Defending Michelle: Attacks infuriating-Barack interview with Glamour-Calls out Faux News MO attacks

[Pirate Smile]

Defending Michelle: Attacks 'infuriating'

Glamour gets an Obama sitdown (!), and asks him about attacks on his wife:

GLAMOUR: Right now the approval ratings on Michelle are lower than those of Cindy McCain, and I'm curious about how as a husband that makes you feel. Does it mystify you? And what do you want to say to those Americans who don't know the woman that you know?

SENATOR OBAMA: It's infuriating, but it's not surprising, because let's face it: What happened was that the conservative press—Fox News and the National Review and columnists of every ilk—went fairly deliberately at her in a pretty systematic way...and treated her as the candidate in a way that you just rarely see the Democrats try to do against Republicans. And I've said this before: I would never have my campaign engage in a concerted effort to make Cindy McCain an issue, and I would not expect the Democratic National Committee or people who were allied with me to do it. Because essentially, spouses are civilians. They didn't sign up for this. They're supporting their spouse. So it took a toll. If you start being subjected to rants by Sean Hannity and the like, day in day out, that'll drive up your negatives.

Two other interesting points: He notes that Hillary was subject to the same sort of flack when she was the spouse; and he really doesn't like it: "I don't have a thick skin when it comes to criticism of my wife," he says.


http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0708/Defending_Michelle_Attacks_infuriating.html

[predfan]

1. No surprise here.

McCain is now in bed with the same guys who slandered his CHILD in 2000........I won't be surprised if they do the same thing with the Obama kids.

That, friends, is the Republican Party, and when you see McCain grinning, he's the father who let his child be attacked by a whisper campaign. Gutsy guy, politician to the core.

Maverick, not so much.

[cap]

2. you sure don't see that child around on this campaign.

Let's see that Bangladeshi child (probably a Muslim since Bangladesh is a Muslim country) with a skin as dark as, if not darker than Obama's be trotted out in a nice rural spot in South Carolina. Oh yeah. Are the McCain's harboring a secret terrorist? Despite being raised by a nice bunch of white people, can we really trust this kid? Like Obama, is it really impossible for her to triumph over her genetic destiny? Is she really Christian? Do the McCain's let her practice the faith of her father's in secret? What does this say about McCain? /sarcasm

[pennylane100]

3. Is it attacking Cindy when you mention her record.

She did steal drugs from a charity, after forging a prescription. She did have an affair with a married man, she later married him after he dumped his wife. There may be more to add but that's all I can remember.

[ecstatic]

4. The high road is great, but it's time for us to attack Cindy and McCain nt

[Inuca]

5. No, not for her personal life

is she says something election or policy related, it's a different matter.

[Pirate Smile]

6. Attacking Cindy is NOT going to happen by the Obama campaign and any Dem surrogates

who do it will get slapped down by the campaign.

He obviously means what he says.

[leftynyc]

7. That's fine but

I remember the chimp denied having common cause with the swiftboaters. I'm tired of my team always fighting with their hands tied. Politics aint beanbag and after watching what they did to Hillary, Teresa Heinz and now Michelle Obama, I wont lose any sleep if Cindy gets the same treatment.

[Bluerthanblue]

8. key word- "ATTACK" what has Michelle really done

that she should be the target of the kind of hate filled outrage that has happened?

Nothing. Other than exist.

Her comment about "proud of my country" is NOT 'unpatriotic' or anything other than a statement of how she was feeling.

Where the fuck does everyone get off making it into a 'dis' ????

Her thesis- (and I wonder how many people actually read it- on either side) is an accurate well written study of the perspective of the black perspective at an Ivy League college- which included samplings of data from other black students.

What I believe the media is really bothered by is that she is a very articulate, poised, graceful- DOWN TO EARTH, honest, fearless woman- and they feel compelled to find any possible 'flaw' in that reality, and exploit it.

She laughs at herself, and with others- she speaks truth in a reasonable way- as many people said in the beginning of this campaign, SHE is a great asset and advocate for Obama- and she hasn't changed - the media spin has "told" America that she is someone other than who she really is, and they have repeated it over and over enough that people- even people who know better, have bought into it.

