Renegade

I am endlessly fascinated by details of the daily routine of presidents, and their Secret Service protection. The New York Times reported yesterday on the degree to which the daily life of President-elect Obama has already been affected by his election.

He has not yet moved in to the White House, and one does not yet address him as "Mr. President", but he, and the life of himself and his family, changed forever at that moment on November 4, when his election was assured.

If, as the Times reports, his Chicago home will be his presidential retreat, that will indeed be quite a change from the recent pattern. Recent presidents, even the northerners, came to prefer one or more sunbelt getaway spots. I'll be interested to see whether Obama follows suit.

It will also be interesting to see whether his Chicago neighbors, once the excitement of his election fades a bit, will grow weary of the inconvenience of it all. Once a president starts making decisions, his honeymoon with the voters at some point ends, because everyone will find something to criticize in at least some of those decisions. When that happens, needing to pass Secret Service inspection in order to enter one's home or synagogue might be looked on differently.