“I have done a lot of rallies, so I don’t usually get nervous,” Obama said as he took to the stage to promote Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday. “But I was feeling some kind of way following Eminem.... I notice my palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy, vomit on my sweater already, mom’s spaghetti, I’m nervous but on the surface I look calm and ready to drop bombs but I keep on forgetting,” Obama rapped as the crowd cheered. “Love, love me some Eminem,” he added.
I'm not sure who he hopes to influence with that, but what do I know? I'm only an undecided voter in Wisconsin. I'm not awed by celebrities, and everyone acknowledges that Kamala is the candidate with the most celebrities. Does it augment or diminish her?
But I just want to say that I do not like the picture of mom's spaghetti vomited onto Obama's sweater. I can barely picture Obama wearing a sweater — as opposed to a beautifully ironed shirt with a casually unbuttoned collar and rolled up sleeves.
And I don't like thinking about spaghetti-vomit on that sweater. I get Eminem's lyric about his pathetic self, who's not only vomiting onto his bad clothes but stuck eating his mother's home-cooked food. I saw the movie "8 Mile" when it came out. I understand the context of the lyrics
But Obama is not so in thrall to Eminem that the thought of encountering Eminem would physically overwhelm him. Obama was President and had to go head-to-head with Putin and Xi, and he's supposed to be vouching for Kamala, who's asking to do the same, so I don't want to hear about his getting weak-kneed over a pop star.
And most of all, I don't like "mom's spaghetti" as a marker of wretchedness. Many of us are bereft of a mother — including you, Barack Obama. To have mom's spaghetti, even upchucked, would be to experience one's mother alive in the world again.
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126 comments:
Still undecided? Really? If Kamala wins, expect another round of 20% inflation, Madison overrun with illegals and WW3. Not a hard decision.
Two fake Black men on the same stage! What's not to vomit over?
Undecided?
Are you OK?
So Trump has lost the wigger vote AND the swiftie vote? Welp. That's it. Trump is doomed.
Thank you.
“Is Obama helping Kamala by vocalizing about vomit on his sweater?”
Or he’s saying Kamala makes him wanna puke.
Detroit celebrity. White male with hip-hop cred. Obama perhaps does nothing spontaneously. He may have been tempted to do Kid Rock.
Which Obama staffers would actually run the White House if KH got elected?
Another deep and meaningful topic. I'm so glad you've found some rare beef to sink your teeth into.
“As Chartmetric succinctly puts it, most of Eminem’s Instagram followers are white, English-speaking men. As such, Eminem’s audience, at least on Instagram, appears to be just as white as Em’s “big white ass.”
Using Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, however, we can measure the percentage between male and female listeners. While it’s the lowest percentage of the Chartmetric top ten, women make up 35.7% of his listeners. Among the rest of the top ten, Eminem and Drake are the only artists with a majority male share.“
https://hmc.chartmetric.com/eminem-fanbase-demographics-2024/
Apparently he has a very large male following, mostly white men. So it seems Obama is trying another approach to gin up the male vote for Harris. She was in Houston and couldn’t be bothered apparently.
In what world is someone "undecided" about this election? My God.
7 uses of "I" in that 'graph. Obama never moved the needle for anybody but himself. And why is he talking about *not* getting nervous doing a rally when it's becoming obvious that Harris has a major issue with stage fright?
Participation in an event like this makes Eminem look like such a corporate tool. It's especially jarring that he's doing this for a candidate who is historically unpopular with Black men. He'll be appearing on NPR before too long.
Sometimes it’s just lyrics and having fun. Trump had his musical interlude too.
Well, Obama is Slim, and he's pretty Shady.
Obama just loves the sound of his own voice and believes utterly that he is a "cool" guy.
Obama rapped an Eminem song? If only I had held off on voting early, that would have changed my mind!!
