How the Obama White House read millions of Americans' letters

Every year, millions of mail wind up at one of the country's most recognizable addresses: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. Tony Dokoupil takes a behind-the-scenes look at the team that looks at every single letter, email and Facebook message sent to the White House.

[@LawndaleLancaster]

our family has been blessed by several of his letters.

[@aneeshprasobhan]

Good for you...I live in India and I admire Obama...Its truly sad to see that such a great personality is replaced by someone like Trump.

[@LawndaleLancaster]

So right and thanks!

[@whysoserious6685]

@Ja Sam lol how it's trump no er then Obama? Name one mean thing Obama said because your literally fake news.

[@imawatermelon1439]

I got a letter from Obama when i was 12 back in 2009, it had a picture and a letter that was signed by him.

[@F5_cena]

I'm sorry but it's a fake

[@jovannyalvarado1580]

Lmfao it’s fake there’s people that wrote those for him

[@badart5932]

That’s very cool

[@lauradent5420]

That's very cool, my friend. I wrote a letter to Bill Clinton once but just got a thank you reply from the White House Mail Room. Obama was an awesome President and this whole story is backed up by the fact that you were lucky enough to get a personal reply. :))

[@cainpitt]

It’s legit. He talks about this in his book.

[@MosesGTC]

She look like a gentle and sweet hearted lady. :)

[@raayney]

its my letter! my mom made that vegetable garden last maya

[@raayney]

may*

[@HBC101TVStudios]

- UssMines - really? OMG..

[@TheDobstopper]

Can easily tell that's a lie, because that clip is at least 2 years old. I remember seeing it on the white house youtube channel in their video about the mail, which was less detailed than this one.... but that's where they got that clip.

[@MrBarakados]

@@TheDobstopper That doesn't mean her mom never sent it.

[@JackieWelles]

i wonder how Trump will behave with letters ....

[@chownful]

I wrote a letter to him with modeling pictures of his wife and critiquing them. Also included the bikini picture of Marla Maples that he still has on his desk along with a coupon for ESL classes for Melania.

[@skynet000001]

burn them.

[@downstream0114]

Operation Valkyrie is the name of the drone strike that will get you. :D

[@mrmyballzic]

well considering he doesnt read....

[@JackieWelles]

Christley Bernard well he reads, only executive orders hahahaha

[@silasleeks2324]

I personally think that's a pretty cool job to have

[@RuKSkrllXx]

Wow, just amazing how he takes time to read them all.

[@MrWuku1337]

You really believe that lmao....

[@ericbenitez6349]

I wrote to President Obama twice via e-mail, and twice he took the time to respond. Although, I wasn't expecting to get a response. I truly understand that he gets millions of letters and emails.

[@slavebodybuilder]

That's cause he realized you're a special snowflake.

[@aneeshprasobhan]

@Eric Good for you...I live in India and I admire Obama...Its truly sad to see that such a great personality is replaced by someone like Trump.

[@aneeshprasobhan]

@slave...you're one tuff dude calling others snowflake, while being scared to put his own name on youtube

[@westondecker68]

That’s because Santa Claus and the Easter bunny are real.

[@whysoserious6685]

@@slavebodybuilder at least Obama can read lol

[@FelixVonAwesome]

This is why Obama was one of the greatest leaders of all times. Even tho I don't think he has been the greatest president for policy/economic/foreign relationships (tho still very good), he has always had a keen and genuine interest in what people want. A leader needs too listen too their followers. It's the greatest thing they can do. We will miss you Obama. Love from Sweden.

[@whysoserious6685]

Finally some common sense to bad your not American. He was not great but he did his best and served this country with dignity and respect.

[@wilhelmocarroll3384]

He also destroyed the economy but

[@mjolnir9487]

Obama is top 3 worst

[@TheLordOfNothing]

Who are the other two? Biden and Clinton?

[@blue4me43]

This makes me Cry even more how much i miss Our beloved President Barack Obama and his beautiful Family our First Family. today is 8-10-2018.

[@iSmellReallyBad]

Still do 10-29-2020

[@clauditube12]

Still do 3-20-2024

[@theusdollar9042]

I wrote Donald Trump a letter about if he has heard of Dank Memes. Now I know that will be in the White House archive. LOL

[@extra_ice_girl]

I got one from Bill Clinton once.

[@mrmyballzic]

he asked you out ? lmfao

[@brandonwiggins9563]

Christley Bernard 😂😂😂

[@mjolnir9487]

It was a fake I'm sorry

[@piusx8317]

@@mjolnir9487 Rubbish

[@Zack-yd5fx]

What a great guy

[@SpaceCommand]

Trump would never act in such a dignified manner. It's all about him - *ME ME ME ME* as shown on the news nearly everynight.

[@codybrody5023]

I'll send memes

[@ESDfilms]

Trump will never do this

[@F5_cena]

Like you can read his earthquake meter writing

[@petma5551]

True

[@04Mscentrum]

04mscentrum letters will be archived, saved.. I sent 2 e-letters, and one snail mail--with Love and Thanks. I miss him dearly.....

