Michelle Obama to Make Pitch as First Lady

WASHINGTON — Michelle Obama takes the stage at the Democratic National Convention Monday for a prime-time speech introducing herself as potential first lady to her largest TV audience. A tall woman with an outsized personality of her own, she has toured the community centers, church basements and ballrooms of the United States, pulling in a crowd of 50 here, 2,500 there, and mixing it up with cozy TV chats and glossy magazine features. In the primaries, she was dubbed “the Closer” for her ability to persuade undecided voters to come on board. Now she’s the opener, the first-night star called upon to testify about her husband’s vision and values, and perhaps settle some doubts about herself. She’ll be joined in Denver by her daughters, Malia and Sasha, her mother Marian Robinson, and her brother Craig Robinson, who will introduce her. The critics have come out early, to a point where Barack Obama told people to “lay off my wife.” The Obama ... (link)