"Ross Cassell -> Mimi Gallandt"  wrote in
news:12466$POL_DISORDER{at}JamNNTPd:

 JM>>> Can anyone tell me why PEBO will have to give up his blackberry
 JM>>> when he becomes  PBO?

 MG>> My guess would be for security's sake, but I could be wrong. :)

 RC> For the same reason Bush did..

 RC> Any email he writes while he holds office, would be subjected to
 RC> public scrutiny.

Took 15 seconds at Google to find...

Apparently President-elect Barack Obama is something of a Blackberry
addict. Besides meaning he probably reads Gizmodo for all the latest
Blackberry Storm info, this also means he has his Blackberry with him at
all times, in the typical executive belt holster position. The trouble
is, he's going to be President of the United States in January, and
there are strict email laws and traditions that will all but bar Obama's
favorite gadget from the Oval Office. Hmm. Maybe change isn't all it's
cracked up to be?

Unfortunately for Obama, already seen by many observers as a rather
connected and tech-savvy politician, being president won't be as open or
free wheelin' as the campaign trail. For starters, there's the
Presidential Records Act, which requires all official correspondence be
made available in the public domain. It means those 3 a.m. Blackberry
emails he was known for on the trail will probably have to stop, or at
least be curtailed in some way. Nevertheless, aides to the president-
elect said he hopes to be the first president ever to have a laptop at
the ready on the historic Oval Office desk.

But will the laptop be enough? Apparently, during the campaign Obama
forwent paper when reading or creating reports to or from his advisers,
opting instead to have them delivered directly to his Blackberry. His
messages to contacts were "generally crisp, properly spelled and free of
symbols or emoticons," sources said of "No Drama Obama's" Blackberry
email correspondence.

Obama even kept up to date on the latest news and blog postings thanks
to that hunk of black plastic at his side, with clippings and posts
delivered daily (scaled down for time constraints by his advisers). But
this could all end on January 20, 2009. With great power comes great
responsibility--just no Blackberrys, Mr. President, please. [MSNBC]

http://gizmodo.com/5089393/obamas-blackberry-could-be-banned-from-oval-
office

--- Xnews/5.04.25