Posted on 09/12/2008 7:23:00 AM PDT by Mike Bates
On ABC News's Political Punch blog, senior national correspondent Jake Tapper writes "Why Wasn't Michelle Obama at the 9/11 Ceremony?"
Some readers have asked me why it was that Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., was without spouse at the 9/11 commemoration ceremony today in New York City.
After all, they point out, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was accompanied by his wife Cindy.
Where was Michelle?
The Obama campaign responds that Michelle was back in Chicago with her daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, since this is the first week of school.
The McCain kids, incidentally, have all graduated from high school (some long ago) with the exception of Bridget, who's 16.
CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer questioned White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux about Michelle Obama's whereabouts on CNN's Situation Room today:
BLITZER: Do we know why -- why Michelle Obama decided not to come, or has the Obama campaign explained that?
MALVEAUX: Wolf, they haven't actually explained that. And since -- since we have seen these pictures, I have e-mailed two people from the Obama campaign to see if we can get an answer to that question, whether or not she was with the daughters, taking care of something else at the time, and why it is that she wasn't able to make it today.
Later, Malveaux had the explanation:
MALVEAUX: Well, Michelle Obama was in Chicago. It was the first week of school for their young daughters, Sasha and Malia. So, she felt it was important to be with them for this week.
All parents can appreciate the importance of being there for young children as they begin a new school year. Unfortunately, Michelle Obama wasn't able to be with her daughters yesterday. As reported today by the Indianapolis Star:
FISHERS, Ind. -- Michelle Obama on Wednesday described her struggles to balance career and family -- and spoke of the guilt she often feels when she shortchanges either one.
But her presentation before a mostly female, friendly crowd of 250 in reliably Republican Hamilton County was about more than underscoring that she and her husband, Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama, understood family pressures.
Even then, Obama wasn't done for the day. UPI detailed her Wednesday evening:
The National Black Baptist Convention meeting in Cincinnati warmly welcomed Michelle Obama who called on members to "struggle for the world as it should be."
Obama had to wait for the crowd of about 7,000 to calm down before she could begin her speech Wednesday night, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported. She began by telling the National Baptist Convention USA she was speaking "as a person of faith who believes we have all have been called to serve our fellow men and women and to honor God's creation."
"We can either settle for the world as it is, or we can fight and struggle for the world as it should be," she said.
It doesn't seem as though anyone in the mainstream media asked the obvious question: If the candidate's wife felt it was important to be with her children this week, and that's why she was unable to pay her respects at the 9/11 ceremony, why did she spend yesterday campaigning in two states?
The girls go to a (very expensive) private school that started this week.
The Alinsky source has been mentioned by a number of writers. This seems to be the only line Michelle has - another reason for her to be speaking to small, safe audiences.
I think it is some half-assed way to show the terrible burden of being a mother and contrasting how Palin cannot possibly rise to the occasion of high office. But...but..it won’t work, as this ass-hat M. Obama pulls down $300K from a government job handed to her when her hubby coaxed Congress into an earmark for her employer. It is probably also the type of government job that Columbus, Ohio Mayor Coleman’s wife had (i.e. phantom - no work/high pay)
They figure the rubes aren't paying attention and it doesn't make a difference with the Obamatons.
She would stand out as the miserable and unhappy person that she is.
I agree that this is something to be wary of. Just because the msm is scorching the McCain & Palin families on personal grounds is no reason for the GOP to do likewise to Michelle 0bama. Especially where the kids are involved.
Michelle may be out on the campaign trail. But Indy and Cincy are pretty close to Chicago. She can get the kids off to school, take a quick air commuter flight, and be back home just after the kids get off the limo. (snark). I don’t know about the Cincy trip, but in Fishers she spoke at noon.
By the way, the local Indy coverage had her speaking to “independent voters” who were “randomly selected by invite to be present.” Yeah, right.
That is an excellent point. Their idea of “investigative” reporting on Obama is investigating their telephone directory to find the contact info for his campaign staff! If this were McCain, there would be endless questions and checking and pondering over Mrs. McCain’s absence.
“The Obama campaign responds that Michelle was back in Chicago with her daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, since this is the first week of school.”
“The McCain kids, incidentally, have all graduated from high school (some long ago) with the exception of Bridget, who’s 16.”
Aha! So there is no concern that the Obamas, who are running at the top of the ticket, have two little girls so that Mom can’t even attend one of our most sacred ceremonies.
But Palin, who’s proved she’s here there and everywhere, can’t be a candidate for VP because she has two four at home.
Talk about hypocrasy.
See post below.
Whoops. Hypocrisy. Knew I spelled that one wrong.
As noted, the speech was Wednesday night.
“Anyone else notice this nearly verbatim Saul Alinsky “Rules for Radicals” reference?”
I don’t know who used that idea first, but RFK used to say, quoting Aeschylus I think, something like: “Some people see things as they are and say why. I see things as they never were and say why not.”
Always implied in such lofty statements, but never honestly spoken, is the notion that they know what’s best, they know how things should be.
Elitist nonsense
The point then would be to get her itinerary for the day. Just let the facts speak for themselves. If only the msm would speak them...
Marking...
Needless to say, we didn't do school that day. And every year since, we've taken the day off from school to focus on honoring the firefighters at our station nearby. Yesterday we took them a cheesecake!
I sure wish we could afford to make the trip to Ground Zero...what a learning experience that would be.
This is a picture my 6 year old son drew later in the day on September 11th. (I can't figure out how to make it smaller.)
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