I am not sure about what President Obama was talking about, so i apologize if i get this wrong. When people say I was one for two, or ...two for three, or...five for seven... it means that out of two tries, i have succeeded once. It is common to use this phrase as it is similar to sports... particularly baseball. If someone had 1 hit out of 3 at bats (in baseball) then they were "one for three" Hope this helps alittle.

Hi, it is always a good idea to look at the whole context of a speech. Your sentence comes from Pres Obama's address to the graduates of Notre Dame university. "Obama joked at the top of his address about the controversy surrounding honorary degrees, referencing Arizona State University's decision not to award him one when he spoke there last week. "I also want to thank you for the honorary degree that I received. I know it has not been without controversy. I don't know if you're aware of this, but these honorary degrees are apparently pretty hard to come by. So far I'm only one for two as president," he said, as the crowd laughed and applauded. Here Obama meant that he could have had two honorary degrees conferred upon him, but so far he's only got one as President and that is from Notre Dame University, as he didn't get one from Arizona State University.

I am sure but I think it means that Obama thinks he is like two president but one. He does so much work which is appropriate for two man to do.