[@crismcgowan7038]

That was a wonderful story. I found it by accident just looking for the address to send a letter to General John Kelly. I got that address and I'm mailing off a letter to the General tonight. I wonder how the Trump White House is handling mail. Michelle and Barack were such a class act. I guess I'd be surprised to hear that "the Donald" reads 10 letters from real Americans every night. If I get a response from General Kelly I'll report back!

[@morgan-bp1cb]

My dad got a letter back from Obama years ago😮 written 4 days before his presidency ended. We thought it was a mass letter sent out to democrats while his presidency was ending. It was such a beautiful message!! I read it recently and looked it up and no one else had the letter or recollection of him saying what he said in the letter. I took it out of the frame and the signature looks real. We didn’t even know he wrote him a letter and he has dementia now and will never know if he sent a letter or not/what it said. The letter we got back is addressed to him and had a presidential embossing seal on the top.

[@tyu3456]

I wonder if Trump will do this...

[@ronniejai21]

tyu3456 he's gonna tweet and cuss his ass off lol

[@LuxuriousDreamer-hk4mq]

tyu3456 Ever heard of Twitter lol

[@randyheinz1007]

tyu3456 HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAH YEA RIGHT!

[@niku9999]

Ronnie Jai he’s actually really sincere in his replies, I got one back!

[@F5_cena]

@@niku9999 you got a court junction letter stating you cant go near trump within 500 feet

[@respekmaauthoritah9089]

aww how noble!

[@parakhmody1413]

Now that he has a little more free time, I hope he ends up reading ALL of them....... Assuming USPS preserved all the ones that didn't make his evening brief!

[@MrJuanh01]

i did not know i could write a letter to a president

[@mooligaicompany4981]

In India, Even i write a million letters to the president, we won't get a reply.

[@addicted2saving203]

aww

[@jenisereneemiles6965]

I am that one you gave the peace nobel prize to Obama and his Obama center in Bakersfield ca

[@virgochic8415]

I would cry all day

[@joeysvehla2309]

'Importantly most. I don't read, I don't write. I tweet. Tweeter is what I do. My administer will never read either. I'm honered to have the smartest administer in the world. Kellyanne just told me that it's administration but those are alteration facts.' -Trump

[@marcsalzman8082]

yeah, he's as sharp as a marble

[@anasianperson]

I wonder what types of letters Trump gets lol.

[@sjhwyuwjrjrueudy3578]

This is great

[@alawimoshi4078]

I wanna need to send him a messege

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Amen

[@rhapsodise8216]

There needs to be a more efficient way.

[@Deejeezy405]

That's what I was thinking.

[@youtubehero4442]

awesome

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

ตรวจสอบเอกสารเหมือง

[@miguellama7618]

He didn't read 40k letters in a day but he read 29.2k during his presidency

[@SupaEMT134]

oh please

[@esterloca1]

3:14 damn Stephan... all you had to do was to walk.. how hard could that have been??

[@darkchocolate3390]

I thought about sending President Obama a letter one time but I didn't

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

คอยแต่ใบอนุญาต​

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Amin

[@SlamDunkMunk]

Ive Got Mail

[@timswinson3602]

how do I apply for that job

[@jenisereneemiles6965]

As c children we new each other

[@patriotamerican3069]

This people should be fired at the first place, and American taxpayer should get a break. We are surrounded by FB, twitter etc.

[@petma5551]

once a professor always a professor

[@ki6eki]

The real comments section

[@crawleyr4919]

wish I felt ONE that Obama heard me

[@quandovoceleroscomentarios9622]

I voted in Trump, I'm sorry guys, that was my mistake. I'm really sorry, should have listened to Obama. Wouldn't vote for Hillary, though, now I'd chose Mr. Sanders.

[@cesarromero585]

Cool potato glad you realized your mistake. he's creating more hate and I agree Hillary is horrible too.

[@ketfoen]

I'm gonna miss you as our President Mr Obama, thank you for trying your best to uplift us all and being an inspiration to many in this generation. Now we face a home grown terrorist dictator were you once sat, one we cannot let him have his way, through his manipulations and lies lies lies lies lies lies!

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

เขาสร้างแล้วอยู่กงตาก

[@nicholasthope]

Can we still write to him? :x

[@marsonearth3652]

No, let him live his own life now. He has suffered a lot. Wait a few more years and let the Obama haters write him asking for an apology.

[@CalebDavidGibson]

Where was this coverage for Trump?

[@jenisereneemiles6965]

I wrote a letter to the president and my name was jennise Sutherland miles. I was explaining that I wanted to be the first woman president and I was for green independen e recycling

[@DanielLascola]

lol you see the pride white house in the backround

[@peter12246]

Yes nice to see, all that is gone now LOL

[@xoRiyahxo]

I'm miss Obama 😭😭

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Phiong Joon khiong amin

[@mariellacasaverde7403]

Another letter , president Trump : Hi , I have relatives who steal from me , I don't get along with them , happy term.

