Keep the BlackBerry

Perhaps not, but he seems to bring to the job a keen awareness of the need to push back against the closed environment of the White House. In "The Audacity of Hope," he described watching Bush hold forth before a mostly fawning group of senators. "I was reminded of the dangerous isolation that power can bring."

Jeff Zeleny wrote in the New York Times a few days ago about whether the new president will be forced to surrender his omnipresent BlackBerry. "A decision has not been made on whether he could become the first e-mailing president, but aides said that seemed doubtful."

Bush made the choice to sign off before assuming the presidency. "Since I do not want my private conversations looked at by those out to embarrass, the only course of action is not to correspond in cyberspace," Bush wrote a group of friends just before his inauguration. "This saddens me."

I'd argue that Obama should cling to his e-mail as a 21st-century way to pierce the White House bubble. After all, Gore did it as vice president, BlackBerry included.

The arguments to the contrary will pile up like so many unread messages.

The lawyers will wring their hands over the prospect of disclosure down the road, if not sooner, invoking the specter of congressional investigators poring over presidential e-mails. So what? Everyone who uses e-mail should think twice before writing something embarrassing.

The security gurus will caution about the risk of being hacked. Find a way to make it secure.

The senior staff will bristle at the president's doing end runs around their carefully constructed processes. That's just the point. He needs unfiltered sources of knowledge and advice.

If the man can't take a walk, at least let him have his e-mail.

marcusr@washpost.com