I can't believe nobody has commented on my story. Are you all okay with it? Or are you in shock or what?

We're in the midst of the Great Recession and Mrs. Obama sets a bad example by focusing on her needs to the tune of 1.5 mil of our tax bucks? Gimme a break, this woman is out of touch and has absolutely no clue how insulting this is to desperate Americans faced with layoffs and home foreclosures.

The reason it might look racist is that EVERY FLOTUS in living memory has had a paid staff.
Were someone to all-of-a-sudden publish these numbers as if she were the first FLOTUS to ever have a staff, it would look small-minded--at the very least.

I think the racism issue gets brought up so often is because racists are incredibly small-minded as a rule. It is almost natural to think racism when one sees small minded diatribes. Take a peek at that first comment! Does the commenter HONESTLY believe FLOTUS has never had a staff? It is hard to believe ANYone could be so small minded and uneducated. It is preferable to think "Racist" as opposed to "Retard."

Thge article in question closed with this prophecy:
"Yeah, I know, The Canadian Free Press has to publish this because the USA media is too scared they might be considered racist. Sorry America!"

Let the racists comments begin!

I suppose there are those among us who would gravitate to that.

My first thought when I received this story from one of our readers was, "Holy paycheck, she has the largest staff in our history!" Then I thought, how could anyone justify that kind of spending when were are in the worst recession since 1929?"

If racism was involved it must have been in my subconscious mind. It's possible! Hey I could have thought, she is a person of color therefore you must write a bad story about her, but be careful because someone might discover your hidden agenda of racism!

Only I didn't. Actually, when I think of the Obama's I don't think race at all, there are so many other issues of concern I guess that race part gets shoved to back of the bus. And there is shall stay.

Question: Do you think there will ever be a time we can say anything even slightly critical of a person of color without the immediate response of, "It's RACISM!!!" cause that is getting really old and boring.

This part is a bit off subject, but my knowledge of DNA has taught me that there is a 99.999% probability that the black race was the mother race of all humans that followed. The reason is black DNA is found as the base DNA for all races, but not all races are found within the black DNA. Do the logic of that one. Further the DNA differences between black, white, yellow, brown are so minor and fractional as to be virtually irrelevant.

If someone wishes to disparage the black race they are disparanging their own ancestry and this doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

"...and prior to Mamie Eisenhower social help came from the President's own pocket." (within living memory)

In this factoid we find the foundation that should at least serve as a guide for all administrations and for all of those who serve the people. The problem I see is that our government leaders have completely forgotten they serve the people WITH the people's money. They seem to have no respect for that...much like poorly trained teenagers that have been given a lot and never had to earn any of it.

This one slightly excessive expenditure is not that bad but it is not the only example.

I agree with you Jack, that with severe economic conditions, and the necessary and costly expense of war, prudence and economy are called for from our leaders. These are the principles they should be exibiting in thought word and deed. Lead by example!

Instead our president (with his family) are engaging in world travel, shopping sprees and fun dates. (It's only been 9 months) The President and Congress are going forward with plans to grow government, taking and spending even more of the peoples money, instead of focusing on DC belt tightening and stimulus to effect overall job creation...and tax cuts.

This is no time for a "high on the hog" agenda...or excessive behavior. The tone this president has set is indicative of progressivism, elitism and carries with it callous disregard for the people who pay the bill.

Your criticism of this one small area has nothing to do with color. It has been this party that's made a very big deal about excess and greed. More double standards?

"The rich" living high on taxpayer money is much uglier to me than "the rich" living on money they earn especially since they also invest to to provide millions of jobs, create more opportunity and wealth, and to grow the economy.

Quentin, you're really reaching here, and this is coming from someone who really does believe that there has been a racist undertone to much of the criticism of Obama. But in this case, there is simply no evidence of that. Also, the article even pointed out that other first ladies have had staffs. Did you miss that?

I'll admit that this does seem excessive. *sigh* I really want to like the Obamas, but sometimes they can be real jerks.

What can I say? Laura Bush was the very last word in Presidential Housefrau ... quite deliberately ... it being only too easy for an intelligent female like herself to upstage the man.

Michelle ... she is going places and doing things, and no danger at all to the credibility of her husband.

I'm willing to pay.

So far as the original White House report is accurate, it's fair to say that First Lady Michelle Obama has about 22 staffers working for her, directly or indirectly. (Some other accounts put that figure at 24.) However, it's grossly inaccurate to claim that the current First Lady has hired "an unprecedented number of staffers," or to assert (as stated in the anonymously tacked-on final paragraph) that First Lady Laura Bush had but a single staffer working for her.

The 2008 White House Office Staff List, issued during the final year of President George W. Bush's tenure in office, includes sixteen different staffers with the words "First Lady" in their position titles — exactly the same number as that listed for Michelle Obama in 2009. If all staffers listed with "Social Secretary" in their titles are included as part of the First Lady's retinue (as was done with the Michelle Obama example cited above), then Mrs. Bush had at least 18 people working for her in 2008 (not including any of the various personnel listed only as "Staff Assistants," some of whom may also have worked for her directly or indirectly).

In fact, according to Anita McBride, Laura Bush's former Chief of Staff, Mrs. Bush had between 24 and 26 staffers working for her by the end of her husband's second term in office. It's therefore fair to say that the size of Michelle Obama's staff is not "unprecedented," but rather on a par with her immediate predecessor's.

Moreover, according to the Associated Press, several other First Ladies had larger numbers of personnel working for them than Michelle Obama does:
A look at some first ladies and their staff sizes:

Laura Bush: Between 24 and 26 by end of President George W. Bush's term in 2009, according to Anita McBride, Mrs. Bush's chief of staff.

Lady Bird Johnson, whose signature issue was beautifying roadways, had a staff of 30, said Stacy A. Cordery, a history professor at Montmouth College in Illinois who studies first ladies.

Betty Ford had almost the same number.

Jacqueline Kennedy, who made renovating the White House her cause, had about 40 people on staff, Cordery said.
Last updated: 6 October 2009