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President Barack Obama checks out a 17-foot-tall, 2,200-pound talking robotic giraffe named Russell on the South Lawn of the White House during the Maker Faire, a showcase of innovation in business, technology, and manufacturing. The commander-in-chief, who jokes about the size of his ears, said he liked the ears on the electric animal created by Lindsay Lawlor of San Diego. He also observed that Russell has a bit of a British accent when it said “that tickles” (dialogue captured below via BuzzFeed):
As the Democratic president stares at the giraffe in the photo below, perhaps he’s wondering whether it can take on a GOP elephant.
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Write to Olivia B. Waxman at olivia.waxman@time.com