Truman could play Mozart
Focus groups said the Dems are not perceived as cool. Obama is trying to get back there. Rapping isn't a bad tactic, but it's probably too late to change perceptions. Obama would have been better off leading with Eminem rather than scolding.
If Trump does end up on Rogan, it's all for naught. Vance was just on Theo Von too. Cool. No effort.
Howard's world. Too much rare beef for his gentle digestive tract to stomach.
"look like"?
Obama's skit was peak Boomer cringe. With the gray scalp stubble, he's just not as cool as he was.
They wanted to inject some joy into the campaign. Obama performed it pretty well. Like Trump's comedy bits, don't take it too literally and reading the transcript doesn't work. Obama's segue was awkward, but spaghetti and sweater vomit is the least offensive Eminem lyrics they could find.
All the skit was supposed to do is make some people think, "OMG, we are living in the best timeline. The president is rapping!" And make the news for a couple of cycles.
Cmon you just know when he's lounging on Mah-thah's Vineyard he sits on that big old white plantation-style porch wearing a huge (most men's clothes look huge on him anyway) fluffy cable knit sweater with gigantic driftwood buttons, holding his skim-milk latte with both hands just like Pajama Boy.
Everything about "Rally Obama" is fake, from the way he walks and talks to the very wardrobe he is fitted for the occasion. I thought everybody understood this.
His self-referential tendencies are the authentic thing about him.
...with actual music.
You veteran Althousians should not be surprised by Ann’s undecidedness. She waits until the last day then comes up with justification for whom she votes. She’s nostalgic about her process too- calling out Obama for the mom stuff is reflective of that…but don’t make the mistake believing she’s some kind of political centrist. She voted for one of those loathsome Clintons over peace and prosperity…
Excellently pithy.
There's always the latest lying Jeffrey Goldberg article to discuss, as it is the only thing the left wants to trumpet today. That probably mitigates the possibility it will show up here though.
I'm only an undecided voter in Wisconsin.
Wife to businessman at dinner table, "Now, don't try to reason with me." New Yorker cartoon. Title of Wayne Booth book.
Ok I just watched the clip and am oddly disappointed. Everyone said Obama was rapping, so I expected Vivek speed, but Obama just recited the lyrics. Underwhelmed. And yes, remember, Vivek rapped "Lose Yourself" first like a true Millennial.
I could not disagree more. There’s no plantation style porch on his MV manse…
I'd really love to read a post by Ann Althouse in which she makes the case for Kamala Harris for President without using the word Trump, or discussing Trump in any manner.
Generation gap, Ann. Someone told Obama this would play well with millennial and younger men. Every guy in America who is under 40 knows Lose Yourself, and has seen a thousand Mom's Spaghetti memes.
AA wants to pull that lever so badly for Kamala, but she knows deep down that Kamala's a useless DEI fake, so AA will sit this election out just like in 2020.
And the real reason that song has such an impact on the male psyche, the reason it fails to land at a Kamala rally is because the song isn't about having a crappy life, it's about being desperately hungry for success. Cause man, these goddamn food stamps don't buy diapers.
Didn't count...wrong color. Obama isn't either but he is more person-of-color adjacent, the only legit people of color being black people when it comes to appropriating cultures.
OMG, we are living in the best timeline.
Of course I am, Abed.
Bad stomach problems can happen to anybody anytime, but in all fairness, it is hardly a reason to attack Barack Obama in a single post. Our democracy is being threatened, and Ann is offended about spaghetti vomit on a sweater!
Forrest Gump infamously said: "My Mama always said you've got to put the past behind you before you can move on."
The topic of who I'm going to vote for isn't the point of this post. I'm sorry I included it.
Please talk about "Lose Yourself." Key word: LOSE. Obama, like Joe Biden, is are telling Kamala Harris she's going to lose. They like thinking she can't do what they did.
At least George H.W. Bush vomited on a Prime Minister.
