Althouse: "They can share a pool, movie theater, bowling alley and big backyard with friends."

September 5, 2010

"They can share a pool, movie theater, bowling alley and big backyard with friends."

"That's allowed the girls to have some good and happy relationships here in D.C."

Because it's so hard to be one of the popular kids.

39 comments:

Fen said...: Another "Our Dear Leader" poster from the LA Times.; 9/5/10, 9:28 AM
Lawler Walken said...: Why be snarky about the Obama girls? It can't be easy growing up in the public eye and certainly nothing that gets written about them is their responsibility.

Anyway, this is what the Obamas are down to, planting totally pointless stories about the girls in the press. In the hope, I guess, that it will generate some goodwill. Which they're start to need rather desperately. I guess I'll know for sure when the girls start showing up on the campaign trail for endangered Democrats. Don't send the President, we don't want Michelle, give us Malia!; 9/5/10, 9:32 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: They really have no idea how this sounds to blue-collar workers and the unemployed, do they?; 9/5/10, 9:35 AM
Anonymous said...: if memory serves, Susan Ford had her senior prom at the White House. The event set a record for the number of parents who volunteered to be chaperones.

Nice to be popular!

Word verification: artinblo.; 9/5/10, 9:36 AM
Opus One Media said...: Perhaps the Obama girls saw pictures and read about the Bush girls in Argentina.......; 9/5/10, 9:44 AM
rhhardin said...: There was a Mary Ann Madden competiton for famous children's summer vacation essays.

Caroline Kennedy wrote about being on the family yat.; 9/5/10, 9:53 AM
Opus One Media said...: rhhardin said...
"Caroline Kennedy wrote about being on the family yat."

far better than being on the family bat or a trip in the family cur...; 9/5/10, 9:55 AM
GMay said...: And this story right when the Obamas are heading off on another vacation after that arduous 5 days of Presidentin' when they got back from Martha's Vineyard.; 9/5/10, 10:01 AM
miller said...: There's a point where the continuous criticism of everything Obama becomes tiresome.

The man who is President can and should be criticized.

His family, however, should not be.

Grow up.; 9/5/10, 10:03 AM
Unknown said...: No fun living in a fishbowl, but I don't doubt the creature comforts help make up for it. This is the sort of thing you saw ad nauseam during the Kennedy administration. Of course, as Jason notes, times aren't as good now.

The Obamas, he and she, seem to want to rub it in everyone's face that they have all the goodies when everybody else is scrimping. There's an item in the Washington Examiner, on Insta, about how the few people in touch with reality warned against the trip to Spain.

In the post-Civil War South, freed slaves said, "De bottom rail's on de top an' we's gwine to keep it dere". It ended badly, of course, but you get a feeling the Obamas are doing the same thing.

PS Interesting all our National Socialists, who were so eager to keep the girls away from snide remarks, feel obliged to bring up previous administrations to rebut (unsuccessfully) comments not about the little girls, but their parents.; 9/5/10, 10:04 AM
Anonymous said...: I wish the girls well. I wish they had more reasonable parents but I guess that's the luck of the draw.

They don't make me look more kindly on Barack & Michelle, however, so FAIL, LATimes.; 9/5/10, 10:05 AM
MayBee said...: As Michelle Obama's numbers drop, we are seeing more and more stories about the girls.

Don't we just love them?; 9/5/10, 10:06 AM
Pastafarian said...: No one here is criticizing the little girls. As a father, I'd love to give my two daughters who are similar ages one thousandth of the travel experiences and opportunities that the Obamas have lavished on their children, and it pisses me off, because he's doing it, for the most part, on my dime.

I would think that one big trip per summer would be sufficient. Two, acceptable but somewhat ostentatious. 8 or 10 outrageous vacations to exotic locations and 5-star hotels: Nauseatingly hoggish. Every trip they take, they have to be accompanied by a small army of very expensive security and support people, all paid for by you and me.; 9/5/10, 10:19 AM
Shanna said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 9/5/10, 10:46 AM
Shanna said...: Malia, now 5 feet 9

The 12 yo is 5 9? Seriously? Wow. That has got to be fun. How tall in Michelle?; 9/5/10, 10:48 AM
MayBee said...: Althouse noted on August 14 what appears to be the beginning of a trend: All Things Sasha.

On August 15, Yahoo news told us Michelle Obama's poll numbers had plummeted.

