Michelle Obama's 1st Tour of Duty
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Thank You, Mrs. Obama
Dear Mrs. Obama,
I am in the middle of reading your husband's book, The Audacity of Hope. My heart is swelling and my brain is being stimulated in ways not usually associated with political writing. I have just come to the part where he talks about the sacrifices that you and your children (little girls, I think) will have to make.
I want to write to you and tell you to stop him! Remembering what was done to the Clintons I want to tell you to not do it. They were most imperfect people, accused of everything from mudering their best friend and causing airplane crashes to messing the White House with unspeakable things. They were and are not perfect, but they are a lot stronger than I think you and your husband might be. You see, I don't see how someone who is as thoughtful as your husband is going to deal with the kind of people who will try to destroy even if it harms the country. And of course, you have little children to protect. I want to tell you to stop him.
However, on June 25, my grandson, Nico, was born. And well, I think he needs your husband for his future and the future of all the little ones. I wish your daughters well. They should have wonderful lives. But I want your husband for my grandson, so that he will have the United States of America as it can and should be.
I remember seeing you on Oprah, the wife of the Senator who made that great speech Democratic Convention of 2004. Your husband is already a powerful man, but you remarked that you wouldn't let him run your daughter's birthday party because even going to the party store would make his head explode! I loved your humor. I loved that you loved your husband. I loved that you were realistic about what he could and couldn't do. Run the country? Sure! Run a little girl's birthday party? No.
So I think I have seen enough to know that you can handle it and be a strength for him. I thank you for letting the rest of us, including my Nico, borrow him, someday to be our president!
I never wrote that letter, but I also never forgot the moment when I wanted to. She might have actually gotten it then, I regret not having done it. Now, it would be one of millions of letters. I won't send it. But I will honor her here.
Michelle Obama Begins Her First Tour of Duty
January 10, 2009Nico turned 2 1/2 on Christmas Day. He understands English and Spanish fluently and speaks both like a, well, 2 1/2 year old. Last summer I watched him lift bricks and stones that should have been too heavy for him, determined and unstoppable until he had built a little something or other. He loves to use the vacuum to get dirt off the floor, wasn't afraid of horses on his first birthday and took to the water like a fish.
Oh, yes, and Barack Obama has been elected President of the United States, and will take office in 10 days. I had voted for Hillary Clinton in the primaries, thinking that he needed some toughening up before he handled those who would destroy. But I now know that he is a lot tougher than I thought. He can take it, and take it with amazing dignity and without having to give it back in kind. I like most of his choices for the cabinet and other positions. I was really pleased when he announced a new position assigned to go line by line through the budget, just like he promised, to get rid of waste so that every penny goes to his programs.
And Michelle Obama is going to be First Lady. Her daughters are already getting huge attention. I have done a lens on them myself. I hope that Obama's Daughters is considered a tribute to the family. Its clear that these girls have great parents.
Michelle Obama has captured the nation's imagination. People are, of course, fascinated with her clothing, her jewelry and hair. People notice that she is the center of a beautiful family. People talk about how well spoken she is, how well educated, how graceful and warm.
She has also been under the microscope of those who wanted to ruin her husband. In researching this lens I found unspeakably vile pictures that I won't discuss. Conservatives demanded that Princeton release her senior thesis because she talked about how she felt herself an outsider at that most white university. And then there was the time when she said she was proud of her country after her husband won the Iowa Caucus. That isn't exactly what she said, but she also didn't say what her detractors said. This is only going to continue and will probably get much nastier. But I know she will rise above it beautifully in her first tour of duty.
What Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama Speaks to Military Families
Michelle Obama's Projects
We are sure exactly what her specific projects will be, yet. She has, however, spoken about wanting to do something for and with military families. Its amazing that this hasn't been done before, but like her husband she seems to pick up on what needs to be done, things that no one has. She has been a hit when speaking to these families.
I will keep this updated as we find out more.
Military Wives on Michelle Obama
The Obamas Dance With Soldiers
This is, perhaps the picture that is the most symbolic of what is to come. Both of the Obamas have shown the ultimate respect and concern for the military and their families.
