By Mark Scott
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wbfo/local-wbfo-790882.mp3
Buffalo, NY – A University at Buffalo sociology professor suggests that President-elect Barack Obama's role as the father of young daughters will influence the decisions he makes when he's in the White House.
The presence of children in the White House will undoubtedly have an impact on the US image abroad -- so says Sampson Lee Blair, an associate professor of sociology at UB. Blair, who studies marriage and the American family, says people tend to perceive a parent of young children as kind and nurturing. He says it's not out of the question that Senator Obama's domestic and foreign policies could be colored by the effect they'll have on his daughters.
John McCain is a family man as well. But his children are adults. Blair suggests there was a generational divide here with the perception that McCain would have focused more on the needs of older Americans.
Blair says he was amused to see a report in the media the other day that Senator Obama actually took time off from his transition to attend a parent-teacher conference for one of his daughters. He says it was that family image that might have attracted more than a few votes in last week's election.
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