(Re)Introducing Michelle Obama
Saturday afternoon was the Obama campaign’s rollout of the candidate’s vice presidential nominee.
Tonight at the Democratic National Convention, they rolled out Michelle Obama.
Michelle had a somewhat rocky road during the primaries, thanks to an off-handed statement she made about being proud of her country “for the first time in my adult life.”
Republicans quickly pounced on what they insisted was an inadvertent look Michelle Obama had allowed into her psyche: That she wasn’t proud of her country until Barack Obama began winning primary elections. In an uncharacteristically ungraceful attack, even Cindy McCain got some digs in against Mrs. Obama.
Of course, the Obama campaign said Michelle’s remarks were taken out of context, and Mrs. Obama herself spent weeks insisting that she actually is proud of her country.
Fairly or unfairly, she began developing an image as a shrill, aggressive, overbearing political wife.
Remind you of anyone?
And so, the Obama campaign began to take great lengths to reintroduce Michelle Obama to American voters. Among other engagements meant to soften the image was a widely praised appearance on The View earlier this summer; those appearances were meant to pave the way for her speech tonight, when she would get a chance to speak for herself on the biggest stage the party could offer – and convince Americans that she would not be a risk as First Lady Michelle Obama.
I have seen several interviews with Michelle Obama; she’s a well-spoken, intelligent and able defender of her husband, his campaign, her family and her country. I don’t know what to make of the “proud of my country” remarks from several months ago, and that’s one of many reasons I was anxious to hear her tonight.
The stage couldn’t have been set any better: Michelle followed Ted Kennedy’s emotional appearance before the delegates, which ended on a high note. The video that preceded her introduction was fantastic. It was obvious that the Obama campaign intends to define Michelle Obama through her relationships with those close to her: As the wife of the candidate, as the mother to two young daughters, as the daughter of hard-working parents from Chicago’s South Side and as the younger sister of a protective older brother.
It was genius. The video was flawless. Especially because of its emphasis on her relationships with her mother and late father, Michelle Obama came across as a little girl, a young woman, a wife and mother that anyone could bump into at a PTA meeting. The best part of the video, though, was the end, when her mother said, “I hope America gets to know the girl we raised and the woman she became, because she is the most remarkable person I know.” Referencing her late husband, Michelle’s late father, her mother said, “Every day I get to see a piece of him in her, and for that I am so proud and so blessed.”
The stage was perfectly set.
And then, for reasons that are completely inexplicable to me, convention organizers had Michelle’s brother, Craig Robinson, a college basketball coach, come out and give a colloquial segue from the video into Michelle’s introduction.
I know he’s her brother, but this staging ruined the vibe. Craig Robinson is, I’m sure, a great guy, but he’s no raucous speaker. There’s something about the idea of memorizing every episode of the Brady Bunch (a big brother tidbit that Craig offered) that completely shattered the buildup and anticipation for hearing from the woman who wants to be America’s First Lady.
I’m not saying they shouldn’t have included him. I’m saying he should have gone before the video, then appeared after it just long enough to say Michelle’s name preceded by, “Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome.”
That aside, Craig Robinson continued the theme from the video, which was to define Michelle through her relationships. And a new word began emerging: Compassion. Everyone mentioned Michelle’s compassion, how compassionate she was, etc. Again, this is an effort to soften her image and make her more approachable for voters.
When she finally appeared, she seemed to start off a bit nervous, though she seemed to find her stride in the section about the anniversaries of female suffrage and Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. From there, although her tone remained easy and even, it was bolstered by a strength that was obscured by nerves before.
Michelle mentioned how the “American dream endures;” this was a direct carryover from Kennedy’s earlier speech. She was at her best when describing the physical hardships her MS-stricken father bore as he tried to dress himself each morning, and then as she described the different groups of men and women she’s met across America, including those who work double shifts, military servicemen and women and their families and public servants of all kinds.
Michelle came as close as she could to addressing the earlier furor that surrounded her when she said, “That is why I love this country.”
It was a direct and self-assured response to those who have questioned her love for America and, by extension, the love for America her husband truly espouses. To those who have questioned her patriotism, Michelle Obama offered a firm but graceful response: I won’t back down.
Michelle brought her speech around to her husband and his dreams for the country, ending up describing in very real language how the man who would be president drove at a snail’s pace with his baby daughter in the car, “feeling the whole weight of her future in his hands … determined to give her something he never had: the affirming embrace of a father’s love.” She described how she tucks her daughters in to bed at night and thinks about their future and what they will one day tell their children and grandchildren about this election.
In this way, she couched her appeal for her husband in language every mother, every father, every daughter and every son can understand. Television cameras captured several women in the audience in tears at the end of Michelle’s speech.
Overall, Michelle and her speech played to good reviews. But I thought, again, the aftermath ruined what could have been an impactful and poignant moment. This time it was an ill-conceived song, “Isn’t She Lovely,” which is a nice song but probably not the best choice for a one half of a couple who’s been accused of – shall we say, having too healthy a self-image.
And then there was that satellite hookup.
Whether it was the candidate himself mistaking St. Louis for Kansas City (oops), the satellite delay that made for awkward conversation or Michelle having to lean down to prompt the children what to say, it was just a difficult transition that shredded the goodwill vibe Michelle had just built up among the delegates. I can understand having the children come out and stand with Mom; that’s a no-brainer, especially after she just got finished talking about them. But they didn’t need to have anything to say, and they certainly didn’t need to be placed between Barack Obama and the delegates when he appeared via satellite feed.
Just my observations, but I think avoiding those segue issues would have dramatically helped the flow.
Michelle Obama: A-minus tonight. If she can stay on this note throughout the general election season, she’ll be every bit Cindy McCain’s match.
See also:
Transcript of Michelle Obama’s remarks at the DNC
