Michelle Obama Becomes GOP Target

Politico: Both Parties Are Trying To Define Democratic Candidate's Wife For The General Election

(The Politico)  This story was written by Carrie Budoff Brown.

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It’s less than a week into the general election campaign, but already Michelle Obama is a Republican target.

Former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger leveled the first blow, introducing Republican John McCain’s wife at a fundraiser this week as someone who is “proud of her country, not just once but always.” Obama wasn’t mentioned by name, but the audience got it.

The dig signaled the start of what Democrats expect will be a concerted effort to cast Michelle Obama - and, by extension, Barack Obama - as an unpatriotic radical. It also pointed out the urgency to define Michelle Obama to general election voters before the opposition goes too far in doing it for her, strategists said.

“We live now in an era where everything and everyone is fair game,” said Douglas E. Schoen, who was a pollster and adviser to former President Bill Clinton from 1994 to 2000. “It is certainly the case that Teresa Heinz Kerry was probably not an asset in John Kerry’s campaign, at least publicly, and the jury is still out on how the public will view Michelle Obama.”

Despite being a steady presence at her husband’s side on primary election nights, and sitting for occasional media interviews, Michelle Obama remains an unfamiliar figure to most voters, strategists said. When she campaigned in recent months, it was almost always alone and in small settings. The most sustained attention she received on cable news shows was for her controversial February statement leaving the impression that she wasn’t proud of her country until this year.

“There is no reason to expect her to have a brand. But the campaign needs to start doing that,” said Erik Smith, a Democratic strategist and aide to former Rep. Richard Gephardt during his 2004 presidential campaign. "Defining Michelle Obama goes a long way in defining Barack Obama. I am sure it is a campaign priority."

Indeed, when the campaign launched a website today to combat rumors about Barack Obama's patriotism, his religion and his family, the first entry dealt with his wife.

Other efforts are on tap. She joins the candidate Friday for a roundtable in Ohio with senior citizens and appears as a guest host next week on "The View," the popular daytime talk show, giving her access to friendly, high-profile platforms. Campaign aides said they are “staffing up across the board,” including for Michelle Obama - a move that Schoen said reflects the need to “manage the image and utterances of the spouse.”

The heightened scrutiny “requires a level of staffing and attention to detail that goes beyond what spouses have typically gotten,” Schoen said.

Most voters likely won't decide which candidate to support based on wives. Only 22 percent of respondents in a Rasmussen Reports survey released Wednesday said their perception of the spouse is very important to how they vote. But the more people learn about her, the more people understand her husband, strategists said.

The Rasmussen survey showed Michelle Obama, at this point, as a more polarizing figure than Cindy McCain. Forty-eight percent of voters hold a favorable impression of the presumptive Democratic nominee’s spouse, while 42 percent view her unfavorably, including a “startling” 25 percent with a very unfavorable opinion, Rasmussen wrote in its release.

Cindy McCain earned a favorable assessment from 49 percent of voters and an unfavorable review from 29 percent, including 10 percent who held a very unfavorable opinion.

Michelle Obama receives lower ratings than first lady Laura Bush did during the 2004 campaign but fares better than did Heinz Kerry, whose numbers dropped as Election Day drew closer. Obama is drawing comparisons to another presidential spouse: Hillary Rodham Clinton, who, like Obama, was 44 years old, was Ivy League-educated, earned more money than her husband and raised a child in the spotlight. Clinton also became a lightening rod for the conservative right.

But unlike 1992, the debate isn’t a proxy battle about the traditional bounds for women. Obama, to a greater degree than Clinton, makes her family life the centerpiece of her public image, talking frequently about family-work life balance and her two young daughters.

This time, the criticism is rooted in a combustible mix of race and patriotism.

The Obama campaign and PolitiFact, an independent fact-checking website, have debunked chain e-mails in the last month claiming she advocated racial separatism in her college thesis. Long the domain of rumors about her husband, the e-mails also focused on her February remark: “For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country.”

Michelle Obama later clarified her statement, saying that her pride was in the political process and that she was “absolutely” always proud of the country.

The Tennessee Republican Party picked up on the remark, however, and posted a Web video last month that juxtaposed her statement with average voters claiming pride in their country.

The video reaped considerable national media attention and drew a sharp response from Barack Obama (“Lay off my wife,” he said at the time). He did the same last week when he was forced to respond to rumors of a video showing his wife using a derogatory term for white people.

