The Briefing Room
General Category => National/Breaking News => Topic started by: mystery-ak on March 21, 2014, 01:16:43 pm
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http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2546041 (http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2546041)
Michelle Obama: It's very rare that I have the chance to travel outside of the United States
BY CHARLIE SPIERING | MARCH 21, 2014 AT 8:06 AM
(http://photos.washingtonexaminer.biz/cache/606x404-61ccc4acbbdb1cba35fa1277f265fc21.jpg)
During her visit to China, first lady Michelle Obama pointed out that the ability to travel outside of the United States was "rare" but that she chose China for a reason.
"It’s very rare that I have the opportunity to travel outside of the United States, and it’s even more rare to have the opportunity to travel with three generations — with my daughters, and with my mother," she said. "And it is no accident that one of our first trips as a family is here to China."
Obama made her remarks while visiting a school in Beijing, with the Chinese first lady, Peng Liyuan.
Obama also praised the relationship between the United States and China, and thanked her hosts.
"[H]aving the opportunity to travel here, to listen, to learn, to hear more about the education initiatives here in this country and to share my travels with students throughout the United States is a very unique experience, and it’s one that I will never forget," she said.
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I'm thinking bad thoughts.
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Uh, she forgot the African safari?
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I detest this woman, almost as much as I detest her reprobate husband.
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The First Ingrate.
She makes me ill.
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:nometalk:
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:nometalk:
:nometalk:
(I will join you in that!)
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And it is no accident that one of our first trips as a family is here to China."
Why didn't Aunt Ester finish the statement?
And it is no accident that one of our first trips as a family is here to China. As thee Obama family adorns the progressive Chinese government, for three generations back! An achievement Barack and I are working on in America is adopting their fine way of government. I proudly bow to red China in my red dress. P.S. I am the fashion queen and my mother and I bought 600,000 dollars worth of Michael Jackson cream for this trip. (As you can see in the picture.) I am getting all I can out of this crappy gig while Barack spends his nasty-ole time with his manguards and friends.
(http://photos.washingtonexaminer.biz/cache/606x404-61ccc4acbbdb1cba35fa1277f265fc21.jpg)
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I see she is PC by wearing red.
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:nometalk:
(I will join you in that!)
:nometalk:
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I'm thinking bad thoughts.
I am thinking very angry thoughts. Possibly not for the same reason you are, though I'll put a dollar to a maggot that you'll agree.
I detest any politician - either side - using their kids as props. It is tacky as bleep.
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Michelle Obama Spain Trip Cost Taxpayers $467,000: Judicial Watch
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/26/michelle-obama-spain-vacation-judicial-watch_n_1457302.html
First lady Michelle Obama's trip to Spain in August 2010 cost the U.S. Air Force and the Secret Service at least $467,585, Judicial Watch reported Thursday based on documents provided by the government under the Freedom of Information Act.
That price tag will likely add more fuel to an attack by Mitt Romney, who has already gone after President Barack Obama and his family for "elaborate vacations." Alluding to travel to the president's home state of Hawaii as well as the Spain trip, Romney said last week that the Obamas' vacations were in part to blame for the scandal over excessive spending by the General Services Administration.
The White House has said that the Obamas paid their own way for the Spain trip, during which the first lady, along with daughter Sasha, traveled around the country and visited with the royal family. Officials told The New York Times in August 2010 that two friends and four of their daughters, along with two aides and two advance staff members, went on the trip. The friends paid for their own rooms, food and transportation, the officials said.
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(http://www.mememaker.net/static/images/memes/3286880.jpg)
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(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140321090857-01-michell-obama-china-0321-horizontal-gallery.jpg)First Lady Michelle Obama visits the Forbidden City with Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, behind Mrs. Obama, on March 21, 2014, in Beijing. The first lady's visit is on educational and cultural exchanges. Click through the gallery to see her other international travel.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140319000805-08-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
The Obamas traveled to Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania in June 2013. Here, Mrs. Obama participates in a discussion with students in Johannesburg.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140319000348-07-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
The first family joined the President on a three-day trip to Northern Ireland and Germany where he attended his fifth G-8 Summit.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318235942-06-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
The first lady traveled to South Africa in June 2011, where she met with former President Nelson Mandela at his home. The visit included stops in Pretoria, Cape Town and Gaborne, Botswana, where she spoke at the Young African Women Leaders Forum.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318235734-05-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
In May 2011, the Obamas visited Dublin. It was the first stop on a six-day trip to Europe. Here, the first couple enjoy glasses of Guinness at the President's ancestral home of Moneygall, Ireland, at the famous Ollie Hayes Pub.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318235613-04-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
On her first solo trip in April 2010, Mrs. Obama traveled to Mexico City where she met with Mexican first lady Margarita Zavala and President Felipe Calderon.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318235305-03-michelle-obama-travel-restricted-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
The first lady and Dr. Jill Biden made a surprise visit to Haiti in April 2010. They visited a local school and took a helicopter tour of areas distressed from that year's earthquake.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318234619-02-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
Mrs. Obama traveled to India with the President in 2010. The trip included a visit to the University of Mumbai, the Diwali Candle Lighting Celebration, and dinner with Prime Minister Singh Rashtrapati Bhavan.