Now we're seeing more and more stories like this one.

Don't we adore the Obama girls? Aren't we fascinated watching them grow? Remember who their father is! Do you really want to be mean to him?; 9/5/10, 10:58 AM
prairie wind said...: Give the O's a break, will you? They have only two years to get all the getting they can.; 9/5/10, 11:07 AM
ricpic said...: This isn't about the girls. It's about the fact that America is no longer a republic with the modesty and restraint that characterizes representatives of the people in a republic.; 9/5/10, 11:38 AM
ricpic said...: Why is it "fun" to be tall, Shanna? She can slam dunk?; 9/5/10, 11:40 AM
Anonymous said...: Why is it "fun" to be tall, Shanna? She can slam dunk?

What kind of racist remark is that?

(Just kidding. I just want to see if I can set off fucking shoutingthomas on one of his fucking diatribes.)

Word verification: swomel.; 9/5/10, 11:44 AM
BJM said...: @Jason

Totally clueless.

@GMay

Maybe Obama's gotta get outta town while they replace the botched rug.; 9/5/10, 12:38 PM
Trooper York said...: Teacher....leave those kids alone!; 9/5/10, 12:43 PM
Anonymous said...: "The man who is President can and should be criticized. His family, however, should not be."

When his fucking family quits spending my money to go to Spain to party in 5-star hotels at the same time that 20% of the country is either unemployed or looking for full-time work, then I'll quit fucking criticizing Ms. Antoinette and her anointed child-queens.

Until then, they're fair game and should quit fucking whining about how terrible their lives are.

It's in poor taste to do that while the rest of the country suffers from their piss-poorly thought out economic schemes.; 9/5/10, 1:00 PM
David said...: This does not make the papers unless someone in the Obama camp presses some buttons. And no buttons will be pressed if O or Michelle might disapprove.

Plus if asked, the press likely would respect the Obama's wishes to keep them strictly out of the news and photos. You heard little or nothing of the Bush girls, once they stopped getting themselves arrested.

The Obama girls are attractive and seem nice enough. They are young so they will not always do just the right thing as they grow.

But why are the parents encouraging this??

When one of the Obama girls steps in it, which inevitably all kids do, will the President then say (again) that family is off limits?

Well, if he says that he will be right. But he should observe the same rules now.

Keep these kids out of the news. Strictly so. No good can come of it, in the longer run.; 9/5/10, 1:20 PM
BJM said...: @Shanna

Tell me about it...I was 5'8" in the sixth grade and grew another two inches by the 8th grade! Coltish doesn't begin to describe the awkwardness of size 9 feet at 12 yrs old.

Only one boy was taller than I until high school. We loathed each other as we were constantly forced together in photos, dance class etc.by well-meaning adults.

Since the advent of the supermodel it's much easier to be a tall "tween" than back in the day when Sandra Dee (5'4") or Debbie Reynolds (5'2") were the ideal.; 9/5/10, 1:26 PM
miller said...: For whatever reason the First Family is in the news. That might be coming from the First Family wanting to be in the limelight.

If so, their bad taste does not excuse the bad taste of others to comment or even notice.

Far better to simply avert one's eyes.

Those of you who would stoop to gossip - feel free to do so. It's a free country.

You simply demean yourselves.; 9/5/10, 3:11 PM
Fen said...: their bad taste does not excuse the bad taste of others to comment or even notice... Those of you who would stoop to gossip... You simply demean yourselves.

Oh please. No one is gossiping about the Obama family. The central complaint here is that the "watch dog" media is still protecting the guy they elected.

A hundred angles covering the failure of the Obama administration, and they waste column inches on Malia'a favorite color.

That's some real investigative journalism there. Speak Truth To Power and all that...; 9/5/10, 4:38 PM
MayBee said...: Far better to simply avert one's eyes.

Why?

I can see if you were asking reporters not to print the stories, that would make sense.

But once something is reported, how is it demeaning to notice?; 9/5/10, 4:38 PM
jaed said...: But why are the parents encouraging this??

I think it's obviously what others have already noted: the administration needs some good publicity, so they have put the word out that the president's daughters are no longer "off limits" to press coverage. Children are inherently cute, and the Obama daughters seem to be fine young girls, and there are endless possible feel-good story angles: this one's favorite color, that one's grades, their athletic interests, hobbies, little friends, et cetera. All will help distract the public from the president's performance when necessary, and generally (this is the hope) make people feel better about Obama. After all, he has adorable daughters.