Don't vomit on yourself. Go big or don't vomit at all
Every guy under 30 knows Lose Yourself primarily by hearing their dad play the CD in the car. Doesn't add to the "cool" factor.
Harris' reliance on celebrities is like the obnoxious kid having a pony at their birthday party.
Dont forget the crease in the pants! David Brooks gets wistful.
Our democracy is being threatened by free and fair elections.
Okay. Kamala is a loser. And people who vote for that loser are losers.
Wife to businessman at dinner table, "Now, don't try to reason with me." New Yorker cartoon
Nothing will ever beat "How about Never? Is Never good for you?" Link
It could have been worse. Obama could have broken out "88 Lines About 44 Women."
Kamala, who couldn't sing,
Kept the beat and kept it strong
I don't think talking about vomit helps. But I doubt that was scripted. The ability to talk unceasingly without veering off into the weeds is a rare thing in people. I note Obama was late yesterday, so the people standing on the hard concrete of the Coliseum floor got to hear just about every Democrat in Dane Co talk first.
Of course, as Nigel Tufnel observed, you can't really dust for vomit.
I'm not awed by celebrities, and everyone acknowledges that Kamala is the candidate with the most celebrities. Does it augment or diminish her?
IMHO it diminishes her. I’ve never taken celebrities seriously, but I have a sense that they have lost a lot of their influence these days. Social media makes them overexposed.
Remember when they dinged vivek for lipsynching eminem
Shhh. Obama is showing his relevancy to millennial men. When I do it, my kids refer to me as awkwardly hip. I wonder how old man Obama is going to be perceived. Seems as cringy as Nixon saying "Sock it to me."
If our congenial hostess is undecided, that means landslide Trump. Only question, will it be outside the margin of fraud?
I didn't watch the video or read the linked article because I have no interest in hearing or reading about one loser advocating for another loser.
Obama was never cool just an obnoxious narcissist.
When she was a little girl growing up in Canada, she had a pony. Her father had a pony. Her sister had a pony. All of her friends had a pony. Everyone had a ponies. So what's wrong with that!?!
What we're all trying to figure out is why she left a country packed with ponies to come try and be president of a non-pony country.
Kamala is the candidate with the most celebrities.
Billionaires for Harris!
News Personalities for Harris!
Government Officials for Harris!
CIA and FBI for Harris!
Puppet State "Leaders" for Harris!
and MOST IMPORTANT!
Nancy Pelosi and Barry Soetoe for Harris!!!!!
HOW could ANYONE not support THAT??
She used to ride her pony to McDonald's when she "did the fries". All the kids would watch her as she trotted by on her pony and say, "SHE IS SO OBNOXIOUS!"
Ann said...
"I can barely picture Obama wearing a sweater — as opposed to a beautifully ironed shirt with a casually unbuttoned collar and rolled up sleeves."
I can totally imagine Obama wearing a Jimmy Carter sweater. So much so that I was surprised when a Google Images search did not turn up a picture of him wearing one.
As I recall, Nixon phrased "Sock it to me" in the form of a question.
For Democrats, this election has been about two wings of the Democrat Party: The Machine Wing (Chicago) and the Limousine Liberal Wing (California). There is an internal fight in the party for control over $7 trillion annually. That is a LOT of money and this is a fight to the death.
Barack Obama (M) isn't going to help Kamala (LLW) in any way, but he has to put up a front. And that includes using the cheats that got him and Biden in. They're not going to prison for her.
When did she ever pay dues?
Next, we'll be hearing from all the reluctant voters that 'threw up a little, in their mouth' when they cast their vote.
Well now, THIS is a comment I 100% agree with!
Obama Walz "n Kamala.
Barack "n Kamala.
Yes, but she said just a few days ago that KH's refusal to answer Bret Baier's question was "disqualifying" (IIRC). I suspect that Ann is merely undecided about WHETHER to vote.
