It appears that President Obama has kicked his smoking habit.First Lady Michelle Obama confirmed Tuesday that her husband has stopped smoking.When asked today if the president had quit, the First Lady replied: “Yes he has … its been almost a year,” the First Lady told reporters gathered at the White House for a luncheon related to her “Lets Move” anti-childhood obesity campaign.Since Washington often follows the lead of the citys most powerful alpha players, will other Capitol insiders kick the habit?That doesnt appear to be the case for the citys best-known chain smoker, House Speaker John Boehner.Rep. Boehner R-Ohio has long made clear that hes not yet interested in quitting smoking.”Its something that I choose to do, and you know at some point, maybe Ill decide Ive had enough of it,” Boehner told CBS Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer last fall.Boehner has called his smoking a “bad habit” but makes no apologies for his decision to smoke.”Tobacco is a legal product in America,” Boehner told CBS in that same interview. “The American people have a right to decide for themselves whether they want to partake or not. There are lots of things that we deal with and come in contact with every day–from alcohol to food to cigarettes–a lot of the things that arent good for our health. But the American people ought to have the right to make those decisions on their own.”Indeed, Boehner is apparently getting a little tired of being asked about his smoking.”Why do you bring this up again?” Boehner asked Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace last week when Wallace inquired about his cigarette use. “Its a legal product. I choose to smoke it. Leave me alone.”Obama, on the other hand, has stated for years that hes interested in breaking the habit.In 2007, when then-Senator Obama began a campaign for president, wife Michelle told him she would help with his campaign if he agreed to quit because “he couldnt be a smoking president.” At that time, he had been struggling for years to stop smoking and was using nicotine gum to help him quit.But Obama, now 49, continued to smoke occasionally.”Have I fallen off the wagon sometimes? Yes,” Obama said in June 2009. “Am I a daily smoker, a constant smoker? No.”And the presidents smoking habit came up again in Feb. 2010 when results of his first physical exam as president were released. Doctors said he was in “excellent physical health” but continued to struggle with smoking.This past December, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said he hadnt witnessed Obama smoke in nine months, but didnt confirm outright whether the president had quit.Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP
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Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Michelle Obama confirms president has quit smoking – Yahoo! News | America's Breaking Local And World News
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