(http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/140318234341-01-michelle-obama-travel-horizontal-gallery.jpg)
The first lady traveled to Copenhagen to represent the United States at the International Olympic Committee session in October 2009.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/20/politics/michelle-obama-china/
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what a stupid b*tch
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what a stupid b*tch
You mean I just slowly scrolled down all those photos....just to read 'that'?? :laugh:
Well that's a minute gone forever.....
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You mean I just slowly scrolled down all those photos....just to read 'that'?? :laugh:
Well that's a minute gone forever.....
yup. so sorry to disappoint! :laugh:
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yup. so sorry to disappoint! :laugh:
It was funny..... :laugh:
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(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/21/article-2585878-1C781DB400000578-778_306x542.jpg)
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/21/article-2585878-1C782F7600000578-845_634x427.jpg)
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I will not comment, I will not comment, I will not comment...
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Wasn't this just a few months ago? I KNOW it didn't take place on US soil??? :shrug:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZcBXHFLQ1CA/Uqi87Kh6GUI/AAAAAAAAA3w/EcsRUffMTfQ/s1600/gty_barack_obama_wy_131210_16x9_992+-+selfie.jpg)
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(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/21/article-2585878-1C781DB400000578-778_306x542.jpg)
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/21/article-2585878-1C782F7600000578-845_634x427.jpg)
That oldest daughter never seems to smile.
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(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/21/article-2585878-1C781DB400000578-778_306x542.jpg)
It's policy now that ONLY the White House can authorize photographs used by the media, etc..
I submit this photograph was selected because Natasha"s dress 'hides' Michelle's fat ass.
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I admire everyone's self-restraint.
It is rare to see someone who can lie like this - so blithely, so easily. But, of course, who's going to call her on it? Just us, not anyone on TV.
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Free From the Press, First Lady Blogs About Her China Trip (http://www.truthrevolt.org/news/free-press-first-lady-blogs-about-her-china-trip)
First Lady replaces press with personal blog On her mission of “soft diplomacy” to China, the First Lady is replacing the largely blacked-out press with a personal blog of the trip. Her first entry detailed the charms and accomplishments of the First Lady of China, Madam Peng (which she tells us is pronounced “Pung”), and describes the robotics course of Beijing Normal School.
Michelle Obama is taking her mother and daughters with her on the week-long China diplomatic visit, which will include stops at three cities. The almost complete media blackout of the trip has caused a stir from the media. The Daily Mail reported on what it calls the largely taxpayer-funded vacation Wednesday that the First Lady will not allow questions from reporters, no press on the flight, and will only provide two truly “open press” events out of the 22 events scheduled on the calendar.
Instead of the standard press detail, the First Lady is providing a series of blogs. Here’s an excerpt from her first entry, where she introduces her Chinese counterpart:“After a long flight from Washington, D.C. – one that took around 20 hours – my mother, my daughters, and I arrived in Beijing to begin our official visit to China. Our first stop was at the Beijing Normal School, where we were hosted by Madam Peng Liyuan, the First Lady of China.
Madam Peng (her name is pronounced “Pung”) first became known to the Chinese people long before she was First Lady. Madam Peng earned her Master’s Degree in traditional ethnic music at China’s Conservatory of Music, and in 1983, she performed as a folk singer on the Chinese Lunar New Year telecast, which is consistently the most-watched broadcast in the world. In the years since, she has appeared on that telecast multiple times, while also performing for audiences throughout China, becoming one of the most popular folk singers in her country.
In addition to being a singer, Madam Peng has also earned the civilian rank equal to a Major General in the Chinese military (she joined when she was 18 years old). Three years ago, she was named a Global Ambassador by the World Health Organization, and she works to fight diseases like tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. And last year, she became China’s First Lady when her Husband, President Xi Jinping, became China’s President.
Thanks, Mooch. We could have gotten that from Wiki, couldn't we?
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She, herself, did not write one word of this blog, just like Obama did not author his 'books'.