If you google “sweater songs” I get over 20 hits. While some are cover repeats there’s definitely some psychic connection between white folk and sweaters. I wouldn’t say the connection is as strong nor as universal as “schlong”. But it appears they are trying.
Masticating their democratic cud as a pundit I tell you. Alas, my dear Yorick, will have naan off fat.
“And most of all, I don't like "mom's spaghetti" as a marker of wretchedness.”
I had a good laugh at that one, thanks!
The Clash - Rock the Casbah
Sock it? To ME???
Obama can vocalize about vomit on his sweater or about Harris. He chose to speak about the better of the two subjects for his legacy, his party, his country, and the world: sweater vomit.
Yah, no shit huh?
Slim Dusty - Waltzing Matilda
Why oh why didn't Condi Rice run for President? She'd have won in a Reaganesque landslide and her 8 years in office would have been epic.
Kamala unburdened. Obama upchucking. Democratic masticating in an American Spring.
Ok Boomer
If the comment was truly unscripted, then it reveals something about how the speaker, the Democratic Party boss, really feels. The bigger the stake the more appt for the unscripted moment to stain the carefully crafted sweater… or something.
Good morning, Ann.
Skip ahead to about 4:30+ mark - and watch the Kamala clips.
Actually - the whole show is very good. Well done.
RideSpaceMountain said...
"When she was a little girl growing up in Canada, she had a pony. Her father had a pony. Her sister had a pony. All of her friends had a pony. Everyone had a ponies. So what's wrong with that!?!
What we're all trying to figure out is why she left a country packed with ponies to come try and be president of a non-pony country."
I'm now imagining Kamala as a pegasister and Doug Emhoff as a brony.
Tom T. said...
"Participation in an event like this makes Eminem look like such a corporate tool. It's especially jarring that he's doing this for a candidate who is historically unpopular with Black men. He'll be appearing on NPR before too long."
Or he could go full Tim Walz and appear on The View.
btw- that clip of Mike Johnston on Jake Tapper's show - where Tapper is indignantly huffing and puffing over Trump's Schlong comments.
Johnson should have said this: "Well Jake - Trump got you to say "Arnold Palmer's Penis" over and over... I think Trump successfully trolled you."
Howard brings the horseshitradish !
Ann Althouse
"Don't vomit on yourself. Go big or don't vomit at all"
Vomiting on himself? Even tossing his cookies (or spaghetti), Obama is still a narcissist.
Me too. I’d love to see literally anyone make the case in that manner.
word.
“pretty shady”
when he should be afraidy
don’t you dare dis my lady
or I’ll be on you like Grady
be like Saddam beatin’
on a Kuwaiti
Pretty sure a lot of people (in the male 30-60 range) just really like the song. Not reading much into ma's spaghetti outside of being super familiar and fun lyrics.
99 problems but a bitch ain’t one.
* Grady of Sanford and Son, bringin’ teh fun
You can see in that rant that he did do some writing for those books he put his name on. You can also see that he couldn't put them together all by himself.
Anyway, Barack is proving that Trump and Walz aren't the weird ones or aren't necessarily the only weird ones. "Vulcan" or "Jedi" Obama were popular memes a decade ago: even the man's fans were implying that he was from another planet.
Spare Us From Harris
Don't read too much into it, but a web search reveals that Michelle wore the cardigans in the Obama family.
I think in her heart of hearts she knows who she will vote for. If she decides not to vote, it's the same as a vote for Trump.
What are Tone Loc's thoughts?
what are her views on Ukrainians wanting to kill/slave Russians?
My list of "friends" on Facebook is politically quite diverse, though mostly people over 30 years old. The only people talking about the Obama/Eminem story in my FB feed seem to be swooning liberal women over 40 years old. If Obama's target was younger men, I think he missed.
“I'd really love to read a post by Ann Althouse in which she makes the case…”
Althouse doesn’t “make the case” for anything.
Narayanan, what are Harris' views on supporting Taiwan against the CCP?
