Michele Obama Offers New “View”

After being slammed by Republican pundits over a possible tape where she allegedly used the word “whitey” and her statement of only being ‘really’ proud of being an American after Obama won Iowa, Michelle Obama has attempted to change the view that mainstream America has about her by appearing on women’s daytime staple, The View.

Her appearance dealt less with her political views and focused more on her domestic side. Issues that Barack Obama has had to deal with in interviews such as the Iraq war and Reverend Wright were not touched and were replaced by issues such as raising children, pantyhose, taking out the garbage, and breakfast (bacon is a staple in the Obama household).

While many expected her to get into a confrontation with arch-conservative, Elizabeth Hasslebeck, the two were surprisingly cordial. Michelle praised Elizabeth saying, "This girl is solid. She's got great kids. She's a great mom. She's funny. I can disagree with her on a whole bunch of points, but we can come together tomorrow." The two later discussed the struggles of career women, including creating feeding schedules.

By discussing issues that most women could relate to, Michelle Obama not only humanized herself to the average woman but also feminized herself. By appearing in an 148 dollar dress, Michelle distanced herself from some of the elite labels that many have put on the Obama family and made her seem like a regular woman.

Out of all the media outlets who covered Michelle’s appearance on The View, only Rupert Murdoch’s super conservative New York Post had anything negative to say. The Post said her appearance was a lame try so seem like one of the girls and said she looked “bored and superior.”

However many other outlets such as The New York Times said she showed ”her warmer more personable side.” The UK’s Guardian said Michelle dispelled any notions of being elitist or a black revolutionary and emerged with “smiles and softness.” Ada Calhoun from AOL said that her appearance was a “slam dunk” and that “she worked that TV show for all it was worth.”

Watch Michelle Obama on The View and Decide for Yourself