The slurs about Bridget McCain were cruel, destructive- and so obviously UNTRUE- They were designed to play on the bigotry and ugly gossip loving side of the worst of us.

The "angry- militant" slurs against Michelle are not much different. What has she said or done to indicate that she is "militant"? Where does the perception of her being "angry" come from? When I've heard her speak, she is not an "angry" woman, rather, she has a very tender, compassionate and at times very funny manner- She is engaging, connected to her audience- and very likable.

Maybe I've completely missed some terrible incident that she was involved in, if so, would someone enlighten me?

Talking about someones actions- is not attacking them. Exaggerating their actions- manipulating and twisting them into something they are not- IS an attack. And the only negative things I've seen in regards to Michelle in the media, have been twisted attacks-

And it would be good if WE would call people out on their unfounded, twisted claims.


I going to.

:hi:

[Pirate Smile]

9. Here is more from the interview. "rarely do these folks have the guts to say it to your face."

Cindi Leive with Barack Obama



Barack Obama tells Glamour: "Debate me, not Michelle"Where I stand Where I stand Where I stand Where I stand Where I stand On Wednesday Senator Barack Obama talked to Glamour's editor-in-chief Cindi Leive and answered questions from our readers about his policies and about women's issues. (Thanks to the many of you who submitted those queries!) Here is an excerpt from their conversation, held at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana; the complete interview will run in the October issue of the magazine.

GLAMOUR: An AP poll shows that while the positive ratings on Michelle are higher than those of Cindy McCain, her negative ratings are higher as well. I'm curious about how as a husband that makes you feel. Does it mystify you? And what do you want to say to those Americans who don't know the woman that you know?

SENATOR OBAMA: It's infuriating, but it's not surprising, because let's face it: What happened was that the conservative press—Fox News and the National Review and columnists of every ilk—went fairly deliberately at her in a pretty systematic way...and treated her as the candidate in a way that you just rarely see the Democrats try to do against Republicans. And I've said this before: I would never have my campaign engage in a concerted effort to make Cindy McCain an issue, and I would not expect the Democratic National Committee or people who were allied with me to do it. Because essentially, spouses are civilians. They didn't sign up for this. They're supporting their spouse. So it took a toll. If you start being subjected to rants by Sean Hannity and the like, day in day out, that'll drive up your negatives.

Everybody who knows Michelle knows how extraordinary she is. She's ironically the most quintessentially American woman I know. She grew up in a "Leave it to Beaver" family. She is the best mother I know. And our kids are a testimony to that, because she's really had to raise them, oftentimes without me being there. She's the most honest person I know, she's smart, she's funny, so yeah, it infuriates me. And I think that it is an example of the erosion of civility in our political culture that she's been subjected to these attacks, and my attitude is that the people who have attacked her in the ways that they have...if they've got a difference with me on policy, they should debate me. Not her.

GLAMOUR: You said before that your campaign would never take aim at Cindy McCain. Do you believe that the McCain campaign has had a hand in these attacks on Michelle?

SENATOR OBAMA: I wouldn't say the McCain campaign itself, but I would say that the apparatus of conservative columnists, blogs and the like. Talk shows, talk radio....When you see in the span of two or three or four weeks essentially the same talking points being used on a whole variety of shows or a whole variety of columns, over and over again....Hillary Clinton was subject to this, others have been subject to this in the past...It is part of our political environment that I'd like to change.

GLAMOUR: On "Larry King Live" last night you somewhat shrugged off how it feels when you see depictions of yourself in the press and you said, You know, I have a thick skin. Is it harder to have that thick skin when it's about your spouse and not about you?

SENATOR OBAMA: I don't have a thick skin when it comes to criticism of my wife. And you know, the problem is that rarely do these folks have the guts to say it to your face.

The Internet is a wonderful political tool; we've been able to organize our campaign in part because of the Internet. But the Internet allows rumors, myths, attacks to get out there very quickly to a lot of people. And it's very hard to catch up.

What do you think of Senator Obama's statements? Do you think Michelle has been attacked unfairly? Comment below!


http://www.glamour.com/news/blogs/glamocracy/2008/07/barack-obama-ta.html