In Prime-Time Address to the Democratic National Convention, Michelle Obama to Focus on Values that Shape Her, Drive Her Husband
Craig Robinson, Michelle's Brother, to Introduce Her at the Pepsi Center
Denver, CO – In her prime-time speech before the Democratic National Convention, Michelle Obama will talk about her husband, Democratic presidential nominee, Barack Obama, the values that have driven him as a father, husband and public servant and why she believe he will be an extraordinary president. As the person who knows him best, there's no one who can do a better job introducing Barack Obama to the country.
In her speech, Michelle will give the country a personal view of Barack Obama – her husband, and Sasha and Malia's Dad. She will talk about their life together, and building a family grounded in faith and values. The more America learns about this family, the more they're going to want to send them to the White House. Michelle's older brother Craig Robinson, who is head basketball coach at Oregon State, will introduce her tonight to the national stage.
Excerpts from Michelle Obama's speech are below:
"But each of us also comes here tonight by way of our own improbable journey. I come here tonight as a sister, blessed with a brother who is my mentor, my protector and my lifelong friend. I come here as a wife who loves my husband and believes he will be an extraordinary president. I come here as a Mom whose girls are the heart of my heart and the center of my world – they're the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, and the last thing I think about when I go to bed at night. Their future – and all our children's future – is my stake in this election.
And I come here as a daughter – raised on the South Side of Chicago by a father who was a blue collar city worker, and a mother who stayed at home with my brother and me. My mother's love has always been a sustaining force for our family, and one of my greatest joys is seeing her integrity, her compassion, and her intelligence reflected in my own daughters."
***
"And Barack and I were raised with so many of the same values: that you work hard for what you want in life; that your word is your bond and you do what you say you're going to do; that you treat people with dignity and respect, even if you don't know them, and even if you don't agree with them.
And Barack and I set out to build lives guided by these values, and pass them on to the next generation. Because we want our children – and all children in this nation – to know that the only limit to the height of your achievements is the reach of your dreams and your willingness to work for them."
***
"And in the end, after all that's happened these past 19 months, the Barack Obama I know today is the same man I fell in love with 19 years ago. He's the same man who drove me and our new baby daughter home from the hospital ten years ago this summer, inching along at a snail's pace, peering anxiously at us in the rearview mirror, feeling the whole weight of her future in his hands, determined to give her everything he'd struggled so hard for himself, determined to give her what he never had: the affirming embrace of a father's love."
Michelle Obama Background
Michelle Obama is a working mother, a wife, and a public servant. In 1992 she married Barack Obama; they have two girls – Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7 who like their mother, were born on the South Side of Chicago. After completing her college education, Michelle returned to Chicago in 1988 to join the law firm of Sidley & Austin but soon realized that corporate law was not her calling. She left to give back to the city she loves, to help others serve their communities and became the founding director of the Chicago chapter of Public Allies, an AmeriCorps program that prepares young people for public service. Today, more than 350 young leaders have graduated from Public Allies in Chicago.
Since Senator Obama began his campaign in early 2007, Michelle has met thousands of Americans, hearing their concerns and hopes for the future. As someone who knows the challenge of balancing work and family, Michelle has held roundtables with working women to hear about their struggles to do it all, particularly in a failing economy. In these discussions Michelle heard the unique stories of military spouses, who work hard to keep their families together while their loved ones are away.
Craig Robinson Background
Craig Robinson, Michelle Obama's older brother, is the head basketball coach at Oregon State. Although Craig, his wife Kelly, and their kids Avery, 15, and Leslie, 11, live in Oregon, they keep in close touch with Barack, Michelle, Malia, and Sasha on the campaign trail. Growing up, Craig was a star player at a parochial school near his family's apartment on the South Side.
After graduating from college, and playing for the Philadelphia 76ers professionally in England, he returned to the United States, to start down a new path. He earned an MBA from the University of Chicago and spent seven years as a vice president for Morgan Stanley Dean Witter. Craig never gave up his love for the game and in 1999, after some serious thought, he decided to leave the world of finance and get back on the basketball court. Craig spent six seasons as an assistant coach at Northwestern and two seasons as the head coach at Brown. This spring, he was named the head basketball coach at Oregon State.
