Posted on 08/07/2010 2:29:49 PM PDT by kristinn
Democratic Party front group Media Matters for America has been loyally defending First Lady Michelle Obama's luxurious Spanish vacation this week even as other liberals concede the Obama administration made a politically insensitive call in signing off on the trip.
Today, Media Matters attacked Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit/Pajamas Media for his critique of Michelle Obama's trip. The headline of the attack piece: Michelle Obama derangement syndrome: Instapundit posts pic of First Lady as Marie Antoinette
Not only does the headline reinforce the growing meme that Michelle Obama is acting like a rich pig, but upon opening the article one is confronted with a huge graphic posted by Media Matters of Michelle Obama as Marie Antoinette with her muscular hand set on a globe captioned Choosing the next Vacation that is four times the size of the brief two paragraph attack article:
The illustration is from the Glenn Reynolds piece which itself is a short excerpt of a Roger L. Simon article asserting that Michelle's extravagant trip is one more indication that Barack Obama has a psychological disorder and doesn't really want to be president anymore.
The illustration is grounded in truth, which gives it a credibility that Media Matters, which is suffering from its own version of Obama Derangement Syndrome, can't see because of its blind loyalty to the First Couple.
Since becoming First Lady nineteen months ago, Michelle Obama has vacationed overseas in Paris, London, Copenhagen and Marbella. She still has a family vacation booked to Indonesia and Australia that has been twice postponed this year because of her husband's incompetence and rudeness. She also vacationed in Los Angeles this year, sans her husband, sitting in a luxury box for an NBA championship game and visiting a private beach owned by a billionaire.
Barack and Michelle Obama have also vacationed across America from Hawaii to Maine, with stays at a $4,000 rental home in Hawaii, Martha's Vineyard (with a second trip there later this month) taken over 300 rooms at a Montana resort, traveled through Western National Parks, two Chicago vacation weekends, one weekend vacation each in North Carolina and Maine (with a Florida weekend planned next week) and the infamous date night in New York City.
When the Obamas don't feel like traveling the world, they bring the world to them at taxpayer expense, including a pizza chef from St. Louis and all kinds of performers for their White House parties.
The Marie Antoinette meme is sticking to Michelle Obama, and by extension her husband, because more and more people are seeing the First Couple for what they are. Now more liberal reporters will see them that way, too, thanks to the blind loyalty of Media Matters.
That is SUPER important! If she is meeting with the Saudis and other Middle Eastern people, then we should know WHY. And what about Jackson being there?
A friend on another site pointed out that if she is meeting with these people, the entire trip becomes official business and we are paying for all of it! And excuse me, but I do NOT want that woman conducting foreign policy.
Are they hitting the Saudis up for money? Are they doing nefarious anti-Israel plotting? Is Jackson carrying messages from Blago?
I want answers!!!
Perhaps, but until I see them doing a version of “Puttin’ on the Ritz” in tails and a top hat, while Michelle swirls around a la Ginger rogers, I ain’t buyin’ it.
AND WHAT ABOUT HER MEETING WITH ARABS AT THAT HOTEL????
If she is meeting with the Saudi royals and the King of Spain, then it’s not a private trip, despite all the spinning by the White House and Robert Fibbs. She’s as much part of the ruling class as The Rookie is.
yeah, he could have just taped a message like he did for the Boy Scouts Jamboree
I really think the information at post #14 needs more attention.
I don’t speak Spanish or I would be combing the papers over there.
Maybe someone could do a little digging?
I am heading for a couple of places to see what I can find. I will return with any additional information.
Meanwhile, I think this is important!!
Stunned me when I found it at El Mundo. Sent it to the Daily Caller and Newsbusters. Also posted it below an article on Big Journalism. Wish Drudge or someone would report on what El Mundo says Michelle is up to. This should go everywhere ASAP. It is not in the English speaking media as far as I know.
This trip smelled from the start. Out of nowhere she decides she has to visit a place known for drug lords, organized crime and the rich. She misses her husband's birthday to go. She declares it a "private vacation" and keeps the media away. She and Barack had to know they would take a PR hit for the trip but they didn't care. The trip was too important. It being three months before an election Democrats fear is going to wipe them out figures in too I believe.
There is another angle here as well. High level meetings such as this are for the State Department to handle. Obama is having some trouble with Hillary lately. Looks to me he is bypassing the State Department by sending Michelle.
For those who missed the background, the post on Michelle meeting with a Qatar billionaire and an Arab Prince is here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2566518/posts?page=14#14
Well done.
I don’t read Spanish. Is this absolutely true? (Sorry, I don’t know you so I have to ask.)
I can post this on Twitter and send it to Stephen Hayes. I don’t want to make a mistake, though.
:0)
You have an excellent, important find! I’m glad you’ve sent it to those outlets so far. Wouldn’t it be great if Drudge picked it up?
How about including Hot Air and Don Surber, too? Maybe Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit? Everywhere you can think to get the word out.
Surber has been on top of this and just recently posted this article about the coverage of Michelle in Spain by the U.S. Press:
U.S. press doesn’t cover “Lady of Spain.” Fleet Street doesn’t
http://blogs.dailymail.com/donsurber/archives/18948
I can’t find that story on the page of El Mundo that you linked. Do you have a link to the actual story?
Good question.
The Hotel Villa Padierna in Marbella is reputed to be a popular hangout for Arab royalty and criminals. Collecting suitcases of dollars from Arab Muslims?
Pig maybe, not rich. She's spending other people's money as a way of poking her finger in the eye of America.
I find this SO disturbing, and I really don’t understand why more people aren’t paying attention to this.
I really want to know what the Obamas are up to. Somehow, I don’t think it bodes well for us, or for Israel.
I posted the google translation of the page verbatim. Here is a screen shot:
Takes some clicking to get to that page.
The link I posted I took from the article page but it takes everyone to the front page of El Mundo. To get to the article, go to El Mundo's front page. Click on "Andulasia" at the top of the front page. On the page which appears look at the left hand column of articles about Michelle and click on "Pleasure and Vacation Policy Michelle".
Yes, you must be very careful about spreading the info.
I wonder if perhaps the Google translation may be faulty and when it says “there WILL be a meeting between Michelle Obama and Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz” that it could say “there is a possibility of a meeting” instead?
Here is the direct link to El Mundo’s article in Spanish.
http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2010/08/06/andalucia_malaga/1281082124.html
text:
“Varias casas reales árabes también pasan sus veranos en Marbella desde hace años. Así, habrá un encuentro entre Michelle Obama y el príncipe Salman bin Abdelaziz, gobernador de Riad y hermano del fallecido Rey Fahd de Arabia Saudí; mientras que se baraja otra reunión de la primera dama con el propietario del Málaga CF, empresario multimillonario, hijo del ministro del Interior de Qatar y miembro de la familia real qatarí, Abdullah Al Thani.”
The translation is clearer about Jesse Jackson Jr. That meeting "could" happen.
Thanks...didn’t think of that (and maybe could not have found it). We’ll know shortly if the translation is correct.
Thank you.
Ping to #14.
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