I am shamelessly late to the party, but I really did want to make a plug for my favorite dog breed, and a breed I think the Obama's would find very compatible with life in a more centrist White House.  For the life of me, I cannot figure out how to embed video, so I linked to the sample videos I selected below. You'll have to be satisfied with a few pictures of Opal, my five year old Basset.  

First of all, Basset Hounds make the world's most adorably photogenic puppies.  Who can resis the ears, honestly?

Secondly, Basset Hounds have very laid back personalities.  They don't get overly excited about much, but they are always happy to play if you have time.  Even when they are being demanding,Bassets are (mostly) polite about it.   Bassets are usually pretty obedient if they are trained properly.  They love children, and usually don't mind anyone tugging their ears, they are a little touchy about their feet. They are true pack dogs and most don't want to upset the pack leaders, they'd rather be making them laugh.  

Thirdly, Basset Hounds are funny, the natural clowns of the dog world.  They love to goof off as much as they love to sleep on the couch.  If there is a soft place to lay, a Basset Hound will find it.   If there's a kid who needs to laugh, they'll find them too. 

Fourthly, Basset Hounds have great noses.  They could be dual-purpose companions/explosive sniffers.  Before I moved a few months back, I lived in downtown Little Rock. I took my basset for walks several times a day.  My neighbors all stopped me and asked me the same question over and over: what are you doing with a hunting dog in the city?  Down here,  Bassets are used as deer dog because they are easy to follow (they can't run very fast and lose the hunter), they can find anything, and once they get a scent they follow it to it's terminus. 

It is true that they are a bit stubborn about house breaking at first, but I think the Obama girls will have some help with the constant supervision that requires, since there's always someone up at the White House to let the puppy out (if they go with a puppy).   It's not true that Basset Hounds are dumb or hard to train.  They are just not overly eager about anything and do it at their own lesiurely pace.   

There you have it:  Obedient, sweetly dispositioned, dual-purpose, (tri-purpose if you count howling anytime anyone plays the piano badly and thereby ending the bad piano playing,  or a fire truck goes by), easy to groom, friendly, smart, and funny.  Really, really funny.   

Older bassets adapt well, too. There are hundreds of Basset Rescue groups out there in the world looking to find them homes.