Free Republic

It’s been nearly 200 days since the Obamas moved out of the White House. In that time, Barack Obama may have become a style star, but Michelle Obama has simply remained one. The former First Lady is as supportive of a wide range of up-and-coming designers as she was in her capacity as FLOTUS. Maybe—maybe—we’re able to detect a slight edge in her new looks. There’s the Cushnie et Ochs dress that she wore to the ESPYs, which is spot-on trend-wise, all black and asymmetrical and falling just below the knee. Plus, she’s managed to set her shoulders free without...

A Los Angeles food services director who was invited to the White House by former First Lady Michelle Obama to share his tips for getting kids to eat healthy has been indicted for stealing $65,000 in public funds.David Binkle, a chef who served as the director of food services for Los Angeles Unified School District until he was fired in 2015, was charged last week with multiple counts of embezzlement, misappropriation of public funds, conflict of interest, forgery, and perjury, the L.A. Times reported.In 2014, Binkle traveled to the White House for a nutrition roundtable with Mrs. Obama.

“The shards that cut me the deepest were the ones that intended to cut,” Obama said, according to the Denver Post. “Knowing that after eight years of working really hard for this country, there are still people who won’t see me for what I am because of my skin color.”

Former first lady Michelle Obama was a breath of fresh air as usual while making a public appearance in Colorado since leaving the White House for a live armchair conversation with The Women’s Foundation of Colorado President Lauren Casteel. But even as poised and graceful as always, Obama touched on some tough topics, speaking out frankly about the hurt she felt from the racist attacks she received while in the White House. “The shards that cut me the deepest were the ones that intended to cut,” Obama said when Casteel asked her about the trials of being the first black...

Last night, Michelle Obama was the honored guest of the annual ESPY awards. Naturally, the media collective was head over heels with praise and admiration. At the Sacramento Bee, Brian Blomster had what can only be described as a literary orgasm. Obama, he said, "wowed attendees" with a "black Cushnie et Ochs dress that was all curves and slashes." According to Blomster's reporting, Obama "gave the evening a markedly high-fashion feel." In tune, USA Today remarked, "Civilian life looks good on Michelle Obama. If Barack Obama is America's ex-boyfriend, the former first lady is this country's one that got away."...

Melania Trump is far more popular than her husband, but she isn't the fairest, ahem, most well-liked, modern first lady of them all. Less than a month after the wife of President Donald Trump finally moved into the White House to join her spouse, the first lady's approval ratings have climbed by 14 points to 51 percent, a Fox News poll published Friday found. More Americans are also less inclined to dislike Melania Trump than there were before her husband became president, the poll found. About 28 percent of voters don't view her favorably, while 35 percent viewed her unfavorably...

President Trump supporters are slamming Barack and Michelle Obama on social media for their silence on the Fourth of July. A report by the Patriot Beacon has been shared more than 20,000 times on Facebook that gives props to President Trump’s and first lady Melania Trump’s Fourth of July speech, while pointing out that both Barack and Michelle Obama never addressed the public via their social media networks on Independence Day. According to the Patriot Beacon, Trump supporters were moved by President Trump’s speech and Melania’s tribute to veterans and their families by hosting them at the White House, as...

The Obamas looked like ultimate tourists in Bali, as Sasha, Malia and Michelle covered up in bright yellow sarongs to visit Tirta Empul Temple, armed with cameras to document their family vacation. It’s an Obama family vacation! Former President Barack Obama, his wife, Michelle, and daughters, Sasha, 16, and Malia, 18, were spotted taking in the sites in Bali on June 27 as they visited the Tirta Empul Temple. The Obama family reunited for their summer vacation, a 10-day trip to Indonesia. While we’re used to seeing the fashionable Obama women rock a slew of stylish frocks, on this occasion...

If you've ever had questions about what it's like working for Michelle Obama, one woman has all answers. That woman is Melissa Winters, Obama's long-time aide and current chief of staff. In an account to Cosmopolitan, Winters described her journey alongside the former first lady, which began during the 2008 presidential campaign.(snip) When Obama was in a bad mood, there was a simple solution: “Just put her in a room with children. She loves kids.” Of course, there was one bad mood that didn't seem to have an easy fix, and that was the night that Donald Trump got elected....

