President Obama has filled out his March Madness bracket and has picked the Indiana Hoosiers to win the NCAA Tournament this year.
In speaking with ESPN’s Andy Katz, Obama, in being confident about his selections, said, “I’m feeling good. I’m ready to win some money here. Biden told me that if I didn’t pick them he wouldn’t talk to me.”
Speaking of Biden, the President made at least one pick based on the advice of the Vice-President for the Sweet Sixteen while picking the states of Ohio, Florida and Louisville as a part of the Final Four list. As for the women’s side, the President picked Baylor, California, Notre Dame and Connecticut as the teams to make the Final Four.
For each year that Obama has been President, he has filled the March Madness brackets but with mixed luck. In 2012, he picked two teams correctly who made it to the Final Four, Kentucky and Ohio State, but didn’t pick any of the Final Four teams in 2010 and 2011. However, in 2009, Obama picked the team to win it all – the University of North Carolina.
It must be said that Obama isn’t the first President to show an inclination towards sports and in filling these brackets for the fifth year in a row, has invited criticism from the Republicans, thanks to the President’s apparent lack of focus on the budget.
And even if the President is participating as presumed by some, for PR purposes, there’s no doubt that the NCAA basketball tournament is big.