Michelle Obama's Speech At the Democratic Convention 2008
A speech from a woman who worked hard and clearly loves her country. Follow the link and read the whole speech or listen to the video.Here are some highlights:
" I come here as a Mom whose girls are the heart of my heart and the center of my world - they're the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing I think about when I go to bed at night. Their future - and all our children's future - is my stake in this election.
And I come here as a daughter - raised on the South Side of Chicago by a father who was a blue collar city worker, and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me. My mother's love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion, and her intelligence reflected in my own daughters.
My Dad was our rock. Although he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in his early thirties, he was our provider, our champion, our hero. As he got sicker, it got harder for him to walk, it took him longer to get dressed in the morning. But if he was in pain, he never let on. He never stopped smiling and laughing - even while struggling to button his shirt, even while using two canes to get himself across the room to give my Mom a kiss. He just woke up a little earlier, and worked a little harder.
He and my mom poured everything they had into me and Craig. It was the greatest gift a child can receive: never doubting for a single minute that you're loved, and cherished, and have a place in this world. And thanks to their faith and hard work, we both were able to go on to college. So I know firsthand from their lives - and mine - that the American Dream endures.
And you know, what struck me when I first met Barack was that even though he had this funny name, even though he'd grown up all the way across the continent in Hawaii, his family was so much like mine. He was raised by grandparents who were working class folks just like my parents, and by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills just like we did. Like my family, they scrimped and saved so that he could have opportunities they never had themselves. And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don't know them, and even if you don't agree with them.
And Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation. Because we want our children - and all children in this nation - to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them. "
And here are some of the kinds of responses that they will have to deal with:
"What a wonderful speech trying to make us believe "Why we're just like you"
when, in fact, they are nothing like most of us...
- Ivy League educated (both)
- Millionaires (both)
- Making a fortune off of politics (both, and for years)
- Lawyers (both)
Oh, all things she failed to mention in her speech...
Pay no attention to the facts folks... just enjoy the happy little story and think "Why they are just like us and our family"...
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain..."
Isn't working hard to raise yourself from a poorer start supposed to be the American dream? Who else is criticized for working hard and achieving? Yes, this family is going to have to deal with this for 8 years, unfortunately.
Read Michelle Obama's Speech or Listen to Her Give It
Michelle Obama: Glamorous and Professional
Michelle Obama Will Change the Job Description of First Lady Forever
Jackie Kennedy was the first glamorous First Lady in Modern History. Hillary Clinton was the first professional First Lady. Michelle Obama will be the first to balance both of those qualities and she will accomplish a lot for military families and other people.
Margo_Arrowsmith predicts:
aj2008 predicts:
..that you may be right!
AdrienneJenkins predicts:
Love that she's taken up military families as her cause.
kathysart predicts:
Mrs. Obama will add an elegance unknown to the White House ever before. While she has the grace of Jackie and the is a professional she also has a stature of respect about her that is ingrained, coupled with an inviting charm. She has said that this is going to be a "different kind of White House", with "sleep overs", opening the doors to the White House of the people.. us! .. smile
The Obamas Were Criticized for This; Called Rebels, Terrorists
I Didn't Know It Was This Close
What Did Michelle Obama Really Say?
The opposition has jumped on one line that Michelle Obama said, early on. Above you see the edited version that is used to portray her as a racist to hates America. The cartoon shows the added sentiment that she probably didn't work hard for what she got; that it was given to her. People have demanded that Princeton release her senior thesis because 'the country needs to know more about this racist American hater'. However, one sentence was taken out of context, and then edited.
This is what she really said, "For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country," she told a Milwaukee crowd today, "and not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change."
Note that the cartoon above leaves out the word, 'really'. I guess they would say it didn't matter, but then, why leave it out?
Her husband defended her with this, and was attacke himself. I guess this woman knows her better than he does. :
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama sought Tuesday to clarify his wife's statement that she is proud of the U.S. "for the first time in my adult life." He said her newfound pride is about the political system and was not meant to disparage her country%u2026"Statements like this are made and people try to take it out of context and make a great big deal out of it, and that isn't at all what she meant," Obama said. "What she meant was, this is the first time that she's been proud of the politics of America," he said. "Because she's pretty cynical about the political process, and with good reason, and she's not alone. But she has seen large numbers of people get involved in the process, and she's encouraged."
