A year into President Obama’s second term, it was reported that wife Michelle complained several times about being First Lady and not getting paid for this privilege.
President Obama attempted to impress women voters in Colorado by telling them “I want to make sure that when she’s working she’s getting paid the same as men, I gotta say that First Ladies right now don’t get paid, even though that’s a tough job!”
Now steps in the respectful and humble former first lady Laura Bush giving some choice words about getting paid for her duties. Although she admits the “American public sees the first lady in very glamorous circumstance” she also says the title of First Lady should not come with an automatic salary just because her husband happened to become President. As Laura put it, there are plenty of other perks!
The Washington Times said it best “Michelle basks in the reflected fame of her powerful husband; she lives rent-free in the most exclusive address in the world; she has chefs, maids, drivers and other servants at her beck and call 24 hours a day. It might be a “tough job,” but she is assisted by a personal staff of more than 20 people, who are paid a collective salary of over $1.5 million.”
(h/t Washington Post, C-SPAN)