I've have seen on the internet over the past few years, real examples of Mooches' real writing and it is incomprehensible. When she writes for real, by herself, it borders on illiteracy.
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What do you get when you cross propaganda+propaganda=
Stay cool, Sasha! First daughter cuts a stylish figure in shades as the Obamas visit Great Wall of China and country becomes fascinated with Michelle's 'elegance'
(http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/23/article-0-1C82E19700000578-64_634x423.jpg)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2587280/Michelle-Obama-girls-visit-Great-Wall-China.html (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2587280/Michelle-Obama-girls-visit-Great-Wall-China.html)
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Stay cool, Sasha! First daughter cuts a stylish figure in shades as the Obamas
visit Great Wall of China and country becomes fascinated with Michelle's 'elegance'
LOL! Anybody that's read Shogun knows that when the Chinese are "fascinated"......it's probably more an insult than a compliment.
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I am thinking very angry thoughts. Possibly not for the same reason you are, though I'll put a dollar to a maggot that you'll agree.
I detest any politician - either side - using their kids as props. It is tacky as bleep.
Indeed. I feel sorry for the Obama girls.
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Stylish? She's dressed like a slob.
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NBC’s ‘Today’ Compares Michelle Obama to China’s Communist First Wife: ‘Hip Fashion Icon’ | NewsBusters
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/jeffrey-meyer/2014/03/23/nbc-s-today-compares-michelle-obama-china-s-first-wife-hip-fashion-ic (http://newsbusters.org/blogs/jeffrey-meyer/2014/03/23/nbc-s-today-compares-michelle-obama-china-s-first-wife-hip-fashion-ic)
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Maybe she spends too much time chooming with Barack and is so stoned she doesn't remember she's been on all those trips. Travel trips, that is. :silly:
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Looks like Us Weekly (https://celebrity.yahoo.com/news/malia-obama-sasha-obama-look-grown-during-china-194500842-us-weekly.html) is one of the official mouthpieces of the celebrity presidency, and what was that about how the Obamas were protecting their girls from public scrutiny:
Malia Obama, Sasha Obama Look All Grown Up During China Trip With Michelle Obama
Us Weekly – 15 hours ago
The First Daughters -- all grown up and gorgeous! Malia and Sasha Obama have joined their mom Michelle Obama and grandmom Marian Robinson in China for a seven-day, three-city goodwill tour that focuses on cultural and educational exchange. The quartet's first top was in the city of Beijing on Friday, March 21, where all four ladies were photographed looking beautiful in a group shot with Chinese President Xi Jinping and his own first lady, Peng Liyuan.
(https://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/USWeekly/1395687283_michelle-sasha-malia-obama-article.jpg)
From left, Sasha, 12, wore a long-sleeve cherry frock aligned with a white belt at her waist. She paired her outfit with black floral tights and a pair of simple flats. Fifty-year-old FLOTUS, meanwhile, matched her youngest daughter in a red three-quarter-sleeve lace frock, which she elegantly paired with red pointed-toe pumps.
PHOTOS: The Obama family -- they're just like Us!
The true star of the foreign photo op, however, was 15-year-old Malia -- who resembled her stylish mom more than ever -- in a high-waisted floral skirt and matching crop top from Topshop. Unlike many teens wearing crop tops, Malia opted not to bare her midriff, by hiking up her skirt, while meeting the leader of China and his wife on Friday.
PHOTOS: Bo Obama, the beloved first puppy!
On Monday, Malia, Sasha and Michelle visited the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall of China, looking sporty and stylish in relaxed attire and comfy shoes. The beautiful ladies were photographed laughing while exploring the historical Forbidden City.
FLOTUS even danced with traditional Chinese performers on the City Wall in China's central Shaanxi province.
PHOTOS: Michelle Obama's amazing style
As part of her first-ever trip to China, the First Lady made just one major speech on Saturday at the Stanford Center at Peking University in Beijing, where she openly addressed China's restrictions on media freedom. "My husband and I are on the receiving end of plenty of questioning and criticism from our media and our fellow citizens, and it’s not always easy, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world," she told students at China's oldest university, as reported by Time. "It is so important for information and ideas to flow freely over the Internet ... because that's how we discover the truth."
The family is scheduled to be reunited with President Barack Obama stateside in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.
Anyone else think the girls' dresses are too short?
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Keith Koffler: Michelle: Wife of Chinese Dictator is “Truly Inspiring” (http://www.whitehousedossier.com/2014/03/24/michelle-wife-chinese-dictator-inspiring/)
First Lady Michelle Obama, who has mostly refused to address China’s political oppression during her trip to the country, today upped the ante by actually praising Madame Peng, the wife of China’s president, for her “inspiring” commitment “to improving public health in her country and around the world.”
