of improvement.

"What's good about the appointments that Obama has made is that it suggests, in ways that his campaign never did, that he really understands this," Burman said.

Hillary + Obama = High Drama

It's too early to tell what changes Hillary Clinton will bring to Barack Obama's foreign policy, but she's already had an enormous effect on his brand. Her addition to his team has turned "No Drama Obama" into "Mo' Drama Obama."

Hillary's appointment isn't even official, but the Obama/Clinton narrative has already left the realm of politics. Its twists, turns, shadings, and complex emotions are the stuff of literature.

But who would be the best writer to do this saga justice?

Reading the New York Times' accounts (here and here) of the "awkward dance" that led to Hillary's selection by "the man who dashed her own hopes for the presidency," I thought of Henry James.

It's Portrait of a Lady Secretary of State, in which the morally compromised symbol of the Old World (1990s D.C.) meets the brash, confident, audacious young upstart from the New World. Will the lady be able to "still have her voice " while at the same time "subordinating her ambitions?" Will she be "seen as her own person?" On the other side, will his "self confidence to name a global brand as his emissary" later be unmasked as, instead, a dangerous naiveté? Of course, in James' version, not only would the answer to that last one be yes, it would also likely be the agent of his destruction. Let's hope that Obama is able to rewrite that storyline -- and that The Ambassadors won't become The Turn of the Screw.

But given the palace intrigue that always accompanies the Clintons, James may be too genteel. Consider: in the two Times stories examining the "Clinton-Obama détente," we hear from "confidants of Mrs. Clinton," "former Clinton administration officials...who admire Mrs. Clinton," "a longtime friend," "a former aide," "two advisors to Mrs. Clinton," "a longtime friend of the Clintons who broke with them," "one Clinton advisor," "lawyers on both sides," "people close to the vetting," "close aides to Mrs. Clinton," "her confidants, who insisted on anonymity," "a close associate of Mrs. Clinton," and "one Democrat who is close to both Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton."

So by taking in Hillary, Obama is getting more than just Hillary -- and more than just Hillary and Bill -- he's getting the entire Royal Court of the House of Clinton, complete with chancellors, chamberlains, and a court-jester or two.

De Laclos' Les Liaisons Dangereuses? Or the high farce of Moliere? Or, considering the gravity of the times, do we need Shakespeare?

Of course, if Henry VIII and Richard II are any guide, Shakespeare was decidedly less optimistic about the idea of a "team of rivals" working productively together than Doris Kearns Goodwin.

But, actually, the writer whose work the Obama/Clinton relationship may most resemble is considerably more modern. Let's look at the plot line: a man and a woman start out as fierce rivals, bitterly fighting over seemingly small differences. Much talking ensures -- some of it funny, some of it hurtful. Finally, just when all seems lost, they both suddenly realize they were enamored of each other all along. But they don't actually end up in each other's arms until after an extended third act tease.

It's a Nora Ephron romantic comedy. When Hillary Met Barack. Sleepless in Chappaqua. You've Got Fundraising Email.

Two intensely driven politicians cross paths, each seeking the highest office in the land -- talk about a cute meet!

Then we have the protracted primary battles, the lingering pre-convention resentment, the flirtation with making her vice president, the rejection and selection of another, the renewed post-victory courtship -- with Hillary responding by playing hard-to-get. Finally, he offers her full entrée -- to the Oval Office if not to his heart -- and she ultimately relents. They agree to give the relationship a go. Apparently.

According to Elizabeth Bumiller in the Times, the relationship began to "thaw" when Obama was struck by the passion Hillary showed during her convention speech. After all, what could be hotter to a politician than the passionate embrace of a rival?

Then it really heated up: "By this past Thursday, when Mr. Obama reassured Mrs. Clinton that as secretary of state she would have direct access to him and could select her own staff, the wooing was complete." "Direct access?" Oh, behave!

Bumiller also cites the pair's "working chemistry," and writes that Obama appreciated Hillary's "discipline." Now that's hot: bonding over the ability to stay on message!

Another tidbit: Obama once called Hillary "directly from his cellphone to hers" just to "check in." Awww. Just like Harry and Sally calling to check in with each other while watching TV.

And while it doesn't have the exhilarating excitement of Billy Crystal's mad dash to the New Year's party, or the exquisite tension of Tom Hanks' last-second return to the top of the Empire State Building, Obama's climactic proposal to Hillary seems to have done the trick: "She feels like she's been treated very well in the way she's been asked," said a close associate of Mrs. Clinton.

Colin Powell and George Bush never really got along. Powell was like a trophy wife, brought aboard to make Bush look good. But it was never a love match. Even when Powell gifted Bush with that sparkling vile of fake anthrax and the decisive UN speech in the run-up to the war, the love just wasn't there. And we see what that got us.

On the other hand, Condi Rice was Bush's office wife. She adored him. He put stars in her eyes and made her heart skip a beat. But that didn't help her do a single worthwhile thing as Secretary of State.

Hillary seems like she will exist somewhere in the middle. Not the celebrity figurehead at Foggy Bottom, undermined by neocon underlings (the real object of Bush's affections). And not the moon-eyed adorer, incredibly loyal yet wholly ineffective.

So how does this story end? Will Barack and Hillary be able to make peace now that they've made peace?