Washington, Feb 9: Two years into office, the White House's puffer-in-chief Barack Obama has quit smoking and a delightful First Lady Michelle has confirmed it.
"Its been a while now... a year now,.... Barack has quit and I am very proud of it as he can now look his kids in the eye and say he doesn't smoke", the First Lady said of the development.
Perhaps his two daughters have been his motivation, she said. "He has always wanted to stop our kids are getting to the age where he wants to look them in the face because they want to know, 'You don't smoke do you dad? He wants to be able to say no," the First Lady said.
Obama has been struggling to beat his addiction during his barnstorming campaign in 2008 and the first two years of his presidency, but his wife refuses to take credit for it saying she has not been cajoling or nagging him about it.
Michelle said she had not bugged Obama about quitting...all along as he was on world's most stressful job.
"I don't have a discussion with him because its always been. It's a personal challenge for him. Its not something that I can be like 'Have you smoked today, have you smoked today?" she said.
Media reports said that the Obama had been urged by his doctors in February last year to 'kick the butt' after his first medical checkup as President after he had been found otherwise in "excellent health".
It must have been a big thing in the White House as the tidings were also commented upon by Press Secretary Robert Gibbs who said a number of Obama's advisors had also left smoking.
He told reporters,"I think that when somebody decides to quit smoking, to try to overcome the physical addiction that they have, they do it not just because they want to, but because others want them to, and because others around them give them the type of encouragement that they need to break what is a tough habit to break," PTI