Obama strikes me as the sort of person who really does love MM and rap/pop music. I've always thought of him as an average man with a high IQ who got lucky and became POTUS. So, I'm hesitant to say his "awe" of a rap singer is fake.
Look at Chris Chrisite ( i know its hard), high IQ, Governor, US Attorney, yet he cried when he met Bruce Springsteen, and has gone to 150 Springsteen concerts. It was the highlight of his life. I guess you can be an emotional idiot and "smart" too.
Yikes- that town hall was excruciating.
I don't think I have ever seen Obama look that toothless and irrelevant.
Namaste
I want to hear from 2 Live Crew. I don't think they like Kamala, butt she can lie.
I've always thought Wild Thing and Funky Cold Medina were the same song.
I like that you’ve told us you’re undecided. This shows movement rightward, not just of you, but of the entire college-educated female population. I realize you still feel revulsion towards Trump but the fact that your revulsion may not be as strong as your Kamala distrust … I like that.
Let’s go with above average IQ for Obama…
"I'm only an undecided voter in Wisconsin."
Jesus. Well, for better or for worse, that's what it has come down to, as I suppose it must. When both candidates have done everything they can think of to hold onto their own base while eroding their opponent's base, there will be left some residuum of morons, lunatics and terminally ignorant people who just can't make up their tiny little minds. And so, the vast, lumbering engine of panderage must seek them out, like the flaming eye of Sauron, and attempt to ascertain what it is that they want. What? What could it be? What's left? You want me to stand on my head and do a crossword puzzle? In ink? OK, where?
I dunno. If I were Obama and was given the task of going out and pumping up the vote for Kamala, I might vomit on my sweater. The New (very) Light Worker is getting past his sell by date.
I say, Where you want this crossword done?
Out on highway s-s-s-s-sixty-one!
I think Obama's just previewing for the crowd that Kamala is about to vomit a word salad all over them.
I mentioned this before but again- back in the day candidates told Obama to stay away because he was such election kryptonite. Since when is he some sort of elder statesman capable of dragging a horrible candidate over the finish line?
Since he, Pelosi, and Schumer told Biden it was Kamala's turn.
It's inside to hide from prying eyes.
In Christie’s defense, teh man can destroy a dozen dozen Krispy Kreme donuts.
…one of my all time favorite Altposts: I don’t recall the beginning- Christie something something, but it ended with …and then he ate his weight in cheese curds. Pretty much sums him up politically…
She's desperate. She's so desperate she is appearing with Usher, who for those not paying attention, is wrapped up in a sex trafficking scandal with Puff Daddy. Usher and the Chaneys. Accused sex traffickers and war criminals, but Trump is bad.
The best song lyric about hurl is We were the first band to vomit at the bar. Who sang it? Right.
Elitist Obama would neither eat spaghetti nor wear a sweater. Please. The Eminem lyrics were printed on a notecard prepared by a 20-something staffer trying to make Obama relatable. Big fail.
Not surprised Harris has resorted to appearing with Usher. She has a history of associating herself with men with little respect for women, who are known to be abusive partners in their relationships with women. Doug, I'm looking at you too.
I always thought Funky Cold Medina was abiut My Lai.
JSM
Cheer up, Kill a baby
"And so, the vast, lumbering engine of panderage must seek them out, like the flaming eye of Sauron, and attempt to ascertain what it is that they want."
Nice imagery!
Obama began the "fundamental transformation of America" and grifted his way to great wealth to avoid the consequences.
Apparently Althouse missed that the current excuse for why Harris sounds like an idiot when she speaks is because she suffers from "speech anxiety"
What I took from that Goldberg article is that damned, SOB Trump wouldn’t use his Time Machine to go back in time to kill Baby Hitler.
It’s Cheney. Good to see you’re still alive. Someone here a few days ago wrote about traveling around “getting all the DDs”.
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