President-elect Barack Obama in his first interview since the election spoke about the aggressive tack his administration will take on eradicating al-Qaeda, getting Osama bin Laden and shuttering Gitmo -- just don't mess with the commander in chief's dish soap.
Amid all the serious talk, Obama revealed a little-known domestic policy never before discussed during the campaign: doing the dishes.
With wife Michelle by his side, Obama told Steve Kroft of CBS' "60 Minutes" in an interview that aired Sunday that he finds certain aspects of domesticity relaxing. And while he'll have a live-in staff to take care of chores at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. he plans to take over the White House dish-washing once in a while.
"Sometimes it's soothing to wash the dishes," he said.
The future First Lady couldn't let that comment go by quietly.
"You?" Michelle interrupted. "Since when was it ever soothing for you to wash the dishes?"
"You know, when I had to do it. I'd make it into a soothing thing," Obama said, smiling.
The president-elect revealed his softer side during his first-post election interview in which he delineated his approaches to foreign policy, what his first priorities are and how his family has been coping with the transition process.
Obama said "stamping out" al-Qaeda would be a top priority for his administration. "Capturing or killing" bin Laden is tantamount to expunging the terror group, he said.
"He is not just a symbol," Obama said. "He 's also the operational leader of an organization that is planning attacks against US targets."
Obama said the family is coping well but that it still hasn't sunk in that Barack will be the 44th president. "I remember we were watching the returns and on one of the stations Barack's picture came up and it said, 'President-Elect Barack Obama,'" Michelle recalled. "And I looked at him and I said, 'You are the 44th President of the United States of America. Wow. What a country we live in.'"
"How about that?" said Obama.
"Yeah," Michelle said.
"Yeah. Yeah. And then she said, 'Are you going to take the girls to school in the morning?'"
