Fatigue challenging 'tireless' president

[azmouse]

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/2010/01/04/20100104tiredobama0104.html


WASHINGTON - After a sleepless overnight flight to Oslo, Norway, to accept the Nobel Peace Prize in early December, President Barack Obama made a not-altogether-surprising admission: He was tired.

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Aides who have known Obama since before he took office say he seems more sober than he did a year ago but also increasingly focused on the issues facing the country. Though he may need a vacation, they say he still thrives on keeping a busy schedule and continues to scoff at critics who say he has taken on too much in his first year. Unlike former President George W. Bush, who made eight hours of sleep a priority, Obama often works late into the night, averaging five or six hours of sleep, and making do with even less when need be. After the Senate held a 1 a.m. vote on health care last week, Obama said he was awake to see the results.

***

But for all of its stresses, the presidency has provided Obama ways to cope. He persuaded advisers early on to let him keep his beloved BlackBerry to stay in touch with a handful of friends outside the White House. Aides try to include time in his schedule for morning workouts in the White House gym and weekend rounds of golf.

Most importantly, Obama is living with his family full-time for the first time in his political career. He eats breakfast with his daughters, 11-year-old Malia and 8-year-old Sasha, before heading to the Oval Office. That "home office" also allows the president to take a break in the evenings with family.

[NJmaverick]

1. Right now I can think of few jobs tougher than his

although it requires one to actually care, unlike the fool that occupied the White House before him.

[Cary]

2. As much as I despise "conservatives"

I engage them and I don't get the sense that they don't care. I see them as being drunk on their objectivist ideology. I see them as being lazy, relying on their ideology as a crutch. I see them hating "Liberals." I have to use quotes because I don't think they are really conservative, or that their notion of what is liberal is accurate either.

There is definitely some kind of underlying inferiority complex at play in their collective psyche. They think they have been somehow slighted by affirmative action and political correctness. They seem to have an earnest belief in their cause though.

George W. Bush is obviously a seriously flawed human being acting out a seriously flawed ideology, but I am not prepared to proclaim him to be evil. Dysfunctional, yes. Evil, no.

[Tarheel_Dem]

3. The energizer bunny looks on this man in amazement. He can't get away...

from it, even on vacation. I was sure he'd collapse, at some point, during that grueling campaign. But he proved me wrong then, and he continues to do so.

[azmouse]

4. I just hope he doesn't push himself so far he gets sick.

The country needs him too much right now.

[Tarheel_Dem]

7. Agreed. The issues are so big right now. I think he feels he can't delegate.

Cause whatever can go wrong will, and ultimately he'll get the blame for it.

[Cha]

11. President Obama having a zillion more

uber important things to do than the Energizer Bunny.:P

[monmouth]

5. No job for an old man, that's for sure...n/t

[LiberalAndProud]

6. And certainly not for an old man named McCain.

I just had one of those dodged-the-bullet thank-the-gods-and-godesses moments.

[Adelante]

8. New York Times Magazine, 1/4/09

I'm just reading this. Sometimes I just feel so bad for him. Thank God he is so strong.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/17/magazine/17Terror-t.html?pagewanted=all

[DevonRex]

9. Can you imagine living with threats like that? I don't know if I could

handle it. This was also posted over in GDP and that was the first I'd heard of it. Thank you for bringing it here. :hi:

[Arkana]

10. Just crash for a while, Mr. President. Tell Reggie Love

not to wake you unless the building's on fire.