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

ความเป็นไปได้

[@alawimoshi4078]

How can I do to send the USA president a messega

[@GUSTA99X]

You can write a letter or send an email to the USA president.

[@joevasquez3434]

Right now it's July 25th, 2023. And thee greatest President the US has ever had is retired. So,...how do I write retired President Obama now; ...What address ?

[@tanjiro9589]

A president that reads, Obama is the best!!!

[@buddhabman]

Will Trump maintain this tradition?

[@marsonearth3652]

Trump is even faster, smarter. He has twitter. :D

[@buddhabman]

Over 140 characters stretch his coherent thought I guess.

[@-xl7ep1se3i]

สวัสดีคะดิฉันดาวมณีเคารพพระบาทจริงจริงนะคะเพาะเมื่อเช้าพวกเขาให้ผู้หญิงแต่ไม่ใช้นักข่าวนะคะมาพูดและเอาหน้งซีรี่ว่าบลิวถูกฆ่าตายมี่ยี่ปุญแล้วบอกว่าพระบาทเชื่อไม่ใด้แต่ดิฉันมีลางสังหรมาสามสี่วันแล้วเหมือนเห็นวิณญาณบลิวและในบ้านก็เหม็นเหมือนซากศพเลยมันพยามจะให้ดิฉันไปหามันที่สิงห์บุรีมันบอกว่าบลิวยังมีชีวิตอยู่แต่พวกมันไม่ทันว่าหนูกับบลิวบิลเลียมอยูด้วยกันหลายปีและบลิวมีรูปร่างแบบใหนนะคะทำมัยหนูถึงถูกล้อกเพาะพระเจ้าคงไม่คอยให้ฝครเข้ามาโทรศัพหนูใด้แต่เมื่อเช้าหนูดานไปเปิดล้อกมันถึงเข้ามาใด้ที่แรกว่าจะหาค่ารถไปให้ใด้ก็เลยยืมเพื่อนมาใส่เกมเพื่อพวกเขาจะให้ก็จะใด้ไปเจอบลิวบิลเลียมเพาะอยากเจอบลิวมานานแล้วละคะและคิดว่าจะไปเอาเขาออกมาให้ใด้จากบ้านป้านะคะ

[@tsuikit2411]

I wonder how Trump reacts

[@jenisereneemiles6965]

I'm b the retired one that your grades babysitted.

[@bipanathapa3172]

Namaskar President Obama

[@joewayne2729]

Jika ada orang mengirim barang melalui jasa pengiriman barang tetapi tidak sampai pada tujuan maka orang tersebut berhak untuk meminta barang tersebut kembali. Silahkan ambil kembali uang itu. Saya R.Bambang Soelasmono

[@moumous87]

Hmmm... how many did Trump read and reply to? 🤔

[@marcmaza2821]

Yeah like trump gets letters! 😂😂 obama best president ever!!

[@user-xm2qh3wg2u]

เอกสารเยอะแยะ​

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Nurul izza tepi Anwar ibrahim cuai wan azizah president maisya orara leha amin

[@ThuyPham-jv7yr]

My uncke frin chucago and steoeb olittung in kt fajit

[@edgarcardenas837]

#$ED

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Choo cuai president phiong Joon khiong Obama son maisya orara anak Aiman man amin

[@illspeak2398]

Obamanation

[@dezpovey8426]

"#EXPLAIN BENGAZI! #EXPLAIN FAST & THE FURIOUS! BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE! MUCH MORE!

[@joewayne2729]

Tidak bisa... penyampain sikap fifty fifty itukan di youtube dan tidak dalam percakapan langsung face to face. Jadi untuk ke absahanya tidak ada baik itu secara lisan ataupun tertulis. Sekarang yang menjadi pertanyaan' pembuktianya apa jika benar2 uang itu di kirimkan atau di berikan ke saya. Sampaikan ini ke Indro si penipu itu. Saya R.Bambang Soelasmono

[@mariellacasaverde7403]

I just wrote , Hello , Odebrecht case is really bad here , also Humala and Montesinos case , also I have friend they mistake as Vladimiro Montesinos for his lastname , thanks.

[@ThuyPham-jv7yr]

Tgdyvwukl kikl us ridatvbeen inside wiejer

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Original white house bukan cinemas Artis Kuala Lumpur malu apa bossku phiong Joon khiong senses traditional massage tukang urut cuai Lim kim keong labur duit 2080 rakaan Kedah sultan kedah polis traffic sakit hati polis Kuala Lumpur teo lo ji 2080 original cuai bukan sultan ibarahim Gorge w brush istana Johor bahru 3080 Amin phiong Joon khiong berkas president Washington DC

[@TheSuperFagina]

TRUMP 2016!!!!!!

[@_WhyYouMad]

So the reason he did such a horrible job was cause he was reading letters....got it, thnx. Does he know email and the internet exists?

[@muhammadaimanabdullah5681]

Amin