Politics & Government
Iran? More Like He Ran: The Socks Heard 'Round the World
The world's attention was fixed Saturday on a new Iran nuclear deal—and on the exposed ankles shown by White House Chief of Staff (and Stillwater native) Denis McDonough at the White House.
Call it the New Balance in international relations.
The United States and struck an historic nuclear deal with Iran Saturday. But the angle that many media wags covered was the ankle that Denis McDonough didn't cover.
In what might be an indication of the swift pace at which the pact was reached, the White House chief of staff, a Stillwater native, was pictured with President Obama wearing only New Balance running shoes and ankle-high socks on his feet.
The official White House photo by Pete Souza shows Obama meeting in the Oval Office Saturday with McDonough and Deputy National Security Advisors Tony Blinken and Ben Rhodes, to discuss ongoing negotiations with Iran. (Click on the thumbnails above for closeups.)
The day's other official photo from the Oval Office appears to have been taken before MchDonough ran in—and shows Obama himself wearing Nikes and white socks.
It's not the first time McDonough's active lifestyle made news. In September, NBC reported: "McDonough used to ride his bicycle to work before President Barack Obama named him White House chief of staff on Jan. 25, 2013. But once McDonough assumed the job, the president made him stop biking to work." (See Meet the Press video clip above.)
Related at Stillwater Patch:
- Stillwater Native Denis McDonough is Front Runner for Obama's Chief of Staff
- Stillwater Native Denis McDonough Named Obama's Chief of Staff
- Stillwater Native, Obama Chief of Staff at Center of IRS Scandal
- Stillwater Gazette: 'Dude' from Stillwater
- NBC.com: Seven Things to Know about Denis McDonough
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