Dresses, Old and New
Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 7:19 PM 
Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton
May 20: To greet a crowd at a meeting of the Corporation for National and Community Service, Mrs. O wore a blue - never seen before! - floral dress by Moschino. The print has some resemblance to this Moschino skirt worn in October 2008. 
Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton
April 30:To meet hostesses at the annual Congressional Club Luncheon at the Washington Hilton Hotel, Mrs. O wore Thakoon's floral inside-out dress, last worn publicly for the first Presidential debate in September 2008. 
Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton
May 13: First Lady Mrs. O wore a purple polka dot dress from the 2009 Lanvin resort collection for a meeting with Communities In Schools board members at the Ferebee-Hope Elementary School in Washington. For more fabulous photos of First Lady Mrs. O, see the updated White House Flickr page, here
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Reader Comments (134)
Dee84: Yes, I know. Not only Air Force 1, but a decoy and a third plane with the car and other Secret Service personnel go as well. It is quite an ordeal and expense. A trip like this cost about $34,000 an HOUR -- pretty unbelievable.
I've never quite understood this issue some have with the costs associated with moving the President around. It's not like he has a say in what goes into his security. And I hope we don't expect him to be a machine and simply maintain his sanity within the White House walls, or make quick burger stops around D.C. in order to find some escape from saving the world. If that's the expectation, then we don't want a human, who intends to stay in a strong marriage and have a healthy family, we want a robot.
I'm sure if he had his way he'd hop in his own car and drive up to NYC with his wife for their evening. But he can't. It costs money to move him around. He has barely gone anywhere out of the D.C. area for vacation since taking office, so I think he's been very mindful of the costs.
For decades Presidents have vacationed and traveled, presumably costing $1000s, and still, our country managed to become the strongest and most prosperous country on Earth. So let's not pretend the costs associated with moving the President around is a problem for our financial health. We're having tough times now, so he's limiting his travel and vacation. But this jaunt will not break the bank, and if this is what he needs to catch his breath, I say we just suck it up and remember that nothing is for free.
Ditto, Iva.
If he can maintain his sanity by going out once and a while so be it, its a beautiful house but not a lot of people would be willing to stay locked up for 4 years, without the occasional outing for food and casual entertainment with your spouse. Its healthy for him to relax and recharge. I say go golfing, go on date nights, be a soccer dad, catch a Broadway show. We need him to be mentally nimble as well as physically fit.
Good article, Thanks. my name Philip.
Actually he won't be an Airforce One:
Per NY Daily News:
The First Couple will be traveling on one of the smaller planes in the Air Force VIP fleet instead of the Boeing 747 jumbo jet. Ex-President George W. Bush also took smaller planes to his Crawford, Texas, ranch during his many weekend getaways.
It is terribly amusing...
I've always wondered how long MJMR planned to go on with the very clever posts that try hard not to betray her very obvious biases...
You know, the ones that always subtly and not so subtly point out the "high" dollar amounts of Mrs O's clothing (and always end with the "poor me can't afford that overpriced stuff in these hard times and neither should she" sentiment?)
There's also the never-ending dollar pricing of The president and first lady's various activities and of course the always subtle but ever-present "Laura Bush did that and more too" in response to any excitement or squeals of delight regarding Mrs Obama.
You're really not fooling anyone MJMR - WE SEE YOU!
And regarding Airforce One...The Obama's have as PRESIDENT & FIRST LADY of these United States earned the right to use it as other presidents saw fit to...high costs and all!
Mrs. T, another job very well done. A wonderful post!
I usually try to stay out of these non-fashion quibbles, but must chime in this time to agree with you IVA, Audrey and Joane.
I too have over time come to question among others, MJMR's motives in repeatedly emphasizing and eternally playing up what she sees as expensive costs of all things President & Mrs Obama.
I'm afraid she hasn't done a very good job of convincing many of us regulars of the innocence in, or well-meaning point to her various posts.
Thanks Joane for that info. So maybe that'll take the grand total to about $15,000. ;-)
May I also add that the Obama's must never apologize or feel the need to play down any and all perks due them and bestowed upon them by this powerful office.
No one ever questioned any of the associated costs in moving around and protecting past presidents and we are certainly not going to begin now.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/michelle-obama-at-bancrof_n_209231.html
NEW OUTFIT ALERT...HOW COME THESE PICS HAVE NOT BEEN FEATURED HERE? Love, love, love the shirt....would do anything for one...
SD
Just note--Last night my husband and I went out to dinner to a Dallas restaurant we often frequent. Who should be at the table next to ours? Laura Bush. She is lovely. She was dressed very conservatively. I was surprised to see how slim and trim she is. She is MUCH slimmer than she ever appeared on TV. She was wearing a buttoned up jacket (silver gray) and slacks.
I'm a Democrat and Obama supporter, but still think that Laura was a very good First Lady.
Susan, nobody doubts that Mrs Bush is lovely, slim and dresses conservatively.
Glad I'm not the only one, MJMR we've caught on to your sly comments.
