Barack Obama unveils official Presidential Twitter handle

According to, a statement by the official White House blog, the account was officially launched through a tweet by the President.

“Today, with a tweet from the Oval Office, President Obama launched @POTUS, the official Twitter account of the President of the United States,” said the statement.

“Hello, Twitter! It’s Barack. Really! Six years in, they’re finally giving me my own account,” read Obama’s light-hearted tweet.

The statement adds that the tweets from this account will be directly from the President.

“The @POTUS Twitter account will serve as a new way for President Obama to engage directly with the American people, with tweets coming exclusively from him. President Obama is committed to making his Administration the most open and participatory in history, and @POTUS will give Americans a new venue to engage on the issues that matter most to them,” added the statement.

The account has been active since the moment it was created with three tweets being posted already.

One of the tweets was a reply to former US president, Bill Clinton, who posed a question to the account.

“Welcome to @Twitter, @POTUS! One question: Does that username stay with the office? #askingforafriend,” @Billclinton tweeted.

To which the President responded with a question of his own: “Good question, @billclinton. The handle comes with the house. Know anyone interested in @FLOTUS?,” @POTUS tweeted.

The @FLOTUS (First Lady of the US) is the official handle of the First Lady and is currently being used by Michelle Obama.