# Do White House kids have chores? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 8, 2008, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817 "2008-11-08T16:16:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2008, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/21 "2008-11-10T18:12:59Z")
Never mind the toast. Paris Hilton has people to open her mail. I’m not saying she can’t actually do it herself, but I wouldn’t bet on it. ---
**Author:** ![voguevixen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5ac83/32.png) [@voguevixen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voguevixen)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2008, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/22 "2008-11-10T22:02:03Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Oh, it could be a lot worse than that. Famed particle physicist Murray Gell-Mann never learned how to butter his own toast until he got to college. In a panic at finding it not already buttered, he tried it himself, and discovered that it wasn’t too hard. If my husband finds we’re out of bread, he will first say “there’s no toast” and stare glumly at the toaster. I’ll say “put it on the list” and then he’ll write “toast.” Not “bread.” Like you can buy “toast.” ROFL! ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2008, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/23 "2008-11-10T23:15:02Z")
I imagine they will have to keep their rooms tidy and pick up after themselves, and occasionally help cook a dinner in some small ‘family’ kitchen in the residence, and clean up after. They will never learn to grocery shop or use a laundromat, though. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/24 "2008-11-27T00:46:19Z")
Looks like the Obama kids will: [News, Politics, Sports, Mail & Latest Headlines - AOL.com](http://news.aol.com/article/obama-says-daughters-will-do-chores-in/241093?cid=12) ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/25 "2008-11-27T00:51:31Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Strictly anectodally, I can tell you that a guy I went to college with was from a wealthy family with domestic help, and he had no clue how to do his laundry. Me too. He drove home from San Diego to Beverly Hills every couple of weeks to get his laundry done. I taught him how to make a bed. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/26 "2008-11-27T01:17:43Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > Not quite in the spirit of what I understand the OP to be asking, but what I read of the Obama household rules, and seeing pics of the pres-elect and Michele attending parent-teacher meetings the week he was elected, I thought what a wonderful example of parenting they presented. I hpe a good deal of America takes note. I’m sure that the Obama children are well behaved in school and do all their homework in-full and on time, but I’m trying to picture the scene if they were not. Can you see a grade school teacher telling the President that little Sasha was guilty of passing notes in class and not handing in her spelling homework? ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/27 "2008-11-27T01:46:28Z")
Tonight ABC will have a Barbara Walters exclusive interview with Barack and Michelle Obama. I watched the preview. Apparently, the kids have to make their own beds! ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/28 "2008-11-27T03:22:17Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Strictly anectodally, I can tell you that a guy I went to college with was from a wealthy family with domestic help, and he had no clue how to do his laundry. He paid girls to do it for him. I knew a guy in college that was also very wealthy. On the otherhand, he didn’t inherit any money until he turned 21 and learned to live with us normies quite well. He worked hard and drove a crappy car. Mind you, he was never short on cash from what I remermber, but he was quite modest in his style. If you want your family to stay wealthy, don’t teach your kids to be leaches. [QUOTE=voguevixen] If my husband finds we’re out of bread, he will first say “there’s no toast” and stare glumly at the toaster. I’ll say “put it on the list” and then he’ll write “toast.” Not “bread.” Like you can buy “toast.” ROFL! [/quote] That’s allright, I still haven’t figured out how to change a toilet paper roll. It’s much easier to get out a new roll and unroll it by hand. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/29 "2008-11-27T03:58:08Z")
I teach a lot of wealthy kids, and I have to say that for every one I’ve seen turned into a spoiled brat, I’ve seen another that really made the most of their opportunities. The “rotten example of humanity” quota is really pretty consistent across the SES spectrum, IME. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/30 "2008-11-27T05:16:02Z")
[QUOTE=Obama house rules] 5) Allowance from Dad for doing chores: $1 per week. “I’m out of town all the time,” says Barack, “so Malia will say, ‘Hey, you owe me 10 weeks!’” [/QUOTE] A little stingy if you ask me, especially for a president’s family. But then again, at least he isn’t doing a lot of unnecessary government spending during these economically turbulent times. 😃 (notwithstanding the fact that the vast majority of his wealth comes from his book sales and not his government salary) ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/31 "2008-11-27T05:39:12Z")
