All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

Remember when the first lady did some hula hooping last month during Healthy Kids Fair at the White House? (See more photos here)

Today, Mrs. Obama said she "got a little too much attention from the hula hooping."

She was discussing healthy lifestyle and living curriculum with teachers at Hollin Meadows School in Alexandria.

But Mrs. Obama said the goal of the hula hooping was to engage "families and kids in the whole area of fitness."

One of the teachers told her that her hula hooping inspired the kids and even him to follow suit.

Mrs. Obama visited the school cafeteria and with the principal, handed bananas and oranges to kids as they emerged from the chow line.

She says government can do better in the school lunches provided to kids.

"The low rates of vegetables and fruits in those meals and the high rates of foods that have high calories probably plays a role in some of the statistics the we hear, that one in three kids in this country are obese," said the first lady.

She described childhood obesity as a problem "we have to really combat."

"If we don't do something about it now it's only going to get worse."

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The first episode of Sesame Street's fortieth season aired this morning, featuring a pre-taped segment in which First Lady Michelle Obama gardens and talks healthy eating with Elmo and friends.

Politics Daily reports that the clip, which you can watch at left, was recorded last May. In it, Obama works together with Elmo and three children to plant a vegetable garden of tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and carrots. Big Bird also makes an appearance, declaring his love for seeds and demanding to know whether the first lady is part bird.

"No, Big Bird, I'm not…" Obama said, grinning. "You see, I really don't eat these kinds of seeds at all. But I do eat what grows from these seeds."

The first lady continues her campaign for healthy eating by plugging good nutrition on the show, encouraging the children to eat the produce that they plant. Towards the end of the clip, she is praised by a basket of animated vegetables that invite the audience to cheer for her.

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The White House announced this afternoon that Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden will make a trip to New York on Wednesday to attend game one of the World Series at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx between the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies.

Before the game, Obama and Biden will visit patients at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in the Bronx, along with players from the Yankees.

The White House said Major League Baseball is dedicating the game to veterans and their families. The New York Daily News reports reports that Obama and Biden will participate in a pre-game ceremony honoring veterans.

One thing to watch for tomorrow night: Will Biden, a Phillies fan, wear team paraphernalia to the game?

For more on the World Series, check out CBSSports.com

A giant pink ribbon, seen at left, was hung on the north side of the White House this morning to recognize Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

On Friday, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden hosted an event also to highlight breast cancer awareness.

Obama talked about how the "veil" has been lifted when it comes to talking about the disease and how that has affected detection and survival rates.

"It wasn't that long ago that people thought that breast cancer was something to be ashamed of and to keep it a secret; something that you didn't discuss in polite company," she said. "Some people even wondered, if you can believe it or not, whether breast cancer was contagious. And at the first fundraising lunch hosted by the Komen Foundation, the description of the event was written in one paper as a 'women's cancer event,' because the word "breast" was considered too risqué to print."

CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller reports that the ribbon couldn't be hoisted last week because the driveway was being repaved.

The Obamas have released a new official first family portrait this morning. As you can see at left, Barack and Michelle Obama are seated in the Green Room of the White House, along with their daughters Sasha, age 8, and Malia, age 11.

The portrait was taken last month by famed photographer Annie Leibowitz, who has taken a number of Obama family portraits in the past.

First Lady Michelle Obama welcomed elementary school students to the White House for a Healthy Kids Fair today, promoting healthy eating and exercise.

"One of our goals was to focus on the importance of educating our kids about healthy eating," said Obama. "So it wasn't just about planting a garden.

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First Lady Michelle Obama put a spotlight on the importance of good nutrition and children's health today during a speech at the Department of Health and Human Services, continuing her campaign for healthy eating habits to fight rising obesity rates.

"Nearly a third of all children in this country are overweight or obese… and a third will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lifetimes," Obama said. "It is a major public health threat right now, so just imagine what we're going to be facing in 20 or 30 years if we don't get on this issue."

The first lady addressed practical problems surrounding good nutrition, such as long work hours, dirty or unsafe neighborhood playgrounds, a lack of healthy food options and cheap, unhealthy take-out food. She said that she struggled with these day-to-day issues herself as a parent before receiving a wake-up call from her daughters' pediatrician.

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Melvinia was born in South Carolina around 1844. She was valued at $475 by the master of the estate, who willed the slave girl to relatives in Georgia. This the starting point of a New York Times article that traces the path from Melvinia, Michelle Obama's great-great-great grandmother, to the White House.

With the aid of a genealogist, reporters Rachel Swarns and Jodi Kantor uncovered five generations of the First Lady's maternal ancestors. As a teenager, Melvinia had a son, Dolphus T. Shields, born of a white father.

It's not unlike the stories of many whose lives started in bondage in the U.S., but "for the first time fully connects the first African-American first lady to the history of slavery, tracing their five-generation journey from bondage to a front-row seat to the presidency," the authors said.

Read the full article here. And watch the geneologist who helped trace Mrs. Obama's family tree, Megan Smolenyak, who spoke with co-anchor Harry Smih on The Early Show Thursday, at left.

Daniel Farber is editor-in-chief of CBSNews.com.

First Lady Michelle Obama made the case Friday morning that health care reform is a women's issue and called on female activists to support President Obama's reform plan.

"Health insurance reform and what it means for our families is very much a women's issue," Obama said, speaking to a group of female advocacy leaders at the White House. "If we want to ensure women have opportunities that they deserve, if we want women to be able to care for their families and pursue things they could never imagine, then we have to reform the system."

Women play a unique and increasingly significant role in families, she said, with eight in 10 mothers reporting they are the ones responsible for choosing their children's doctors. More than 10 percent of women in this country are caring for a sick or elderly relative, she said.

"Being part of the sandwich generation, raising kids while caring for sick or elderly parents, that's just not a work-family balance issue anymore... it is a health care issue," Obama said.

Speaking before the first lady, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that insurance companies can charge women more than men for the same coverage.

She noted that insurance companies in some states can deny coverage to women who are victims of domestic violence because they are considered to have pre-existing conditions.

"A system that treats women like that is unconscionable," Sebelius said.

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This story by Alex Byers originally appeared in The GW Hatchet, the student newspaper at George Washington University. It comes to CBSNews.com via UWIRE.

First lady Michelle Obama has promised to be the 2010 Commencement speaker if the GW community completes 100,000 hours of community service this year, University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard said this morning.

Service hours will be counted monthly by the GW Office of Community Service, and "volunteerism, service learning, and federal work study service employment" will count toward the tally, according to a University statement. Work with AmeriCorps and other pro-bono service will be counted as well.

Obama's challenge coincides with GW's Freshman Day of Service, and the eighth anniversary of 9/11. More than 1,500 freshmen are expected to participate in the Day of Service, according to the statement.

Student Association President Julie Bindelglass and SA Executive Vice President Jason Lifton said Obama's challenge spurred from a letter they sent the first lady over the summer, asking her to participate in the Freshman Day of Service.

Although Obama said she could not attend the event, she offered the possibility of speaking at Commencement if GW students could complete her challenge.

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