Michelle Obama Responds to Oscar-Appearance Backlash

After making an appearance on  this week's “Academy Awards,” to present the honor of Best Picture via satellite, Michelle Obama has faced a lot of negative press.

Jennifer Rubin of The Washington Post, for example, wrote:

“It is not enough that President Obama pops up at every sporting event in the nation. Now the first lady feels entitled, with military personnel as props, to intrude on other forms of entertaining (this time for the benefit of the Hollywood glitterati who so lavishly paid for her husband’s election)…It makes both the president and the first lady seem small and grasping.”

Now the First Lady is responding to comments like this with her standard calm attitude.

"That's just the nature of life, you know. I mean, we live in a time when there are bloggers and tweeters and 24-hour news and everyone has a voice in this town square and it's a big one. And it's good -- overall, it's good -- but that means that at any point and given time, somebody's not gonna like what you do. That's just the nature of things.”

Obama said that the negativity was “absolutely not surprising.”

"Shoot, my bangs set off a national conversation. My shoes can set off a national conversation. That's just sort of where we are. We've got a lot of talking going on. It's like everybody's kitchen-table conversation is now accessible to everybody else so there's a national conversation about anything."

The appearance was secretly arranged by Hollywood hard-hitter Harvey Weinstein, and was not the first Oscar appearance by  First Lady. In 2002 Laura Bush also appeared on the show, via video.

Oscar producer Craig Zadan said that Obama’s response the idea of an appearance was immediately positive.

"Yes, I think it's a great idea,” she said. “We watch movies all the time at the White House. Let's do it."

Both of the Obamas have made appearances on multiple television shows and in interviews. Most recently, Mrs. Obama appeared on “Jimmy Fallon” to promote her campaign to fight childhood obesity by dancing in a mute skit.

So do the appearances like these trivialize our President and his wife and render our government ridiculous?

Or do they make politics more accessible and friendly... or, at least, show that Mrs. Obama likes to have a good time?

Leave your opinion in the comments!