| | | | | Former first lady Michelle Obama attends a roundtable discussion at Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in Chicago on Monday. Credit: Jim Young/AFP/Getty Images | | | Trump Goes Off on France: Trump is handling Macron's admonishments about as well as we thought he might
Monica Lewinsky on Expecting Better From Bill Clinton: Lewinsky explains why she participated in an A&E doc
Memoirs of the Former FLOTUS: A history of first lady books, from Lady Bird Johnson's "Diary" to "Becoming" | | | What the White House is Talking About:
President Trump has his regular intelligence briefing. Later, he participates in a Diwali ceremony at the White House.
What the White House Press Corps is Talking About:
There could be an indictment today in the Mueller investigation.
Could Mueller Be Making Moves?:
Roger Stone associate Jerome Corsi said yesterday that he thinks he will be indicted by the special counsel for giving false information. It's complicated, but it has to do with Stone and WikiLeaks: "Corsi could face any number of charges -- spanning from perjury to making false claims to obstruction of justice. The potential charges are related to false statements he made about his relationship with WikiLeaks and Stone."
Trump Goes Off on France:
If it's one thing we know about the President, it's that he does not like it when he thinks someone is admonishing him -- and it was clear that French President Emmanuel Macron was doing just that this weekend during remarks in France. Macron specifically rebuked the term "nationalism," and Trump lately has been saying he's a nationalist, which I'm sure you've heard. Anyway, Trump is handling it just about as well as we thought he might. | | Credit: @realDonaldTrump/Twitter
Two additional things on this: one, the French Embassy participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery yesterday in honor of Veterans' Day. The President did not. Also, this morning, while Trump rails against Macron, Macron is tweeting thoughts of remembrance to mark today's third anniversary of the Bataclan massacre in Paris.
Amazon Finally Asks Someone to the Prom:
Guys, the weirdest episode of "The Bachelor" is over. Amazon has picked not one, but two locations for its next headquarters: New York City and Crystal City. Congrats. But sads for the 238 other cities around the country who tried really, really hard to get the attention of Jeff Bezos, especially Tucson, Arizona, which tried to lure Amazon by promising a giant cactus.
Our Daily Melania:
Obama said in one of her interviews with Robin Roberts (because there have been like four) that she offered Melania Trump the opportunity to reach out to her anytime if she needed help or had questions, which was something Laura Bush offered to her. It's not clear whether Michelle ever used the lifeline and called Laura, but she told Robin that Melania had never reached out for help. It became a thing, of course, which is probably what was intended, so Stephanie Grisham responded to my question for comment on it, saying Melania is independent and doing things her way in the White House, thank you very much, adding, "When she needs advice on any issue, she seeks it from her professional team within the White House." | | I Am 105 Years Old:
Congratulations to my friend and colleague Kaitlan Collins, who has made Forbes 30 Under 30 list of media personalities defining the world of news. Kaitlan is 26 and she's probably one of the most hardworking and tenacious White House reporters the beat has ever seen. Also, I read this entire list of people and it is clear that I am old. Thank you.
Monica Lewinsky On Expecting Better From Bill Clinton:
Lewinsky has written a new essay for Vanity Fair explaining why she agreed to participate in "The Clinton Affair," a highly anticipated docu-series airing Sunday on A&E. First of all, I personally think after what she's been through, Lewinsky shouldn't have to explain anything about what she does ever, but this is a thoughtful piece. Clearly, and rightfully, her ire remains squarely targeted at the one person in the whole affair (pun intended) who still doesn't quite seem to get it: Bill Clinton. Lewinsky says this about people asking her about a sincere apology, or lack thereof: "what feels more important to me than whether I am owed or deserving of a personal apology is my belief that Bill Clinton should want to apologize. I'm less disappointed by him, and more disappointed for him. He would be a better man for it . . . and we, in turn, a better society." | | Dress Like the Former First Lady:
I'm not sure you've heard, but Michelle Obama has written a book.
So there's a lot of press surrounding the launch of "Becoming," and one of the things Michelle has done is the cover for Elle magazine's December issue. I love the images, absolutely love them. I also think it's great that Michelle still uses her long-time glam squad for these sorts of things, when most editorial shoots' beauty and style teams are in-house, or selected by the story editor. Michelle has been loyal to her makeup person, Carl Ray, and her stylist, Meredith Koop, for almost a decade. Her hairstylist, Yene Damtew, is newer to her team, but has handled Michelle's hair for several years as well.
My favorite shot of Michelle in this spread is the one of her in the black top and the insanely good silver culottes with the paper-bag waist. The pants appear to be custom, but a similar high-waist version is available here for $1,450. The Gianvito Rossi shoes are also great, they are the "Jasmine" style, available here for $1,295. Well done, Koop, well done. | | | Credit: elle.com, neimanmarcus.com, gianvitorossi.com | | Today is World Kindness Day:
Not to get cheesy here, but I try to practice kindness in my daily life -- part of a principle of faith, but also just because it's one of the things my dad has always taught me. It's much easier to be kind than it is to be mean, and the results of kindness are far more rewarding. Just a thought to spread the word because today is actually #WorldKindnessDay. | | What Washington is Talking About:
Congress is back in session, member-elect orientation check-in is today, and Amazon announced it's splitting its HQ2 between Crystal City, outside D.C., and Long Island City in New York.
What America is Talking About:
The death toll in the California fires has risen to at least 44, a Wisconsin school district is investigating a photo of students doing a Nazi salute, and Stan Lee died Monday at 95.
CNN Files Suit Against Trump Administration:
The suit was filed this morning in a US District Court in Washington against President Trump and several aides over Jim Acosta's suspended press pass. The White House Correspondents' Association said in a statement it "strongly supports CNN's goal" of regaining a credential "the White House should not have taken away in the first place." You can read more about the suit here.
