"Make Me Over, Make [That Angry Black Woman] Nice"

Let's call the recent hype over Michelle Obama's supposed "political makeover" what it is: an attempt to make this confident, dark-skinned black woman with a "terrorist" -sounding name less scary. The recent attacks on the senator's wife (not a battle of the spouses in the least, a one-sided comparison at best) seemed to have prompted this unofficial makeover, part of which is a focus on Michelle Obama's upbringing and the importance of family, making her more accessible as evidenced by her appearance on "The View" . While these are indeed key facets of her life, the decision to make the shift from an outspoken, strong partner to a more traditional, domestically-oriented spouse, is part of the political game that's fun for the whole family!

People are scared of her. Mainly conservatives, of course. Critics have called her guarded (and simultaneously "too real") and unpatriotic, obviously individuals blissfully ignorant of the conditions this woman from the south side of Chicago has been subjected to. Oh noes, race again. But she has an Ivy-League education, and raked in over $200,000 a year as a health care executive, how can she not be proud of her country?

The Republican ad that quoted her as saying "for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country" (in reference to a voter turnout) has fueled the witch hunt. But is this not what the opposition asked for, a more personal look at that intimidating woman? How much more personal does the wife of a politician need to be? An honest statement given by a person who knows firsthand that this country is not always something to be proud of. Although she later said she was referring to "the political processes and not the nation", that statement was undoubtedly colored by being Black in America. Michelle showed us her school of hard knocks upbringing (more valuable than Princeton or Harvard), her willingness to be honest with the American people, and her faith for a changed future where all can be proud to be an American. But not sing that awful song because it. is. awful.

Why would you want to make that over?