Michelle Obama can be a dynamic force on the campaign trail, but yesterday, she drew quite a bit of fire over these comments:
“What we have learned over this year is that hope is making a comeback. It is making a comeback. And let me tell you something — for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment. I’ve seen people who are hungry to be unified around some basic common issues, and it’s made me proud.”
The far-right, and some of the more rabid Obama-haters on the left, immediately pounced, insisting that her comments were unpatriotic and reflected someone who lacked “pride” in the United States.
John McCain didn’t go too far out of his way to exploit the flap, though Cindy McCain pointedly told reporters yesterday that she’s “very proud of my country,” as if Michelle Obama isn’t. (Ms. McCain repeated the line at multiple campaign events, just to make sure the point was driven home.)
The Obama campaign noted that most of the coverage of the quote highlighted a few words, and the broader context was far less controversial. “What she meant is that she’s really proud at this moment because for the first time in a long time, thousands of Americans who’ve never participated in politics before are coming out in record numbers to build a grassroots movement for change,” the campaign said in a statement.
Of course, given that there’s a difference between what she said and what she meant to say, it was only a matter of time before Obama had to weigh in on the controversy fueled by right-wing blogs and talk radio.
The Democratic frontrunner gave it a shot this morning.
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama sought Tuesday to clarify his wife’s statement that she is proud of the U.S. “for the first time in my adult life.” He said her newfound pride is about the political system and was not meant to disparage her country. […]
Barack Obama, interviewed on WOAI radio in San Antonio, Texas, expressed frustration that his wife’s comments became political fodder.
“Statements like this are made and people try to take it out of context and make a great big deal out of it, and that isn’t at all what she meant,” Obama said.
“What she meant was, this is the first time that she’s been proud of the politics of America,” he said. “Because she’s pretty cynical about the political process, and with good reason, and she’s not alone. But she has seen large numbers of people get involved in the process, and she’s encouraged.”
That sounds plausible enough. To be sure, Michelle Obama’s remarks were, shall we say, far from artful, and obviously prone to get certain unhinged elements of the political landscape riled up. But is it so hard to believe Ms. Obama is really proud of our political system for the first time? Isn’t it much easier to believe that than labeling her some kind of America-hater?
I am impressed with the right’s ability to turn a relatively minor faux pas into a four-alarm fire, but this one is probably about as substantive as the “plagiarism” controversy, which is to say, it’s not especially substantive at all.