Barack Obama is sticking up for his woman. Very manly. But that doesn't mean he is right.
The headline on the May 20th Chicago Sun-Times reads, "Leave My Wife Out Of This." Well, that isn't up to us. It is up to the Obamas. Does she want into this hot kitchen or doesn't she?
Back when little Chelsea Clinton was struggling through puberty in a very public way she sometimes found herself the brunt of ugly and unfair "humor." Shame on those who attacked her. She didn't make her father president and she didn't make her mother a lightening rod.
But now she travels the country, mostly to colleges, stumping for her mother. She's fair game in terms of what she says and the positions she champions. So is Michelle Obama.
Barack shouldn't be so thin-skinned about this.
When Mrs. Obama told America that she has finally, after 44 years of life, found pride in her country, the country reacted. What did she expect? Perhaps the Obamas subscribe to the notion so many on the left seem to believe; that their speech is free only if no one argues with them. They seem as shocked as were the Dixie Chicks who, after attacking President Bush, joined their supporters in the defense of their free speech rights rather than recognize the equal right to speak on the part of their critics and the opportunity for a reasonable debate.
This isn't about whether or not we agree with Michelle Obama. It is about whether Barack Obama is correct when he avails himself of the benefit of his popular wife's campaigning abilities while asserting that she is above criticism. His is an elitist position when you think about it.
So let's reach an agreement Senator. Children are off limits so long as they are no more visible in a campaign than the usual cute family photo op. Spouses are off limits as long as their public function in the life of the candidate is primarily as a spouse. Many spouses don't seem particularly interested in a political profile. Let's leave them alone.
But when a spouse starts campaigning; when a spouse does thirty-three events in eight days, as Michelle Obama did in February, it is open season politically and ideologically. This is big time, hardball politics. Suck it up.
Jake says:
"They seem as shocked as were the Dixie Chicks who, after attacking President Bush, joined their supporters in the defense of their free speech rights rather than recognize the equal right to speak on the part of their critics and the opportunity for a reasonable debate."
Is that your view of what happened? You might want to do some research before you make such a comparison. Dixie Chicks haters weren't expressing free speech so much as trying to silence everyone who didn't love George Bush and support the war. They didn't want reasonable debate. No one at that time - in the media or elsewhere - wanted to engage in honest debate. And then some of those lovely haters decided that the Dixie Chicks should be dead. There's fair game and free speech until one side takes it beyond that. The Michelle Obama ad isn't there yet, but let's see how far the Republicans take it. I agree she's put herself out there, but I'm just waiting for it to get really ugly. That's American politics these days, isn't it? I hate it.