(Michelle at one time filled this role: the exciting, glamourous, brilliant lawyer, our new style icon, and so on. But the style icon thing has grown stale, people aren't that interested in the garden, and the Spanish vacation was a jump-the-shark moment as far as Michelle's popularity was concerned, as Axelrod and company have wisely recognized. Michelle is no longer creating good feelings in the public for her husband, so time to send the girls into action!)

If anyone mentions that this is cynical exploitation of two young girls, people like miller will jump up and complain that we are being meeeeeen to them. So, bonus: the tactic is self-inoculating against criticism because you can pretend any criticism of the tactic is a slam at the girls themselves.

Bleh.; 9/5/10, 5:04 PM
Opus One Media said...: ricpic said...
This isn't about the girls. It's about the fact that America is no longer a republic with the modesty and restraint that characterizes representatives of the people in a republic."

I'll remember that next time we are in Texas looking at George's ranch..all duded up...; 9/5/10, 5:07 PM
paul a'barge said...: good grief. Remember when even Obama said that the children of politicians were off limits?

And remember how the media treated the Bush twins, ignoring this rule.

And take a close look at Obama and Princess Michelle ... tell me they're not enabling this stuff ... because they lurve the coverage their daughters are getting.

And all the while, Lib-tards are obsessing over Sarah Palin, accusing her of appearing with her family at political events.

This is the Grand Canyon of double standards.

Watching Obama is like getting cavities filled without pain medication.; 9/5/10, 7:03 PM
miller said...: It might be double standards.

But you don't have to go down into that sewer, do you?; 9/5/10, 7:11 PM
Shanna said...: Why is it "fun" to be tall, Shanna? She can slam dunk?

Geez, I was being sarcastic. It would suck to be a 12 year old girl who is 5'9''.; 9/5/10, 7:41 PM
Automatic_Wing said...: @miller - Get a grip, commenting on how the media is attempting to help Obama by writing puff pieces on his daughters is not going down a "sewer".

If I were to call you a sanctimonious little prick and tell you to go fuck yourself, that would be going into the sewer.

I hope you understand the difference now.; 9/5/10, 8:07 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: From what I've read, I think Obama is an excellent parent.

I hope to help give him more time to focus on that role come November 2012.; 9/5/10, 8:32 PM
jungatheart said...: Pastafarian:
'I would think that one big trip per summer would be sufficient. Two, acceptable but somewhat ostentatious. 8 or 10 outrageous vacations to exotic locations and 5-star hotels: Nauseatingly hoggish.'

The just amazing they do not care what their public image is in this regard. It's "I won" on steroids.; 9/6/10, 2:05 AM
miller said...: What do you really care?

I get it that you don't like Obama. I really do.

What I don't get is that you are wasting your energy on this non-issue.

I don't like Obama either, and I am looking forward to voting against him again in 2012. But I don't think about his family.

Why is this something you feel necessary to gripe about?

Why do you need to be so small?; 9/6/10, 5:09 AM
MayBee said...: What do you really care?

I care because I believe the press helped this president get elected by creating a story about his wonderful personal traits.

So when I see them doing it again, I care.

The President should appreciate that the American people spend a lot of money keeping his family comfortable, and are perfectly willing to let them have their privacy.; 9/6/10, 9:16 AM
Fen said...: Miller I get it that you don't like Obama. I really do.

No, you dont get it. I dont dislike Obama, I dislike his policies. Maybe you've had BDS for the last 10 years - stop projecting.

What I don't get is that you are wasting your energy on this non-issue.

You're the only one wasting energy, trying to tell us what we should and shouldn't talk about.

I don't think about his family.
Why is this something you feel necessary to gripe about?

You're also deliberately conflating our responses to a puff piece about his kids with attacks on his kids. Its dishonest of you.

Why do you need to be so small?

And I think you're doing it on purpose. You *want* people here to attack the Obama kids, to provide more distraction from Obama's failures. Thats why you've tried so hard here to create the Myth of Althouse commenters attacking his family, despite repeated explanations to the contrary by people here who believe you are arguing in good faith.

Take your little con on the road. We've seen it too many times before.; 9/6/10, 11:03 AM