“There is dirt and lies that are circulated in e-mails, and they pump them out long enough until finally you, a mainstream reporter, asks me about it,” Barack Obama said to a reporter who asked about the purported video, for which there is no evidence to support its existence. “That gives legs to the story. If somebody has evidence that myself or Michelle or anybody has said something inappropriate, let them do it.”

His comments followed a month of chatter from conservative pundits that the video's release was imminent. The fact that Barack Obama was personally pressed on the matter is said to be a reason why the campaign launched the website, which states on the front page: "No Such Tape Exists."

Chris Lehane, a veteran of Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign, said the Obama campaign faces a choice similar to the one they faced with Hillary Clinton. As she, too, became a target of Republicans, “we made the decision to put her out there and not go into the bunker,” Lehane said.

The campaign gave her “an entire support system,” including more than a dozen aides, he said. By the late summer, attacks on Hillary Clinton at the Republican National Convention backfired as polls showed the criticism had turned off moderate and independent voters.

“They are going to try to make her a focal point of the campaign,” Lehane said of Michelle Obama. The McCain campaign will likely avoid attacks, but independent expenditure groups “will take selectively used phrases, manipulate and exploit them.”

The biggest concern for McCain, said a Republican media consultant, “will be controlling renegade county chairmen and people who have a tendency to be less disciplined about the right thing to say."

“This is an area where people have to be extremely careful," said John Brabender, who is serving as an informal adviser to the McCain campaign. "Voters have grown to believe that spouses are often well off-limits.”

Campaign aides said they expect Michelle Obama to maintain her schedule of several days a week on the campaign trail, at least until her daughters finish the school year. They view her as Barack Obama’s best character witness, introducing him as a father and a husband, and making connections with other women, particularly as the campaign attempts to lock down Clinton voters.

Tucker Bounds, a McCain spokesman, said the Arizona senato is “committed to running a respectful campaign” that is focused on the issues. Bounds, however, did not respond to a request for comment on Eagleburger’s remark.

“She is more likely to be an issue during the slow summer months than the real campaign after Labor Day,” Brabender said. “It is a distraction that campaigns can just not afford.”

[imarltool2u]

I love brian piccolo. I love President Obama. Give me a pap. What racists won''t be voting for President Obama? Lets here it. Michele''s a babe.

[hamiltongrad]

I remember how the Big MEDIA went after Sen Thompson''s WIFE , calling her a "TROPHY WIFE"- no one objected , how insensitive.

........... I guess it depends who the MEDIA targets to go after........///// Will BIG MEDIA target MRS MC CAIN ?? we''ll see..
Personally, I think wives should be off limits, but let''s be fair for everyone, not just Democrats !!

[omaar-101]

imarltool2u: Coming from a Racist, KKK, Aryan, Nazi & White Separatist like YOu, Michelle will take your sentiments as a Compliment.

It Always takes one, to Know one and You are One !!

[omaar-101]

True: This time, the criticism is rooted in a combustible mix of RACE and PATRIOTISM.

But this mainly About her Race.

Michelle is Not Running for Presidentcy of the USA..OK


Michelle Obama receives lower ratings than first lady Laura Bush did during the 2004 campaign but fares better than did Heinz Kerry, whose numbers dropped as Election Day drew closer. Obama is drawing comparisons to another presidential spouse: Hillary Rodham Clinton, who, like Obama, was 44 years old, was Ivy League-educated, earned more money than her husband and raised a child in the spotlight. Clinton also became a lightening rod for the conservative right.

But unlike 1992, the debate isn%u2019t a proxy battle about the traditional bounds for women. Obama, to a greater degree than Clinton, makes her family life the centerpiece of her public image, talking frequently about family-work life balance and her two young daughters.

[wdrussell1]

This is no surprise. The GOP doesn''t have any real topics to talk about.

[ramos937]

Here in Texas, when we have an axe to grind with another man, we call him out - him and not his wife or any other member of his family. From this story, the GOP lacks this trait.

[jack3213]

How can you trust a woman who says one thing one minute and then something else the next? Changing your mind on an issue is one thing- BUT- changing your perception of a country to appease and suit the masses is a whole differant animal. Michelle Obama is not the right choice for "First Lady" for the USA.

