President Obama plans to watch the Super Bowl this weekend, although press secretary Jay Carney had few details on whether friends — or members of Congress — would be invited to the White House for a party.
"I don't know who will join him in watching the game," Carney said at his daily press briefing. "I know although his Bears are not in it, he looks forward to the game. You know, some interesting dynamics there, brother versus brother. I think we all expect it to be highly entertaining."
Presidents have typically used the NFL championship game as an opportunity to invite lawmakers, donors and interest groups to the White House. But last year, first lady Michelle Obama told Rachel Ray that she and the president planned a "quiet" time watching the game in the private residence.
The president did host bigger bashes earlier in his first term, although he received some poor marks for his party etiquette. In Bob Woodward’s
The Price of Politics, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg described being invited to the White House Super Bowl party, to be held just a day after the so-called “Snowmageddon” storm. Despite braving the storm to attend the party, Obama spoke with the executive for just 15 seconds before disappearing to watch the game with some personal friends.
Carney also said Friday that he wasn't sure who the president would be rooting for in the showdown between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers.
"I don't know who he favors, in fact, in this particular match-up," Carney said. "I think, again, absent his beloved Chicago Bears, he probably just has an interest in a close and good football game."
