Posted on 01/01/2015 3:19:56 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama greet John Aravosis, AMERICAblog, and Anthony Katsivalis during the Christmas holiday Press Reception #1 in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, Dec. 11, 2014.
I was invited to the White House Christmas Party this year (there are 12 or so such parties in fact — ours was the print press party), and invited my nephew Anthony Katsivalis as my guest. Anthony has worked in politics (most recently on the Giannoulias Senate campaign), and now is an Internet marketing specialist in Chicago.
I’ve noted this before, and had the same reaction this year — Michelle Obama is a seriously impressive woman in person.
First, she’s beautiful. It’s something that I don’t think comes across on camera. But on meeting her in person, it’s the first thing you notice. And that’s why I mention it. (Cf. The first thing I noticed about Bill Clinton was his blue eyes — I’m an equal opportunity observer :)
Second, and more important, is her presence. Michelle Obama has the kind of grand presence that leaders have.
It’s hard to describe if you’ve not experienced it in person, but some of the greatest leaders in Washington (and I’m sure beyond) have a bit of an aura around them, that extends out a good several feet. For some, it’s an aura of pure power — Ted Kennedy’s was such. For others, it’s power and energy — such is the case with my former boss Marian Wright Edelman. In Michelle Obama’s case, it’s an aura of energy and vitality and, well, just good ole charm. Every time I’ve met the woman she comes across as the nicest, most sincere person on the planet.
I don’t know if Mrs. Obama has political aspirations, but she’s darn impressive, more so than people realize. With all the talk about Elizabeth Warren being drafted to run for president, progressives shouldn’t forget another perhaps less obvious and just as impressive choice: Michelle Obama.
Below is our photo with the President and First Lady. Every guest gets a photo. It’s something that has to be an incredible PITA for the first couple. Each guest gets ushered by, you chat briefly with the first couple, and then flash flash flash! And you’re gone. They’re quite literally having 900 flash bulbs go off in their face over a nearly 4-hour period. And they’re smiling the entire time. I don’t know how they do it.
You literally only get seconds with each of them, so I had my greeting for the President pre-planned and tightly packaged like the ping from a submarine. I told the President that my former deputy on the blog, Joe Sudbay, was the person who famously asked Barack Obama about “evolving” on gay marriage. It was quite an interview, and it generated a lot of press. As a result, the President remembered Joe every time he saw him in the future.
Back to my nano-summit at the Christmas party, I thanked the President for everything he had done on LGBT civil rights, telling him I/we truly appreciated his work. (I ran into White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer in the hall, and told him the same).
Say what you will about President Obama regarding your particular pet issue, but on the civil rights of gay, lesbian and trans people, he ultimately came through. I’ve always believed that it’s important to thank politicians when they come through for you, even if the road had a few bumps along the way. And the man came through.
I will admit to being all hands at the glorious dessert table. That’s a quite good huckleberry pie on the right, and at the other side of the table was a neat British “pudding.” Greg Sargent’s British wife was skeptical, but it was really delicious. (And being British, it of course had nothing to do with the American concept of pudding — it was more like a (very tasty) soaked cake.)
PS Mom noticed how short I look compared to Michelle. I’m 5-10, for comparison sake.
One more thing. As for the placement of my right arm — a question much discussed on Facebook the other night– it’s a bit hard to know exactly what transpired. You see, the moment you realize you’re 1.5 seconds away from meeting the President of the United States you feel an incredible, and unexpected, rush of energy that tends to wipe your brain numb. For the record, I had no idea I had made Mrs. O my main squeeze. I suspect in retrospect, being a gentleman and all, I was aiming for her waist. But being also a relatively short Greek, at least as compared to the average Obama-family denizen, I overshot my platonic greeting.
It just goes to show you: The best laid hands of mice and men oft go astray :)
John has a degree in rhetoric from the University of Illinois (Champaign/Urbana), a diploma from the University of Paris (Sorbonne), and a joint law degree and masters in foreign service from Georgetown University, where he studied under Madeleine Albright.
John’s writing experience includes working as a stringer for both the Economist and RADAR, serving as the US Politics editor at About.com, and having been published in the New Republic and New York Daily News, among others. Washingtonian magazine’s annual “50 Best Journalists” issue named John one of “journalism’s rising stars, those likely to have a major impact in coming years.” John has also been honored as one of the “Out 100,” and by the Advocate as one of the fifty “most powerful gay men and women in America.”
John’s policy experience includes working as a legislative attorney in the United States Senate (specializing on arms control, foreign policy and commerce issues), a consultant at the World Bank, and a children’s right’s advocate at the Children’s Defense Fund. In 1997, John launched his own political Internet consulting firm, with clients ranging from governments (US Department of State, HHS, CDC, the city of Barcelona, the Social Democratic Party of Sweden) to non-profits (ACLU, Planned Parenthood, NEA, AFSCME). John continues consulting to this day.
John is also a frequent TV pundit, and has appeared on The O’Reilly Factor, Hardball with Chris Matthews, ABC News, Nightline, CNN’s Reliable Sources, MSNBC and more. John is also regularly quoted in American and foreign media. John speaks five languages (has worked and done interviews in French, Spanish and Italian), and has visited or worked in 29 countries, including conducting lectures and training about the Internet and politics in France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Greece, Morocco, Indonesia and Cote d’Ivoire.
It’s 2015, so let’s all do better with the rules...add BARF ALERT.
My description of him would not be beautiful.
BABBLING IDIOT!
Red Flag.
I saw that. A degree in learning words and phrases that are intended to sway with emotion, greed, envy, jealousy and blame. It’s the Democrat way.
Mrs Obammy,
Just another America hating negro like her less than manly husband.
The writer of this bilge must be mentally ill and confused. What pap.
I just vomited a little in my mouth.
My short summary — leftist queer that writes a lot of such garbage.
A check works even better.
Attractive? In a convincing drag-queen way, she is striking in all her make up. My gut reaction was "they made that guy look kind of good with that Halloween-night-at-the-gay-bar level of makeup"!
Oh...and huge hands. Seriously huge hands.
A dog turd on the sidewalk in front of me has a “grand presence” ......
John and Tony have my gaydar pegged He looks cute cuddled up with Obola.
Why is that one dude wearing a dress ?
This would require a level 10 Barf Alert. It was so over the top fawning that I actually couldn’t stop reading. Each sentence was outdone by the next. It was liberal mental illness on parade.
Demwit guvnah’s wives used to run “in their own name” to circumvent term limits.
Thanks 2ndDivisionVet.
Old ‘news’.
First off if I were to be invited to the White House, just about the LAST person I would invite as a guest would be a COUSIN, or - if that is the case, believe it would be a ‘she’.
I had (not so boldly) ‘predicted’ year or so ago that when the time was ‘right’ BO would say something like ‘I know I cant run again but there is no law saying Michelle can’t run with me by her side and having a hand in EVERY decision’.
The ‘sheeple’ would gobble it up...why waste time and money with a Senatorial run, just go for the BRASS RING right from the gitgo.
However, I will probaby back off that above statement as his last few actions have been ‘against his base’ BUT he still has a good 18 months to ‘sort of’ rectify it.
All she needs as an intro is “We have checked the water and still believe these Racist Muthas can be beat as long as they don’t lie about things racial”.....
Something like that an there isn’t an R out there that wont ‘fold his tent’....Think McCain and Romney......and the RINOe in particular....
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