By Rusty Humphries
TRN Nationally Syndicated Radio Host
TPNN Contributor
I am trying to remember the last time I went a week without turning on my television, only to find that one or both of the Obamas weren’t there, attempting to lecture me on something while still trying to sound hip.
I don’t mean to start off with a “Back in my day…” vibe, but I really do remember a time when if someone wanted to hear what the president or the first lady had to say, they picked up a newspaper or watched the news. I just don’t remember Nancy Reagan espousing her rhetoric at me while I was watching the Academy Awards.
On Sunday night, Michelle Obama ruffled some feathers because she made a telecasted appearance on the Academy Awards. She was introduced by Hollywood icon Jack Nicholson and she gave a short speech just prior to the Best Picture Award.
“These nine movies took us back in time and all around the world. They made us laugh, they made us weep, and they made us grip our armrests just a little tighter. They taught us that love can endure against all odds and transform our lives in the most surprising ways. They reminded us that we can overcome any obstacle if we dig deep enough and fight hard enough and find the courage to believe in ourselves. These lessons apply to all of us no matter who we are, or what we look like, or where we come from, or who we love, but they are especially important for our young people…”
Her speech was cringe-worthy for several reasons:
1) The Time and Place- Many viewers were likely wondering, “Hmm. The first lady is helping to present the Best Picture Award? What movie was she in again…?”
I understand that in this day and age that the president and first lady are not merely political personas; they’re famous in a way. But their kind of fame is not related to movies. I mean, Mick Jagger is famous, but I would think it was odd if he presented a Best Picture Award.
Some have pointed out that Laura Bush was featured at the 2002 Academy Awards. However, her brief soundbite was during a homage to movies- a “what do the movies mean to you?”- kind of thing. Her part, sandwiched in with dozens of people, lasted six seconds.
2) The Content- I am genuinely getting tired of being lectured all the time. I’m lectured by nanny-staters telling me that trans fat is bad; I’m lectured by anti-gun zealots telling me that if I don’t want stricter gun laws that that means I hate children and want to see them die violently; I’m lectured by leftists in Hollywood that make $5 mil a movie that tell me that we all need to “pay a little more.” I’ve had it.
I didn’t like it when Bob Costas turned a football game into a bully pulpit and I don’t like Michelle Obama lecturing me about the importance of movies because leftist Hollywood advances the progressive social agenda. Her liberal, thinly-veiled praise for the leftist propaganda spewed out from Hollywood each year is the most smug thing heard at the Academy Awards since George Clooney lectured America on the value of Hollywood and how they’re all ahead of the curve and oh-so-enlightened.
But at least he is actually a movie star…
3) The Set Decorations- Michelle used some interesting props in the background as she addressed the crowd. She had some of our brave men and women in the military stand there to lend some kind of legitimacy. It was disgusting.
It seems that every time the Obamas have something to say, they cloak themselves in innocents. When Obama wanted to overstep his Constitutional authority and sign 23 executive orders to limit gun rights, he made sure kids were there for political cover. When he discussed the sequester, he pulled out the firefighters to hide amongst. It’s tacky and immoral.
Michelle placing soldiers in the background is just another example of providing political cover. She didn’t even address their presence there and having them there as she addressed the crowd felt exploitative and crass.
Bottom line: I know the ever-present and ever-continuing Obama political machine is dedicated to relentlessly pushing a liberal agenda. Can we just give the nagging a rest for one night?
Rusty Humphries is a nationally syndicated radio host heard across the USA on over 300 radio stations and is listed as the 6th largest radio audience by Talkers Magazine. He is also a regular contributor to TPNN.com

