Well it had to happen. Phase two of the Obama internet-based approach was going to transition from garnering to governing after inauguration. There are already conversations exploring how the realities of national security and presidential protection will get in the way of a more open and dynamic governmental communications model. 

The dream was simple enough: the Obama team would create a nationwide, first-ever presidential Mobility Oval Enterprise (MOE) headquartered from none other than the President’s laptop and seeming as commonplace as any other “My App” favorite.  (Let’s set aside whether we agree with the content).

The once cosmic thought of “What’s it like to be in the White House?” was going to be as common as coffee and the newspaper of yesteryear.

You can see it, can’t you? It is fairly easy to envision.  For me, I wake up and connect with the laptop since I like to do an hour of work during o’dark hundred before domestic chaos erupts. I go to email and check the last seven hours of inbox  treats, which results in the regular email diet:  something from the boss, three from customers, 20 from the team, five from companies telling me they can save me money in this economy, and 10 email alerts based on my filters. Oh yeah, and one from the President while he was in China waiting for wheels up on Air Force One.  He just wanted me (and you) to know that his trip to China was good.  He signed a deal for a partnership between China and USA for joint car manufacturing and marketing (emphasis on marketing), and convinced Jeff Immelt of GE, Adriane Browne of Honeywell, and others in the delegation to agree on a green technology investment plan.

Mr. President ends the five line email with an opinion there are four future NBA drafts coming out of Beijing next year based on the game he saw last night. I peruse that one and go back to answering emails that my livelihood depends on. But I feel a little more upbeat heading into the office knowing the prospects have increased for both Detroit workers and the Detroit Pistons (full disclosure: not really a fan).

Do I really think that Mr. President is going to send an email on his Chinese human rights discussion with Hu Jintao or his latest briefing on worst case scenario bail-out requirements with Secretary Geithner or if he had jet lag?  Not so much. The email would probably be the same thing he would say on the Saturday morning “radio” address. The difference is that it would be an email – from the President himself, or at least a very close advisor.

(By the way, can we drop this term “radio” here in 2008? I don’t even own a radio anymore. Why would anyone own a radio anymore except for a car? And driving around the neighborhood to listen to the weekly presidential address would cost $15 in gas even at these “cheap prices.” But I digress.)

The presidential email example is probably the most basic example of the MOE.  (Just like the mobility enterprise, but with a better ride.) I imagine some things on the list include the weekly blog, the digital town hall meeting, the weekly YouTube address, streaming the State of the Union live online so that those who are working the second shift to re-coop the disappearance of 50 percent of their 401(k) within the past 12 months can also be in the loop.

Let’s get real for a minute. Does anyone really think that a President will never be able to send nationwide emails, attach files about his or her healthcare plan, insert video clips for endorsing candidates in mid-term elections, survey the citizenry on a new bill, or give a personal perspective on the next Olympic games other than through TV, radio, or static webpage? It’s only a matter of time before this happens – whether it’s Obama or whoever that 25 year-old somewhere in America is today who is destined to someday become President.

The new President should get on with this thing called the Mobility Oval Enteprise. Let’s do it. There are lots of smart people here who can solve the security hack problem exposure. We know how to torque bandwidth. We know how to lock down devices. We know how to authenticate, manage credentials, monitor traffic, filter content, and kill a device at the moment it’s lost or compromised. I can find lots of volunteers for this one.   

To be perfectly honest, I am not sure what happens to my taxes when they go into the Washington borg. But I’ll tell you this much: my day is better with a Presidential update directly from the President himself.  It makes me happier and more productive, which then contributes a bit more taxes into the borg. And now some of that tax revenue will go to a mobility enterprise, which is the way the rest of us already live and work anyway. 

Today, the new governmental communications model is a connect away.  Sometimes MOE is just mo’.