From what I remember of the rather excellent book **Upstairs at the White House** , the White House has it’s own staff to maintain the building, help with state dinners, etc. But the president is expected to bring along and pay for any personal staff- such as private chefs, personal maids, etc. So in the private living quarters things will probably not change too much for the Obama’s. This can cause tension because the White House staff has a relatively well paid and secure job with good benefits, while the personal staff (who has often been with the family for years) usually gets market rates and is employed at the whim of the family. It’s also worth pointing out that the White House personal quarters are not particularly large or lavish (especially compared with most other heads of state). It’s not like they are suddenly moving into the lap of extreme luxury. I doubt there is much that goes on there (besides the extreme security) that doesn’t happen in any other very wealthy household. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/32 "2008-11-27T09:30:42Z")
I’ve got to say, I love the idea of Malia doing her homework at the Lincoln Desk. Inspiring, indeed! ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/33 "2008-11-27T12:28:28Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Now, mind you, my pinko commie side is yelling YES, YES! dammit, EVERYONE should know how to maintain their own house (even if they don’t actually do so with any degree of competence - see, for example, me :o). But I’m having a hard time coming up with a logical justification for that feeling… There was a long, long tradition of the (girl) children of wealthy families learning how to do all the chores, because they needed to know how everything about the household worked so that they would be prepared to train future servants. There was a high expectation that the lady of the house would know how to do every task, and would excel at it (even to the point where some special things, such as heirloom china, would be washed and cared for by the wealthy lady of the house because the maid(s) couldn’t be trusted with it). The trend of a wealthy girl not knowing how to do basic household tasks is relatively new, mid-20th century. Of course, that’s also around the time when male/female roles within a household were changing … so the boys of wealthy families wouldn’t have known how to do most of these things back then, either. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/34 "2008-11-27T15:07:43Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I’ve got to say, I love the idea of Malia doing her homework at the Lincoln Desk. Inspiring, indeed! I really do, too. Malia and Sasha are my daughter’s first real heroes (non-animated, that is), and I couldn’t be more pleased. While her wish to go to the White House and play with Malia and Sasha probably won’t be fulfilled, at least she’s not fixated on Britney Spears or Hannah Montana. I can’t wait to share with her that Malia and Sasha help out around the house and Malia is planning out where to do her homework! We can totally make this work in our favor. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![cowgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@cowgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cowgirl)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/35 "2008-11-27T19:56:37Z")
> [@Auntbeast](#): > > [http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/Floor2.htm](http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/Floor2.htm) Great link! But I wonder about this: > [@](#): > > This floor has 16 rooms, 1 main corridor, 6 bathrooms, and 1 lavatory. Perhaps “[lavatory](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavatory)” doesn’t mean what I think it means. Either that or “bathroom” doesn’t mean what I think it means. ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/36 "2008-11-27T20:12:40Z")
> [@cowgirl](#): > > Great link! But I wonder about this: > > Perhaps “[lavatory](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavatory)” doesn’t mean what I think it means. Either that or “bathroom” doesn’t mean what I think it means. It could be 6 rooms with bathtubs/showers and WC and 1 with just a WC? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/37 "2008-11-27T20:51:52Z")
A lavatory just has a toilet and a sink. A bathroom has a toilet, a sink and either a bathtub or shower. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/38 "2008-11-27T22:49:14Z")
Usually (in real estate listings and the like), a room with just a toilet and sink is referred to as a “half-bath”. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2008, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817/39 "2008-11-28T02:30:50Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Strictly anectodally, I can tell you that a guy I went to college with was from a wealthy family with domestic help, and he had no clue how to do his laundry. He paid girls to do it for him. Some years ago, I was a telemarketer for a dating service; the phone room manager was from a wealthy upbringing. One night, she decided to throw a party for all of her telemarketers. In addition to asking us all what we liked to drink, she went on and on about how “fun” it was to clean and scrub and vacuum her apartment _all by herself_. So, I dunno about the White House Kids, but I do know this particular wealthy kid didn’t really _know_ how to “do” anything when she got her own place, but thought it was a blast! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-white-house-kids-have-chores/471817.md?page=1)