[krenz4]

PUHLEEEZ! Michelle OBAMA is a breath of REAL fresh air. This country is so used to lily white, Stepford wife first ladies, that they cannot accept a real life person, let alone a black one. This country likes their black women to be undereducated, unmarried with fatherless children or a triflin baby daddy, on welfare, chewing gum and ignorant. Michelle Obama, flies in the face of all that those folks (black or white) want to belive is true of black women. I knew when she and Her husband bumped fists at his victory speech, that the media was going to look at it as some kind of secret hand signal, when in fact it is a extremely common greeting and a sign of solidarity used by almost eveyone. There is no real issue here, except that there is a definate HATER contingent in America. GO OBAMA, GO Michelle!!!

[aldon61]

"while 42 percent view her unfavorably, including a %u201Cstartling%u201D 25 percent with a very unfavorable opinion, Rasmussen wrote in its release."

This 25% is about what Bush''s favorable rating is.

There is no question that the Republican slime-balls will go after Michelle. The question is, should we return the favor? Cindy has had drug problems in her past, was married to McCain after he dumped his first wife and mother of his children. McCain has, in public, called Cindy a c/u/n/t/, and after all he knows her better than anyone else. If Michelle is in play, then Cindy should be in play, maybe both candidates can get together and agree to constrain their supporters and concentrate on the issues. These two candidates are dam near polar opposites, choosing a president shouldn''t be too hard this year. Let''s keep it clean and leave both candidates wives out of the presidential debate.

[aldon61]

Here in Texas, when we have an axe to grind with another man, we call him out - him and not his wife or any other member of his family. From this story, the GOP lacks this trait.


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Posted by ramos937 at 10:31 AM : Jun 13, 2008

I live in Texas too, and this man is right one the money, good post ramos937!

[obama4janito]

Wonderful, cbsnews,

While Nancy Pelosi who doesn''t have to worry about whether she can fill her gas tank or put food on the table dooms middle and lower class Americans to higher gas prices because of her insanity - and that of her (and Barack Obama''s) party, you worry about this America-dissing, racist Jungle Bunny who only got to college due to Affirmative Action.

Read about her. Listen to her speak, and better yet, read her thesis. The Obamites don''t wish to be confused with the facts, but they are on record.
BTW - I''m not great shakes about Cindy McCain being First Lady, but she''s head and shoulders above this shrew.

If you want to pay $5 and up at the gas pumps, then by all means vote for the Democrats in November. I''m so glad you can afford to do so, and so is the ''ore Pelosi. If you''ve had enough, you know what the other choice is.

Pelosi for ''Ho in SF, Obama in ''08 - for White House Janitor.

[bfjones666]

If the Republicans target the wife of a candidate for whatever reason, how the f*ck do they expect to get Clinton''s women supporters? All the belly-aching about sexism towards a strong woman when Hillary Clinton was still running and now they want to target a strong woman who is also black? Wow. Not only will there be a strong backlash from women but the handful of blacks that vote Republican (I think its 7%) will also vote with their hearts and say screw the Republican Party. Its funny, but for the last decade the Republicans have been saying that they will not take the black vote for granted but I''m afraid they are planning to permanently sever any ties to the black community if they follow through with targeting Michelle.
Good Luck with that.

[obama4janito]

aldon61,

cindy mccain maybe what you called her, and i''m no fan of hers (Pat Nixon and Nancy Reagan were classy First Ladies), but the other choice is a jungle bunny, a resentful sounding shrew, and a real ''ho.

Funny Obama couldn''t find a white woman. Guess his mommy put paid to that.

Obama in ''08 - for White House Janitor. And Michelle for cleaning potties.

[l00ker]

The Pubs are so behind the eight ball on the most pressing issues of the day, that they need all of the distraction that they can get. But, you won''t hear them talking about McPain''s "old lady" being hooked on pain killers, which led to her going klepto and stealing from her own organization''s medicine cabinet.

http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/11/22/cindy.mccain/index.html


Just the facts mam...

[slader99]

You Republicans just dont get it lol The more you go after his wife, call him Osama, and come up with all the other things FOX NEWS has attempted, the uglier and smaller you look. Its why Hillary lost. Obama is above it all, makes everyone else look foolish.

[DCropp]

Pretty funny.

Cindy McCain represents the super rich and wealthy.

John McCain is so embarrassed by Cindy McCain''s wealth that he refuses to disclose all of her taxes. He doesn''t want Americans to know how much she made on investments in foreign companies with human rights violations.