I think Susan's opinion is that Mrs. Bush was a very good First Lady; she also mentioned the obvious facts that she is lovely, slim, and sartorially conservative. Of course we can't doubt those statements because they are widely regarded as facts, but I also don't doubt the opinion that Mrs. Bush was a very good First Lady. This isn't a contest, and I think most reasonable people are aware of that fact. It must be very difficult to hold one's head high and continue to do good when one's husband is as unpopular as President Bush was. And during the most trying times of the Clinton presidency, my respect and admiration for Hillary Clinton grew immensely as I watched her face the whole world as the betrayed wife. As several others have recently mentioned, many First Ladies have made wonderful behind-the-scenes contributions independent of their husbands' actions and fluctuating approval ratings. Our current First Lady is our main topic of conversation here for all of the obvious reasons, but it's also appropriate to acknowledge the contributions of the former women who have held that lofty and difficult position.
I much prefer Mrs. O's fashion sense to those of many of her predecessors, and her personality makes her exciting and interesting (yes, addictive!) to watch. But I believe she herself would say with sincerity that she is not in a contest with former First Ladies. She is continuing the work and building on the foundation laid by all forty-three of her predecessors and finding amazing ways to put her own mark on the position.
I really don't get people like MJMR. It's obvious she hates the First Lady and the President and it pissed off to see this African American family being treated just like all the white families that have lived in that mansion, yet she comes here religiously. I don't get it. Go to stormfront and freerepublic to bitch about the black man on Air Force One.
These people hate the Obamas but they are obsessed with them.
But that's the point Ms. G, nobody here has ever disputed the goodness or effectiveness of any previous first lady.
It has only been raised by those who seek to pit Mrs O against any of them and in these recent instances, its typically been countering every praise of Mrs O with a rather unneccessary Laura Bush did it too push like Audrey describes.
Other first ladies were great in their own rights, but to use that assertion to temper excitement on a blog dedicated to a current one, is really silly, petty and uncalled for.
You are right Audrey, high costs and all. Mr. and Mrs. Obama are the President and First Lady of the United States, more scrutinized and criticized than any of their predecessors. Whatever it costs to get them around, that is what it is and I say this with my husband presently unemployed and we are struggling to make ends meet but I am so excited that they are coming to NYC for the weekend so that he can keep his head clear to make the decisions that will move this country along. They are obviously a very balanced couple and those who criticize Mrs. Obama and complain about the cost of her clothes and shoes probably also don't think that she deserves to be in the White House in the first place. Their complaints have nothing to do with the present ecomonic situation. In fact, she has been very circumspect in recycling her outfits. There would still be complaints even if these were boom times.
Laura Bush is also a lovely woman and she was in NYC quite often but she just didn't get a lot of press and I am sure that she did not drive here. Her clothes are also lovely and expensive and who should care and she and her husband escaped frequently to Crawford and they didn't drive there either! and I hope are enjoying the good life in Dallas, three cheers for them also. Now can we stop the stupid comparisons.
You consistently make great observations, Willow.
Finally, someone calls out MJMR - long overdue in my humble opinion.
I personally think that Rosalyn Carter remains one of the best but least celebrated first ladies this nation has ever had. She and her husband are very decent, good people who continue to really care and do outstanding work even when there are no political gains to be had and do not seek to revise or focus on 'legacy'.
Let's not get it twisted - as wonderful as Laura Bush might be, she wasn't always so gracious. Even when her husband refused to take the bait during their last intervuew with Larry King, she butted in insisting she was mad at the Obama's for their 'attacks' on her husband during the campaign; and she it was who nixed any accommodation of the Obamas' request to move into Blair house 2 weeks earlier to enable the girls settle into school. So please let's slow down on the sainting of Laura Bush and the general revisionist outlook.
Remember, ladies, ANY plane the President uses is called "Air Force One" -- it's not just the big one.
The very sad and uninformed comments about me and my postings on this site, do not even deserve a response. Let me just mention, that regardless of political affiliations, ALL Presidents and First Ladies represent the Unites States and deserve the BEST of this country; the BEST treatment and the respect of all of us.
@ Lota. Laura Bush was a good first lady...but I think it must have been hard for her to see her husband being judged. You know, even though you know that a loved one is wrong it's still painful to see them being attacked by others. All she could see was that the world was vilifying her husband, a man who was probably good to her. Personally I wasn't shocked at her remarks.
As for the Blair House issue, well ... nobody is perfect lol. Actually it's one of those circumstances where I wonder why the information was leaked in the first place. I just thought the whole thing was unnecessary.
Anyway as others said, the first lady role is not a contest. It's a case of each woman doing the best she can with a role she didn't necessarily want. If you do nothing but hide in the White House, you'll get criticised. If you do too much you're criticised. If you don't conform to a certain idea of femininity you're attacked. In the midst of it all you try not to lose too much of yourself. So I have nothing but sympathy for Mrs. Bush and Mrs. Obama. It's not easy.
I hope we don't get into this habit of comparing first ladies - their activities, styles, views for the purpose of valorising one over the other.
