Michelle Obama joined the sex and dating podcast “Call Her Daddy” to criticize society’s fixation on women’s appearances while promoting her new book, “The Look,” which explores her outfits as the former first lady.
Without a hint of irony, Obama told podcast host Alex Cooper that she wished the press focused less on what she wore and more on her education and professional background.
“The top of the article would be ‘she was wearing…’” Obama lamented. “Not my education, not my professional career.”
Cooper agreed with Obama, though both women seemed to forget that the interview had opened with, “Talk to me about your outfit. How did you pick it?”
The irony continued when, instead of delving into her professional accomplishments, Obama highlighted the personal toll of being overlooked “as just Barack Obama’s wife.”
“All of that just disappeared in the course of this whole [2008] election,” she said after listing her professional accomplishments as an attorney, assistant to the Chicago mayor, nonprofit leader, and vice president for community relations at the University of Chicago Hospitals. “You now see me as just Barack Obama’s wife … my shoes became the most important thing about me,” she added.
While she declined to say more about her past careers, Obama was clear about one path she would not take: Politics. “Don’t even ask me about running,” she said. “Because you all are lying. You aren’t ready for a woman. You are not.”
Obama explained that Donald Trump didn’t win because Americans favored him over Kamala Harris or Hillary Clinton, but because the nation is not yet ready for a woman in the Oval Office.
“Let’s look at the fact that we’ve had two really qualified female candidates,” she said. “One who was first lady, secretary of state, well educated, you know, my husband beat her… And now we just had the former vice president, you know, we’ve had qualified women and they just, you know, again, if they’re not perfect and they don’t cross every T and dot every I, there’s a falling shortness that is happening.” Still, she urged young women — especially those interested in public service — not to be discouraged. “We need you,” Obama said.
Podcast host Cooper asked the former first lady, “How could a woman hold the highest seat in the government when she has less rights than half the population?”
Obama responded, “Yeah, yeah,” before shifting to a message of encouragement. She emphasized that women should not give up just because the glass ceiling hasn’t been broken.
“That doesn’t mean that women should roll up their sleeves and call it a day… prove us wrong. I would love that. The young women we’ve been talking to keep climbing. We need you. You may come up short, but keep going.”
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