First Day of Barack Obama in office as President

Wednesday, January 21, 2009 at 6:09 pm

First Day of Barack Obama in office as President WASHINGTON: Foreign policy will dominate Barack Obama’s first official day as U.S. president, aides said Tuesday.

Among his first acts as president on Wednesday, Obama is expected to name former Sen. George Mitchell of Maine as his Middle East envoy, aides told The Washington Post.

He also was expected to convene his National Security Council to continue their reassessment of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

By week’s end, the new president also planned to issue an executive order to begin closing the military detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and outline a process for dealing with the approximately 250 prisoners remaining at the military prison.

Obama’s first-day dance card also includes a meeting with his economic advisers.