Michelle Obama faces scrutiny!
MICHELLE OBAMA FACES INTENSE SCRUTINY AS PRESIDENT’S WIFE, by Mike Celizic of TODAY
WASHINGTON, D.C. – When she moved to the nation’s most prestigious address, Michelle Obama’s husband told her that rough times were ahead. The country was in recession, people were out of work, the political parties were in open warfare — and the man who was going to be blamed for it all was President Barack Obama. But you won’t hear the first lady utter a peep of complaint. “The truth is, there are a lot of folks who are hurting. And there’s no way I’m going to sit here and complain; I’m sitting in the White House,” Michelle Obama told TODAY’s Matt Lauer during an exclusive, far-ranging White House interview that aired Wednesday.
It’s just over a year since Michelle Obama set up housekeeping at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. And while she’s been much in the spotlight during that time, she maintains that she’s still the same person she always was. “I still see myself as Michelle Obama, the girl who grew up in the South Side of Chicago — Marian and Fraser’s daughter. I’ve got this husband who does these interesting things — and I’m Malia and Sasha’s mother,” she said. “I approach this position like I approach my life,” the first lady went on. “I try to be as authentically me as I can be, because it’s easier to maintain it. So what people have seen over the course of the year is really Michelle. And I find a level of comfort in that role.”
JUGGLING CHALLENGES
Mrs. Obama has already taken on the cause of addressing the special problems and concerns of military families. Now, she’s launching an initiative that could define her term as first lady. She’s taking on childhood obesity. “There are the shocking statistics that are there,” Mrs. Obama said. “One in three kids are obese in this nation. And the numbers go up when you’re talking about the African-American and Hispanic communities. The most shocking sort of reality that really hits you is that, because the young generation is on track for the first time in this nation’s history of being less healthy, having a shorter life span than their parents.”
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February 3rd, 2010 at 5:55 pm
THINGS ARE NOT GOING WELL FOR THIS ADMINISTRATION..AND IT IS TAKING IT’S TOLL.. IT DOES SHOW..ON HER FACE ..AS IT DID ..DURING THE STATE OF THE UNION………..HeR BODY LANGUAGE WAS BAD that night….AND THINGS ARE JUST NOT GOING WELL…….. going to be interesting. i am a republican…and do want to STATE clearly..that my response is not “political”…. DEREK
February 3rd, 2010 at 7:46 pm
First lady Michelle Obama did a wonderful job of sharing how she has been affected by being in the White House her 1st year. She is very articulate and I believe honest. Her claim that people are hurting, and that they need jobs, insurance, and the ability to keep their homes, is absolutely right. It is natural for people who are in need to look at the one who is in charge as being at fault for not providing what they need. However, I believe the people’s expectations of President Obama were unrealistic from the start. Most of us were suffering at the time that he took office and we had hopes that things would get better, and get better quickly. CBS News reported in April 2009 that the blame for our economic problems were as follows: 33% Bush, 33% someone else, 21% Wall Street, 11% Congress, and 2% President Obama. My question is how in the world can people expect President Obama to turn this economy around within 8 months?
It takes time people. The economy is not just a little out of whack. Our corporations have sent our jobs overseas and we are not producing goods. The structural ramifications are immense. The stakes are incredibly high. Our executives are taking us from The Super Power to a second rate power. The solution is rebuild American productivity and our once unequal pool of busy and well paid skilled labor. (The well paid is necessary to sustain demand for goods and services. $10.00/hour job does not buy houses, insurance, and cars.)
The President announced during the beginning of his term, that there would be mistakes from the White House Administration; so there is going to be trial and error. The $787 billion dollar stimulus has helped; it certainly has helped me during my layoff of work and no insurance. President Obama does not hold the power that some of us believe that he holds. And some of us cannot admit that President Obama is being challenged on anything and everything that he does. Most people of color probably can identify with President Obama’s challenges that he has had compared to his constituents who are not of color. John Cardinal O’Connor included the following words in his eulogy of Emerson J. Moore, the first black bishop in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, who died at the age of fifty-seven: “It is not enough that a black [president] be ordinarily intelligent, he is expected to be extraordinarily intelligent. It is not enough for him to [lead] adequately; he must [lead] brilliantly. It is not enough for him to be polite, he must be the essence of courtesy…In short, if he cannot walk on water, he’s an utter failure; if he walks on water too easily, he has forgotten his place.”
Being a President is a stressful job. Period. My hopes are that we the people will not give-up too soon. I hope we can continue to support President and First Lady Obama. And although we can disagree that another war in Afghanistan is not necessary, and that the war in Iraq should come to a halt, and health care reform is necessary, especially with a public option, it is obvious, that these final decisions do not lay primarily in the hands of President Obama. However, there are things we too can be doing to help change our economy. So lets continue to contact our senators, and congress, and President Obama when we disagree and let us give constructive feedback when the opportunities present themselves. Let us make a change in ourselves that we want to see in others.
February 4th, 2010 at 8:10 am
what do yall expect??? the entire congress want to see the obama administration fail. rush limbaugh wishes failure on obama everyday on the radio. the red necks on capitol hill dont want to see a black man succeed in the white house. obama never had a chance.
February 4th, 2010 at 8:30 am
I must say I agree with Lynda 150%. Our expectations for Obama were very unfair. Everybody knows George Bush put us in the predicament we are in. Now the right wing extremists want to blame Obama for something he has not done. Our economy is in bad shape because we stuck with the Bush administration way too long. Obama is not Jesus. We cant expect him to perform miracles to bring us back to prudence. I also agree that Michelle gave a wonderful interview and showed she cares about the American people. Others in congress dont care about us at all. Senator Joseph Lieberman in Connecticut will not even give his people a public option on healthcare. He shot down the bill. Why isnt he getting any criticism??? Obama is doing a great job with the hand he was dealt and its up to us to give him a fair chance.
February 4th, 2010 at 10:17 am
barack and michelle are doing just fine. they understand the challenges that come with being in the white house. i have complete confidence they will do what is best for the american people.
February 4th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
Why does this situation have to be about race??? Obama promised a bunch of things during his campaign and he has failed to deliver. He has brought the majority of blame on himself for not doing what he said he would do. Obama promised the unemployment rate would dip below 8%. Today it is 10.5% Obama promised public healthcare. Today we have none. Obama criticized George Bush’s policies. But his policies have been worse. The scrutiny facing the Obamas are not race related. Failing to deliver is the reason.
February 4th, 2010 at 6:42 pm
i think race iz a factor…if obama wuz white people would give him mo time to fix thangs.