One assumes Mrs. Obama is not referring to the health of Madame Peng’s political opponents, who are rotting in her jails.
From a Q&A Mrs. Obama had today with CaixanOnline, a China-focused news site.
Question: You were unable to meet with Peng Liyuan, President Xi Jinping’s wife, last year in California, but I believe you two have kept in touch. Might you be able to speak to what you two have discussed?
Michelle: Madame Peng and I have a number of things in common. We have both worked hard to balance our roles as mothers and professionals, and we both have the great honor of representing our countries when we travel, showcasing the unique cultures and history of the United States and China all around the world. We have also both chosen to work on issues we care about, and Madame Peng’s commitment to improving public health in her country and around the world is truly inspiring.
That good ‘ole Madame Peng, just another working mother trying to balance work and gettin’ the kids to kung fu practice. This is certainly PR gold for the Chinese kleptocrats.
This woman and her husband stepped on lots of corpses to achieve their current position.
We have to meet with these people. But we don’t have to pretend they’re about the betterment of mankind. Rather, we should be making it clear that they’re not.
In a question that may well have been planted, Caixan conveniently set Michelle up to promote the White House line that Mrs. Obama’s decision to bring her daughters and her mother on the trip is some kind of cultural outreach thing. The question is right out of the White House talking points:Question: Your mother, Mrs. Marian Robinson, and daughters, Malia and Sasha, are traveling with you. This represents three different generations of Americans. What kind of message or image do you want to convey to China?
Michelle: Like many Chinese families, at our house, we have three generations under one roof. When my husband was elected president back in 2008, one of the first things I did was ask my mother to come live with us in the White House and help raise our daughters, and I am grateful every day for her presence in our lives.
That’s pretty funny. We too have three generations under one roof! Except the White House roof is about a hundred and seventy four times the size of roofs of Chinese families with little choice other than to live in all in one shack.
And Mrs. Robinson ain’t exactly the wizened figure in the corner of the bedroom/living room darning socks for the children.
Anyhoo, Mrs. Obama had a full day of tourism today, with less pretense than usual that this trip is about something else. ... Read on (http://www.whitehousedossier.com/2014/03/24/michelle-wife-chinese-dictator-inspiring/)
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Sasha Obama is not impressed with trip to China (http://nypost.com/2014/03/25/obamas-daughter-seems-disinterested-in-china-trip/)
New York Post
WASHINGTON — Spring break was never this dull.
First Lady Michelle Obama’s kids finally hit the wall on their whirlwind visit to China, showing signs they’ve nearly reached their limit tagging along with mom as she visits site after site on what’s billed as a “person-to-person” tour.
Accompanied by Malia, 15, and Sasha, 12, the first lady on Monday toured Xi’an, an ancient city in the ancestral province of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
They inspected the city’s 600-year-old wall, a day after touring the Great Wall near Beijing.
Photos show Sasha looking like she’d rather be back home with her pals than hitting the highlights of the world’s most populous nation.
The family also visited the famed pit where some 8,000 terra-cotta warriors were buried along with China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, around 210 BC.
Michelle Obama asked questions to a museum director, but her daughters looked only “vaguely interested,” according to a pool reporter who was kept at a distance.
The first lady also walked around the city, where she met a group of schoolchildren. When one of the students invited her to jump rope, she changed out of her heels and briefly joined in.
The weeklong trip, an effort to build bridges with the fast-emerging power, is also attracting attention for its steep cost.
Obama’s five-star Westin hotel, where she reportedly is paying $8,400 per night, was deemed too pricey for Vice President Joseph Biden during his visit late last year, according to federal contract documents.
“Westin Chaoyang — price was prohibitive when compared with St. Regis — otherwise met requirements,” according to documents posted by the Daily Caller.
“In preliminary price comparisons, the costs were tens of thousands of dollars over the St. Regis. We requested a price reduction but a great cost difference remained,” the document adds.
Biden’s tab was $384,000, and Michelle Obama’s trip — where she is accompanied by her mother, Marianne Robinson, her daughters, and multiple Secret Service agents and other officials — is expected to run significantly more.
In Europe, President Obama joked with China’s president about how his wife, who tried her hand at pingpong during the trip, didn’t measure up to “high-level ping-pong diplomacy” of the past.
President Xi responded in stiff language, saying: “She asked me to formally convey to you her best regards,” and got a laugh from a roomful of diplomats.
(http://thenypost.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/obama_90929394.jpg?w=720&h=480&crop=1)
Don't worry, kid. After this, mommy and daddy will send you and a dozen of your closest friends on an all-expense paid trip to Mexico or Paris or someplace interesting.
