Michelle Obama Enjoys Jon Stewart's Loving Liberal Interview

On Wednesday night’s edition of The Daily Show on Comedy Central, host Jon Stewart interviewed Michelle Obama and insisted the Obama family has been "vetted about as much as a family can be vetted." Mrs. Obama insisted their Democratic primary opponents "dug through every piece of everything. If something was coming out, it would have come out." When Stewart asked if (if?) there was a "real relationship" between Obama and radical bomber Bill Ayers, he allowed Mrs. Obama to simply claim lots of people knew Ayers: "Barack served on the board of the Annenberg Challenge with Bill Ayers, and there were plenty of people involved with education policy, Republicans and Democrats, who know Bill Ayers."

Stewart, who doesn’t act as a journalist or much of a comedian when liberal heroes are on the set – and the show’s small crowd launched into an extended, feverish welcome for Mrs. Obama – didn’t bother to ask the Democratic nominee’s wife about whether she met or worked with Ayers’ terrorist wife, Bernadine Dohrn, when they both worked at the Sidley Austin law firm. Instead, he asked if it was her job to keep the Obama family grounded. It unfolded like this:

STEWART: And who is Barack Obama? Is it surprising, 20 months into this process you've been vetted about as much as a family can be vetted.

OBAMA: I agree.

STEWART: This woman from Alaska, Sarah Palin, wants to know who you are. Do you ever think to yourself, who are you? ( Laughter )

OBAMA: That – that does cross your mind. But I agree -- what you said is correct. We've been out here for 20 months, and, you know, Barack was up against a tough set of primary opponents who dug through every piece of everything. If something was coming out, it would have come out. And, you know, I just urge people to focus on what these candidates have done in their lifetimes not base it on what somebody else has done --

STEWART: Issues and things. Is it weird to see the Ayers thing rear its head again? And is it, we could clarify it right now. On a scale, palling around with terrorist, William Ayers, in terms of the relationship with the Obama family, between the polls of family ski vacations with the Ayers, and nodding to him while jogging, or shunning him, what is the relationship-- is it strange to have this guy thrown out there? Is there a real relationship?

OBAMA: You know, it's been out there before. I think you know as the campaign has said barack served on the board of the Annenberg Challenge with Bill Ayers, and there were plenty of people involved with education policy, Republicans and Democrats, who know Bill Ayers. But I think what the voters are most interested in, they're interested in the issues. No one's asking about this stuff on the campaign trail. People --

STEWART: The voters aren't, but the angry mob seems-- do you ever watch footage of those [GOP] reallies and think: Where are these people going with this?

OBAMA: You know, I don't watch it. because I need to stay focused on what's really happening on the ground. I mean --

STEWART: Are you the glue-- as this is going on, how do you remain sort of the center of the family? Is that-- is that the job, to keep everybody grounded?

OBAMA: That's part of it. I've stopped reading and watching a lot of stuff. You know, if I --

STEWART: So you're a lot like Sarah Palin. ( Laughter ) ( applause )

OBAMA, after pausing for comedic effect: Perhaps.

STEWART, scolding himself: Terrible, terrible.

Mrs. Obama also claimed that, even as Obama and Biden hit the trail and slap at McCain as "erratic" and "old and tired," it’s Senator Obama who is always pushing to locate the decency inside Americans. Obama voters want solutions, while Obama critics are, mmm, angry bitter clingers of some sort:

The thing I've liked about Barack's campaign is that, you know, he's always pushing for the decency that is there in Americans. I think you've got some people who will never vote for Barack Obama, who are, you know, angry about, you know, the state of the country. They have every reason to be. But most people really want to, you know, find solutions. And they want leaders who are going to, you know, unite us around a set of -- a set of solutions that are going to make sense.