President Trump is making school lunches great again, or at least a lot better than they were during the Obama administration. Food service directors are applauding recent changes to federal school food regulations imposed on schools as part of Michelle Obama’s campaign against childhood obesity. […] Regulations imposed through the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act put strict limitations on calories, fat, sugar, salt, and other elements of foods served in public schools that participate in the national school lunch or breakfast programs. …

First lady Melania Trump announced Friday that she has selected the director of rooms at Trump International Hotel to serve as White House chief usher. Timothy Harleth presently oversees more than 110 employees at the Trump hotel in Washington, D.C., the White House said Friday. "I am so pleased that Timothy will be joining our team," Melania Trump said in a statement. "He was selected because of his impressive work history and management skills. My husband and I know he will be successful in this vital role within the White House." As chief usher, Harleth will oversee the more than...

Both Melania Trump and Michelle Obama had modest upbringings: one is White, born in Yugoslavia. The other is Black, raised on the South Side of Chicago. When Melania married Donald Trump in 2005, he was already a real estate magnate. When Michelle married Barack Obama in 1992, he had just become a law school professor. Both Trump and Obama went on to become president of the United States, and both women who hail from different walks of life, found themselves thrust in the job of first lady. So who has worn the FLOTUS title best? I submit, Michelle, 53. Not...

The former first lady says she's been hosting "bootcamps" for her friends to help whip them into shape and "be healthy together." [Snip] "When I was at the White House, I often hosted bootcamp weekends for my close girlfriends," Obama, 53, wrote. "It didn't matter that we were all at varying fitness levels. Our bootcamp weekends were a reminder that if we want to keep taking care of others, we need to take care of ourselves first."

After sustained lobbying from the packaged food and beverage industry, the Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday an indefinite delay in the launch of Nutrition Fact labels that were intended to help Americans eat more healthfully. The labels, championed by former First Lady Michelle Obama, were supposed to add a special line for “added sugars” and emphasize calorie content in large, bold text. They had been scheduled for rollout in July 2018, with a one-year extension for smaller manufacturers. The delay is the latest reversal of the Obama administration’s nutrition reforms under Trump. On April 27, the FDA also delayed...

Hillary Clinton asked a top aide in 2011 whether she could fly on a separate airplane from former first lady Michelle Obama to Betty Ford's funeral, according to a newly released email.Judicial Watch released on Thursday more than 2,000 emails from Clinton's unauthorized private email server she used as secretary of state. One of the documents revealed a conversation between Clinton and then-Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin about how she would rather not ride the same plane as Obama en route Ford's funeral in Palm Desert, Calif."I'd be honored to speak," Clinton said in reference to Betty Ford's funeral....

Michelle Obama on Friday criticized a Trump administration decision to delay federal rules aimed at making school lunch healthier, saying kids will end up "eating crap" instead.

A fiery Michelle Obama vigorously defended the healthy eating initiative that was her biggest legacy as First Lady on Friday, telling a public health summit in Washington D.C. that something was “wrong” with an administration that did not want to give consumers nutrition information or teach children to eat healthily. “We gotta make sure we don’t let anybody take us back,” Obama said. “This is where you really have to look at motives, you know. You have to stop and think, why don’t you want our kids to have good food at school? What is wrong with you?

Michelle Obama has made her strongest political intervention since leaving the White House, stating bluntly at a health conference: “Think about why someone is OK with your kids eating crap.” One of the former first lady’s signature legacies was an effort to reduce childhood obesity. Earlier this month, Donald Trump’s administration froze regulations that would cut sodium and increase whole grains served in school meals. -- snip -- The 53-year-old demanded: “And why is that a partisan issue? Why would that be political? What is going on? You know, now that’s up to moms. Moms, think about this. I don’t...

Former first lady Michelle Obama on Friday bashed critics who complain that kids don't like the healthier food served under the school meal changes implemented during the Obama administration. "How about we not let kids completely guide everything?" she said, speaking at the annual summit on childhood obesity for the Partnership for a Healthier America. "How about we stop asking kids how they feel about their food? Kids, my kids included, if they could eat pizza and french fries every day with ice cream on top and a soda, they would think they were happy, until they got sick. "That...

Congress could soon throw a monkey-wrench into Barack Obama's retirement finances, yanking his presidential pension since he is reportedly cashing in with six-figure speaking fees. Former presidents currently receive $207,800 per year, the same amount cabinet secretaries are paid. But lawmakers are considering a move to shrink that payment – dollar for dollar – for Oval Office retirees who collect more than $400,000 in income. Last year Obama vetoed a bill that did just that.