The public will hold President-Elect Barack Obama, upon entering the White House, to a whole slew of promises, not the least of which is one made to his daughters during his acceptance speech that the family will get a puppy.
No sooner had he uttered those words did everyone begin weighing in on what type of dog it should be (pure-bred? mutt?) and where that dog should come from (shelter? breeder?) A recent article in The New York Times examines just how politically charged such a decision can be.
The article also takes a brief look back at previous presidential pets, including Fala, FDR's beloved Scottish terrier. Apparently, Roosevelt dispatched a destroyer to retrieve Fala after he had been accidentally left behind in the Aleutian Islands. Whoops.
