Like Every 25-Year-Old in America, Obamas Are Thinking of Moving to NYC

The Obamas are said to be plotting a potential move to New York once the President leaves office in 2017. Cool. It’s a terrible place to live. I mean, it’s a great place to live.

The idea of erecting the Obama Presidential Library at Columbia University, Barack Obama’s alma mater, was reportedly just a courtesy move at first. Now, BuzzFeed News reports via sources that there’s a legit battle between Chicago and Columbia, and that the wonderful city of New York 🙂 is a strong contender for the Obamas’ next living sitch:

…sources familiar with the process said their thinking has changed in recent months, the result both of messy Chicago politics and a personal craving for a new beginning when they leave the White House for the last time as residents. The first family fears the Chicago they left is not one they want to return to, and a source close to the family said the long-shot New York library bid has emerged as a serious alternative.

How real is this, though?

“It’s real,” an administration official told BuzzFeed News.

No one from either Columbia or de Blasio’s side is confirming the library move, of course. President Obama is a former New Yorker. He also raised his family in Chicago. Tough decision.

However, here’s a compelling argument: New York is great.

“The community would welcome him with open arms and be extremely proud to be part of another historic first,” said a spokesperson for Harlem Rep. Charles Rangel, Hannah Kim.

Another New York Congressman, Long Island Republican Peter King, suggested New York would offer Obama a better environment for staying relevant, should he want to.

“New York is the media capital of the world. I think that’s what he wants and you don’t get that anywhere else,” said King, who added that he’d “heard second and third hand” that Obama is seriously considering New York. “I can certainly understand why.”

Convincing. Also note that Malia, currently a high school junior, took a tour of Columbia and New York University. (This could mean nothing. She’s also toured Princeton and Stanford.) President Obama’s former personal assistant Reggie Love says:

“I know he likes New York City, but when he gets out of the White House he’ll have a daughter who’s still in high school. You could be the leader of the free world, but kids and spouses have a huge impact on where he goes.”

We’ll find out more sometime after April 7 when The Barack Obama Foundation makes its final decision on the library’s destination.

If the Obamas do settle in my town, where would they live? Harlem, Brooklyn Heights or with the yuppies of Park Slope?