Sinema Wins in Arizona:
Arizona's closely contested Senate race was called Monday for Kyrsten Sinema. That means the seat, now Jeff Flake's, will go from being held by a straight male Republican BYU grad to a bisexual female Democratic BYU grad.
In her acceptance speech, Sinema paid tribute to John McCain, calling him a "legend" whose example "shines a light" and who taught her to put country over party and stand up "for what's right, even if you stand alone." Martha McSally conceded in a video filmed in a living room with her dog, saying she wished Arizona's first female senator success.
Whitaker Gets a Warning:
Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker got a warning in today's Washington Post. Wrote Rep. Adam Schiff in an op-ed, "The president and Whitaker should heed this warning: The New Democratic majority will protect the special counsel and the integrity of the Justice Department." Schiff wrote that if Whitaker did not recuse himself and interfered in the investigation, "he will be called to answer."
Memoirs of the Former FLOTUS:
Happy "Becoming" Day. Michelle Obama's book, out today, is the latest first lady memoir, a literary subgenre that got its modern start almost half a century ago with "A White House Diary," written by Lady Bird Johnson and published in 1970.
The 800-page "Diary" was written from meticulous notes Johnson took while in the White House. She arrived at the position suddenly, following President Kennedy's assassination, and felt, "as if I am suddenly on stage for a part I never rehearsed," she wrote. She took notes for an hour daily, totaling 1.7 million words.
"A White House Diary" included a book tour and television and radio appearances. It was a hit and spent 13 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. | | | Before "A White House Diary," books by former first ladies were sporadic. Helen Taft and Edith Wilson wrote one, Eleanor Roosevelt wrote several, and Julia Grant wrote one that wasn't published until 73 years after her death. But since "A White House Diary," every former first lady has written one, except Johnson's immediate successor, Pat Nixon, whose husband resigned from office, so I get it. | | Betty Ford's "The Times of My Life" was published in 1978, and like Johnson's "Diary," it was in part the story of a woman who became FLOTUS through an unconventional route, following both a vice presidential and presidential resignation. "I am an ordinary woman who was called onstage at an extraordinary time," she wrote.
First ladies' books have been known to outshine their husbands'. The Fords received a joint book advance -- the first hers-and-his deal, according to historian Craig Fehrman, and the only one until the Obamas -- for $1 million, but it was Betty Ford's "Times of My Life" that outsold Gerald Ford's "A Time to Heal."
The New York Times review for Rosalynn Carter's "First Lady From Plains" called it "poignant and witty, and rich in detail" compared to Jimmy Carter's "dry and passionless" writing. | | | Nancy Reagan's "My Turn" was nicknamed "My Burn" for its pointed criticism at those she felt wronged her, and it included an admission that she hadn't told her husband she made alterations to his schedule on the advice of a San Francisco astrologer. Meanwhile, her husband's "An American Life" read like stories from a "kindly uncle," and the former President "says hardly a bad word about anyone, even the man who shot him, John Hinckley," Maureen Dowd wrote in her 1990 review. | | | These books can be written with different intentions. Barbara Bush's "Memoir" and Laura Bush's "Spoken From The Heart" were published after each had taken a step back from public life, while Hillary Clinton's careful "Living History" was written in the middle of her Senate career with two presidential campaigns ahead of her. | | "Becoming" arrives somewhere in between. Obama explicitly rules out a run for office in her book, but remains a visible public figure, with her and her husband's Netflix deal, the group When We All Vote she co-chairs and supported during the midterms, and her own arena tour featuring celebrity guests, which dwarfs what Johnson saw for "A White House Diary" in size and scope. Lady Bird Johnson wrote a bestseller, but she never had the backing of Oprah's Book Club.
First lady memoirs have become a new political tradition, and one that's open to reinterpretation with time and by author. Obama has set a new standard, but it's not hard to imagine future memoirs by Melania Trump or one day, America's first first gentleman, setting their own rules and inspiring future books that follow.
Reviews Are In:
Here's what people are saying about "Becoming": - Chicago Tribune: "If [Michelle and Barack's] story was woven into a fairy tale, in 'Becoming' Michelle Obama turns the fabric over to reveal the rough side."
- Entertainment Weekly: "'Becoming' arrives like a glass bottle of decency, preserved from a nationwide garbage fire."
- New York Times: "'Becoming' ... is in many ways a fairly conventional first lady's memoir: An insider's view of what it was like to live through national tragedies and other major events, in one of the most high-profile positions in the world. ...But as the first African-American first lady, Mrs. Obama's experience was far from typical, and she writes about feeling greater scrutiny than her predecessors."
- Wall Street Journal: "This combination of wise pragmatism, 'mom-in-chief' authenticity and lively good humor makes Michelle a perfect foil for the aloof, brainy Barack."
- Washington Post: "'Becoming' is a political spouse's memoir like no other, and I say that as the author of one."*
*written by Connie Schultz, the wife of Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, and author of "...And His Lovely Wife."
Street Art Sighting:
Street artist Lushsux is known for his meme murals, but to pay tribute to Stan Lee, he kept it straightforward. | | Credit: @lushsux/Instagram
Lee's death has prompted online sharing of his "Soapbox" columns where he called out racism and argued that love was more powerful than hate.
And in 2007, he wrote a four-panel comic for the Atlantic about the American idea. "America is a dream, a vision, a miracle based on one noble idea -- the idea that people of every race and religion can live together in peace, that everyone is entitled to equal justice under the law and that government is responsible to the governed," he wrote.
P.S.:
Ariana Grande just got her first No. 1 hit, with "Thank U Next," which debuted at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Her previous highest-charting hit was the No. 2 "Problem" with Iggy Azalea in 2014. | | | | | | |
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