However, no matter what else she has said, or more importantly i>, people will continue to use this out of context statement to define her. I wonder if Dr. Laura will continue to do that when Michelle Obama works to help military families, or will she drop it?
Michelle Obama Is the Center of a Beautiful Family
More from Margo Plus Great Ladies and Girls
Michelle Obama Wins Her First Major Battle
She said her first task was to protect her children. And she is doing just that.When the Beenie Baby people put out two dark skinned dolls one named. Marvelous Malia and the other Sweet Sasha, she spoke out in defense of her daughters and called it exploitation. The company said that the two dolls, complete with hair picks, had names that were just nice names, that it was merely coincidence that these were her daughter's names. Do we have a statistician in the house?
Yesterday the company announced that they were retiring those names to Marvelous Mariah and Sweet Sidney. Still too close, but it is a victory and hopefully will send a message to other people.
read more
I think this bodes well for the career as First Mother and First Lady.
Please Share Your Thought About Michelle Obama, The First Lady of the United States
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CastleRoy
Apr 18, 2011 @ 2:12 pm | delete
- I love Michelle Obama she is wonderful she has wonderful values and her wanting a healthier america is terrific.
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poutine
Feb 25, 2011 @ 8:04 am | delete
- Just lensrolled this excellent lens to:
http://www.squidoo.com/howtohavesexyarmslikemochelleobama
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poutine
Feb 25, 2011 @ 8:04 am | delete
- Just lensrolled this excellent lens to:
http://www.squidoo.com/howtohavesexyarmslikemochelleobama
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SereneSea Feb 24, 2011 @ 12:08 pm | delete
- Love the way she is poised and adore her.
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7Suze7
Feb 24, 2011 @ 3:01 am | delete
- She is wonderful
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Books By and About the Obamas
Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama
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Michelle Obama in the News and Blogs
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- Fact check: Obama and her PE claims
- As first lady, Michelle Obama has promoted exercise and healthy eating to combat teen obesity, a project she calls Let's Move. During a recent interview with NPR to promote American Grown, a diary about her White House vegetable garden, she lamented ...
- Jon Stewart Tries To Get Michelle Obama To Talk About Barack's "Cheech And ...
- First Lady Michelle Obama appeared on The Daily Show yesterday to promote her new book, American Grown: The Story of the White House Kitchen Garden and Gardens Across America. It's about getting Americans?especially children?to eat healthy.
- Panetta: Asia is the 'project' for new Navy grads
- BY BRIAN WITTE and PAULINE JELINEK AP President Barack Obama, right, first lady Michelle Obama, center and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta talk on stage at the end of a Memorial Day ceremony at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to commemorate the ...
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About Margo Arrowsmith
Table of Contents
- Michelle Obama Begins Her First Tour of Duty
- What Michelle Obama
- Michelle Obama Speaks to Military Families
- Michelle Obama's Projects
- Military Wives on Michelle Obama
- The Obamas Dance With Soldiers
- Michelle Obama's Speech At the Democratic Convention 2008
- Read Michelle Obama's Speech or Listen to Her Give It
- Michelle Obama: Glamorous and Professional
- Michelle Obama Will Change the Job Description of First Lady Forever
- The Obamas Were Criticized for This; Called Rebels, Terrorists
- I Didn't Know It Was This Close
- What Did Michelle Obama Really Say?
- Michelle Obama Is the Center of a Beautiful Family
- More from Margo Plus Great Ladies and Girls
- Michelle Obama Wins Her First Major Battle
- Please Share Your Thought About Michelle Obama, The First Lady of the United States
- Books By and About the Obamas
- Michelle Obama in the News and Blogs
- More Lenses About the Obama Family
- Changing the Guard Blog
- Free Report: How To Hire a Home Health Team
- About Margo Arrowsmith
by Margo_Arrowsmith
Margo Arrowsmith received the "Lens of the Day" Twice
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