The latest sign that President Obama is coasting into the last two years of his presidency? He's got his own Twitter account. Only time will tell what the ratio of GIFs to tweetstorms will be, but for now, @POTUS is off to a great start.
"Hello, Twitter! It's Barack. Really! Six years in, they're finally giving me my own account," he said.
Obama already has more than 250,000 followers, but he's keeping his own list small, with a couple of former presidents, several close advisers and government agencies, and FLOTUS, of course.
Hello, Twitter! It's Barack. Really! Six years in, they're finally giving me my own account.
— President Obama (@POTUS) May 18, 2015It's about time, @POTUS! –mo
— The First Lady (@FLOTUS) May 18, 2015We have some questions about the account, which former President Bill Clinton seems to share. Will this be the official "personal" account for every president now?
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Welcome to @Twitter, @POTUS! One question: Does that username stay with the office? #askingforafriend
— Bill Clinton (@billclinton) May 18, 2015Good question, @billclinton. The handle comes with the house. Know anyone interested in @FLOTUS?
— President Obama (@POTUS) May 18, 2015And, as a writer at Gizmodo asked, how will Obama update his account without a smartphone, which he can't use due to security issues?
my story: Obama Used Someone Else’s iPhone To Tweet His First Presidential Account Tweet http://t.co/aNRLBphi1G
— E McMorris-Santoro (@EvanMcSan) May 18, 2015Obama's campaigns relied heavily on social media and new technology, and many government agencies already have Twitter accounts, but the man himself has been absent. Hopefully he'll have a better sense of humor than the CIA's Twitter.