Bianca - Thank you.
Thanks Mrs. G for your comment. It was just fun for us to see Laura Bush while out to dinner in a restaurant and I wanted to share with the posters here. I had never seen her in person before---so I was commenting on how she looked. I was surprised at how slim she is--and how pretty she appears in person. I'm a huge fan of Michelle Obama--and was not a fan of Pres. Bush. But, I had respect for Mrs Bush as a First Lady. I was just sharing. Some seem to resent my doing that.
I think the Blair house incident was "leaked" only after Laura Bush's press secretary did a rather snippy press release after people wondered why the Obama's were going to a hotel at great costs instead of staying at Blair house.
Let's be honest, it was very petty & small period!
And Iris, I do agree that this site is really not for comparing first ladies, hence my original post...
Susan: I don't think anyone faults you for sharing your admiration of Mrs Bush-
I just think you happened to find yourself posting slam in the midst of a storm triggered by a rather disingenuous and maliciously mischievious attempt to pit the women against each other...
Audrey, Some of the people who post here seem quite narrow. I am a BIGGER fan of Mrs. Obama. BUT--it is fun to see a former First Lady at dinner and I was sharing. I was SURPRISED at how pretty she is and how slim. It was an observation. I would be MORE excited to see Mrs. Obama, but it was Laura Bush that I saw. I don't agree with everything Laura Bush has done--and certainly did not like most of what her husband did. But seeing her in my hometown at a restaurant was interesting. I guess it's not okay to share anything here. I never compare one woman to another. That would be silly. Everyone is different.
Susan: you are right. It is not OK to share different views or opinions on this site. Too many narrow minded bloggers, who at the smallest commentary they dislike will hit you with the racist tag even when they do not know you or have even seen you. I am wondering now, who are the real racists. It is very sad and unfortunate. Regardless of how much the word "Change" is mentioned, some will never change or would even try to change! And - I think we all REALLY believed in "HOPE"!
Give it up already MJMR! No one is really falling for your My well-meaning posts have just been misunderstood spiel. You know exactly what you've been doing and it's not been pretty.
MJMR, I do have to agree with some of the others about some of your posts. Like, what's with adding up travel expenses of THIS president when past presidents did plenty of travel themselves. Let's see Reagan to CA often, George HW to Kennebunkport, and then George W to the Crawford Ranch in my state. Do you think these Republican President's walked? Of course not. Our government provided for their travel with a full complement of security.
Susan I think we all got what you were saying. I didn't particularly like Tony Blair as Prime Minister but if I sat in a restaurant and he or his wife were there I would also comment. It's not every day you get to see a former First Lady at the next table! I completely get how exciting that must've been. And I agree, I've often thought that she is an extremely trim lady - perhaps without the very buttoned up look she often wears, that may have been more obvious on TV - although it does add pounds.
MJMR: See? There you go again! You know, it's fine to write all sorts of opposing views here. We do. Every day. All of us. And the genuine bloggers who are here to talk about Mrs O's style (and a few other conversations as well) manage that very well. We also manage disagreements well. And misinterpretations get sorted out quickly.
What sticks in my craw, are the people who come here day in, day out, to post snide, sly inferences, to drag in pointless observations about money and cost of travel, and to start negative conversations that none of us need or want to have. And I'm afraid, on balance, you do fall into that category. Perhaps if you do not wish to be perceived in that way, you could look at your last forty posts and work out how to say the things you want to say more positively.
A few points....
The President said when he was still President-Elect, that every eight weeks the entire family would go home to Chicago so that they kept in touch with family and friends and not to lose touch with the country - not to get stuck in the White House bubble. That has proved more difficult than anticipated and they haven't been able to do it. So, if anyone needs to squeal about costs, work out what it would have cost for the President and First Lady, the two children and their grandmother to fly to Chicago and back every eight weeks since the inauguration, and then offset it against ONE trip to NY. Or compare it to the number of weekends over eight years that Mr Bush went home to Texas.
But don't - just DON'T - say, suggest, infer or imply that this is profligate. Firstly because it is not the point of this blog but mostly because given what Mrs O's husband is doing (frankly, he's doing more for world peace and prosperity than any world leader I've ever seen) they get to have a flight or two. (Plus, given that the US's taxes have lined the pockets of Messrs Bush & Cheney for a year or two longer than is palatable, I think one flight isn't too bad.)
Why does no-one ever sit at home and work out what financial benefit it is going to be to Miriam's Kitchen, to get fruit and veg from the White House Garden and broadcast that on a blog?
How much was the redecoration of the family area at the White House? How come no-one whinges that they shouldn't have had to pay for that?!
How come no-one sits at home working out how much we owe this one man for talking to ALL leaders - feared and trusted, and attempting to sort out issues that other leaders ignore?
So MJMR, we do see what you do, or what you appear to do. If you don't like it, CHANGE it.
Posh Tater, you so eloquently write what I've thought, but failed to express nicely in all my anger and frustration (bad! I know...)- Thanks for doing it better..
Well I don't know if I did, but thank you anyway Camille!