Behind the Scenes: Covering president a weighty job

In our Behind the Scenes series, CNN correspondents share their experiences in covering news and analyze the stories behind the events. CNN White House correspondent Ed Henry filed this report while accompanying President Bush to the North American Leaders' Summit.

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- I don't know about you, but when I'm bored, I start eating. That's why I'm worried about ruining my diet while covering the 2008 North American Leaders' Summit with President Bush and his counterparts from Canada and Mexico.

First of all, we're not expecting a lot of news at this summit -- plus anything substantive is likely to be overshadowed by Tuesday's Democratic presidential primary in Pennsylvania. And, second of all, the White House press corps is spending the next two days in New Orleans -- home of some of the finest cuisine in the world, from gumbo to beignets to bread pudding.

Ah, yes, bread pudding. That reminds me of a story involving a CNN producer who shall remain nameless to protect the innocent (he knows who he is). I pass it along to give you a tiny vignette of what it's like to cover the president.

On many days, it's the most exciting beat in the world. A perfect example would be Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the White House last week. There were more than 13,000 people, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, on the South Lawn to get a glimpse of the pontiff. I felt privileged to be part of CNN's coverage.

But this week is another story, which brings me back to the bread pudding. In the spring of 2006, I was a newly minted White House correspondent heading to New Orleans for my first trip with President Bush. Sitting beside me aboard the press plane at Andrews Air Force Base was a longtime CNN producer (name deleted), who cheerfully passed along some tips to the new guy.

There was logistical stuff such as, "Try to get some sleep on the plane" because you never know how busy you will be in the city where you're landing. And there was advice about budgeting enough time both for doing live shots and writing a script for a possible taped package about the day's events. But then the producer looked me in the eyes and delivered his most important pronouncement of all.

"Be very careful," he said in a grave tone. "Whenever you travel with the president, they feed you at every stop. If you're not cautious, you can gain weight really fast."

I assured him I had taken his advice to heart and proceeded to turn my attention to some important reading material about the president's trip so I would be prepared, while simultaneously steeling myself to resist any and all temptation when it came to evil food.

We land in New Orleans; I start doing live shots for CNN, and all is well. But in between live shots, I keep noticing a strange phenomenon. Every time I return from the camera to my seat in the press filing center, the producer is digging in to a new course of food. And he's saying, "Hey Ed, check out the cold cuts. Oh these rolls are great. Did you hear that dessert is coming soon?"

I'm trying to be polite and stay focused on my work, so I don't say anything. Until finally, the producer arrives at our work space with what can only be described as a heaping pile of piping hot bread pudding. "You have to try the bread pudding," the producer says. "The pudding is good, but then there's this sauce. And they heat it up. You gotta try it!"

Truth be told, this producer is still a skinny guy despite all of the sampling, so I had no problem declaring, "Didn't you warn me about overeating on these trips?"

There was a pause. And then he nearly choked on his bread pudding as we both laughed about the irony as delicious as the, well, pudding.

Fast-forward two years. I have not always been able to say no to the mounds of food we're given on these presidential trips. So I'm steeling myself for a couple of low-fat days on the road.

But here I am in another press filing center in New Orleans, and I just heard someone say to a colleague: "We will make sure you have bread pudding for lunch."

So this is what it's like to cover the president. Some days it's all popes and presidents. Other days it's just beignets and, yes, bread pudding. E-mail to a friend

All About George W. Bush • New Orleans