[obama4janito]

aldon and ramos,

I really doubt you live in Texas at all.

But then again, you probably do if you''re Demoncrats.

After all, in Texas you probably pay less for gas then the rest of the country does. Thank goodness for drilling and those oil fields, sonnies.
And thank goodness for a ''ore like Nancy Pelosi who scroows the rest of us.

Frankly Aldon, you and Ramos deserve Pelosi and Michelle Talking Trash. Maybe you can pump the two of them for gas next time, as they are so full of it.

[minnick8-2009]

Michelle has been out with Barack making political comments and speaking out about issues. If she doesn''t want people to make comments about her comments, she should just smile and waver, like Laura Bush, and Barbara Bush before her.

[briannorwood]

You know, there are two women who may become first lady in November, one is and adulterer and one is not. Can you guess which one was giving head to John McCain while his wife was in the hospital with cancer? You guessed it...Cindy McCain.

So, if Michelle Obama is fair game for the GOP, I guess that little harpie Cindy McCain is fair game too?

Did you know the Cindy McCain had an abortion? It is true. Before John McCain divorced his wife, he got Cindy pregnant. You can find the whole story at cindyisawhore.com.

[bfjones666]

Obama4Janito:
One of these days you will grow up but it obviously won''t be today. And that head of your is permanently lodged up your ***. Your racist rant suits someone of your obvious low intelligence level. So, Good Luck with THAT.

[obama4janito]

danimmadison,

how much are YOU paying at the pumps these days?

If the Democrats represent the poor and working middle class, then why are they scrooing us at the pumps?

The answer is pretty obvious, except perhaps to brain dead Left Fascists and Demoncrat fools.

The Party of the Uber-Rich these days, with their Malibu Parties, and their jacking up gas prices is the MoveOn.Org Democrats.

Traitors.

[rudy654-2009]

I think it is typical cowardness for these white racist men to go after an African American woman. They are even intent on claiming that a "certain video" exists where she uses the term whitey. Nothing new for these people because they are indeed the descendents of slave owners who used to rape their slave women. Worthless.

[l00ker]

Michelle has been out with Barack making political comments and speaking out about issues. If she doesn''''t want people to make comments about her comments, she should just smile and waver, like Laura Bush, and Barbara Bush before her.

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Posted by minnick8 at 11:08 AM : Jun 13, 2008
+ report abuse


It''s either a mouthpiece, or a flak jacket and a helmet.

[obama4janito]

bfjones,

kindly kiss my whoo-whoo.

If anyone is a d&mn racist here, its you, pal. I worked in the Civil Rights Movement fighting the Klan, but not for fetchits like Obama or jungle girls like Michelle. You don''t like it, then go to hades and take Jerry Wright with you.

BFClown - just another dumass.

[briannorwood]

Before Cindy McCain started giving head to married John McCain, she had a ***** affair with Mary Cheney.

You can get the whole scoop at cindyisawhore.com

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by Obama4Janito at 11:10 AM

Another one the twilight zone.

[rudy654-2009]

I worked in the Civil Rights Movement fighting the Klan**********

Riiiiiiiiiiigggggghhhhht!

[briannorwood]

Did you know the Cindy McCain had an abortion? It is true. Before John McCain divorced his wife, he got Cindy pregnant. You can find the whole story at cindyisawhore.com.

[obama4janito]

hey rudy,

love you comments.

Now, little brain-dead one, please tell me what party gave birth to the Confederacy? what party still want to keep Slavery intact, and which party kept racism alive in this country after Reconstruction, even electing Racist Presidents.

Care to answer?

The party where your stepin fetch Obama kiss the hump of Grand Kleagle Byrd.

And who raped Black women prior to the Civil War? Why White Southern - you know whats - and they WEREN''T Republicans.

[notblue]

Love the headline! like the GOP hasn''t been the target of the libs or the mainstream lib media! TOO FUNNY!

[briannorwood]

Did you know that Cindy McCain spent two years in a mental hospital recovering from heroin addiction.

You can get the whole story at cindyisawhore.com

[rudy654-2009]

If she doesn''''t want people to make comments about her comments, she should just smile and waver, like Laura Bush, and Barbara Bush before her.

Posted by minnick8 at 11:08 AM

Yeah, you don''t want to hear from no darkie! Least wise no darkie female!!