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Realizing that a single photograph may not convey what is actually happening in the moment....it seems that every picture of Sasha has her wearing a scowl...or that she is not a happy child.
Maybe there's a Libertarian trapped in there someplace. :whistle:
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Realizing that a single photograph may not convey what is actually happening in the moment....it seems that every picture of Sasha has her wearing a scowl...or that she is not a happy child.
Maybe there's a Libertarian trapped in there someplace. :whistle:
Maybe she's tired of being dressed up and paraded around like Mooch's trained poodle. :laugh:
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I see she going to get another "rare trip outside the U.S. with her hubby when he goes to Belgium. :whistle:
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Michelle Obama takes up tai chi as turmoil in her office is revealed
By Geoff Earle
New York Post (http://nypost.com/2014/03/25/michelle-obama-takes-up-tai-chi-as-turmoil-in-her-office-is-revealed/) - more photos at link
March 25, 2014 | 1:14pm
WASHINGTON — First Lady Michelle Obama is staging picture-perfect photo ops on her tour of China — but back home, her East Wing office is fraught with tension and anxiety, according to a new insider account.
Her office “can be a confining, frustrating, even miserable place to work,” writes former White House press assistant Reid Cherlin in an article in The New Republic (http://www.newrepublic.com/article/117086/inside-east-wing-who-shrank-michelle-obama).
“Jealousy and discontentment have festered, as courtiers squabble over the allocation of responsibility and access to Mrs. Obama, both of which can be aggravatingly scarce,” he continues.
Michelle Obama has a strong approval rating (69 percent in a February Gallup poll), is a fundraising asset, and has generated considerable publicity for her pet causes, which include healthy eating and exercise, and finding jobs for returning vets.
But Cherlin, who also worked on Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign, describes a strong measure of discord behind the feel-good initiatives. He compares the rollout of her “Drink Up” initiative encouraging people to imbibe more water to an episode of the TV show “Veep” for its hiccups.
An unidentified former aide says of the level of staff anxiety: “There’s no barometer: The first lady having the wrong pencil skirt on Monday is just as big of a f–k-up as someone speaking on the record when they didn’t mean to or a policy initiative that completely failed.”
A White House official blasted “tiresome” palace intrigue, without addressing the substance of the accusation.
“The first lady is focused on making progress on the issues that matter to our families in a way that yields results — whether it’s education, keeping our kids healthy and seeing childhood obesity rates drop, or making sure our veterans and their families are supported as hundreds of thousands of vets get employed again,” said the official.
“We will keep focusing on helping her implement that agenda, and leave the uninformed opinions and tiresome palace intrigue portrayals to others,” the official added.
One problem Cherlin identified — not usually considered a glaring flaw in politics — is a strain of perfectionism in the ways of the Princeton/Harvard Law-trained former hospital exec.
Obama told her staff, according to people familiar with the meeting: “We don’t have to do anything, so anything we decide to do, we need to do really, really well.”
An ex-staffer said, “It would take a really creative staffer to work within that environment and be successful.”
The account mentions chief of staff Tina Tchen, who is traveling with Obama in China this week, along with her predecessor, Susan Sher, as both having emphasized “competence and conflict-avoidance over grand vision.”
“Most important, both were comfortable taking orders from Valerie Jarrett, the first lady’s self-appointed enforcer and avatar,” he writes.
In China Tuesday, Obama dined on hot pot cuisine at a traditional Sichuan restaurant and viewed performances of Sichuan opera and traditional dance.
Meeting with students in Chengdu, she participated in a tai chi demonstration.
(http://thenypost.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/michelleobama11.jpg?w=840)
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She was born a poor white child.
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She's got decent form. Hard to go through the forms in heels. :whistle:
An ex-staffer said, “It would take a really creative staffer to work within that environment and be successful.”
Poor baby. Must be a liberal. Do it right the first time seems so foreign a concept to him - along with the ideas of accountability and accepting when you bleep up. My kids understand that - even the baby. Then again, they ain't being raised liberal.
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Sasha Obama is not impressed with trip to China (http://nypost.com/2014/03/25/obamas-daughter-seems-disinterested-in-china-trip/)
New York Post(http://thenypost.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/obama_90929394.jpg?w=720&h=480&crop=1)
Don't worry, kid. After this, mommy and daddy will send you and a dozen of your closest friends on an all-expense paid trip to Mexico or Paris or someplace interesting.
It's got to be rough to go through the "Surly Teenage Girl Years" with photographers climbing up your ass just waiting for a shot like this.