[feelfreee4u]

Hmm, lets see here. Face like a horse. Ugly purple dress. Annoying personality. Hostile. Hates her own country. Thinks Americans need to all be molded by her husband. ******. Looks like a door was slammed into her face 2000 times until it was flattened. Arrogant. Abrasive. Yep, sounds like the perfect first lady to me, where do I sign up for this purgatory?

[obama4janito]

rudy,

i''m proud of my record confronting little white racists - like you. And putting myself on the line for secure open housing for all Americans. You''re a little gutless pissant.

Just like Barack Obama. Nothing more, nothing less.

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by Obama4Janito at 11:14 AM

Democrat or Republican, a racist is a racist!

[beastof70]

Hey, nobody in there right mind can deny...Unlike Hillary Clinton, Michelle certainly doesn''t look like she was beat daily with an ugly switch.

Michelle is a fine looking woman.

But, if she, me, or my wife step on the stump and take a political stance, our offering is fair game.

OsamaObama seriously needs to grow up, stop whining, and get to put some real substance to all this "lawyer speak" rhetoric he offers.

For as it stands today.....13% of this nations population plus a hand full of self loathing, nation hating leftist simply isn''t going to be enough votes to get him elected.

[briannorwood]

Did you know that Cindy McCain was born with male genitalia?

You can get the whole scoop at cindyisawhore.com

[robroyh392]

If Michelle Obama''s a target then so is the drug addicted charity thief cindy Lou Magoo who the Pukes are trying to intall in the wh0re house

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by Obama4Janito at 11:15 AM

Hey, you want to be a coward and invent lies about an African American woman? Your actions speak for themselves.

[obama4janito]

briannorwood,

sounds like you''re jealous that you couldn''t get a piece of Cindy...but of course you could do it with the jungle girl. She''s available. Step to it, little boy.

Or are you just another ga-ye democrat pissant, like rudy? LOL.

[greatdrivew]

Michelle Obama is an enlightened, Harvard educated attorney who openly discusses topics such as health care, child care, family and middle class values. With a resume like hers, she doesn''t have anything to worry about.

And why? One reason is because We the People know exactly how the GOP operates: slander, distraction, attack ads, sleaze, division and corruption.

So go ahead and spend all your money on attack ads GOP, because We stopped listening to you long ago!!

The time is now to turn the page on the disgusting, politics of yesterday.

The time is now for Barack Obama!!

[briannorwood]

Did you know that Cindy McCain had an affair with Rush Limbaugh and Tom Delay before she started her adulterous affair with John McCain.

You can get the whole scoop at cindyisawhore.com

[rudy654-2009]

OsamaObama seriously needs to grow up, stop whining, and get to put some real substance to all this "lawyer speak" rhetoric he offers.
**********

OsamaObama? Thanks for proving that you really are a racist.

[rudy654-2009]

Or are you just another ga-ye democrat pissant, like rudy? LOL.


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Posted by Obama4Janito at 11:18 AM

You got something against ga-yes? Now you can join the KKK instead of opposing them.

[briannorwood]

Did you know that there is a video tape of Cindy McCain doing it with a donkey?

You can get the whole scoop at cindyisawhore.com

[feelfreee4u]

briannorwood , you''re an annoying little troll and a freak. And everyone: no such website as the one he keeps mentioning. This is his idea of a joke.

[l00ker]

Hmm, lets see here. Face like a horse. Ugly purple dress. Annoying personality. Hostile. Hates her own country. Thinks Americans need to all be molded by her husband. ******. Looks like a door was slammed into her face 2000 times until it was flattened. Arrogant. Abrasive. Yep, sounds like the perfect first lady to me, where do I sign up for this purgatory?

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Posted by FeelFreee4U at 11:15 AM : Jun 13, 2008
+ report abuse


You know you''ll slam that backside, if you had the chance... You know you''ll buck that bronco...

[obama4janito]

did you know briannorwood is a little ga-ye puke who serviced Brenda, oops, Barney Frank and Jim McGreevey?

get it all here, folks. brynorwoodisamaleho.com

right now, he''s probably servicing his pal rudy.

LOL.

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by Obama4Janito at 11:19 AM

Abrasive? Sweety, you wouldn''t know abrasive if it up and slapped you good.

[briannorwood]

Did you know that Cindy McCain was hospitalized because she had a gerbil stuck in her ***?

You can get the whole scoop at cindyisawhore.com