fun-raising

Michelle Obama Notices Thing About Her Husband We Noticed Two Years Ago

U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama walk into the North Portico of the White House before attending a state dinner March 14, 2012.
The Obamas. Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Almost two years ago to the day, we published a groundbreaking analysis of President Obama’s habit of responding “I love you back!” to fans who shout “I love you!” to him at rallies and speeches. The result of hours of transcript-searching and splicing together bits of video into different categories — for example, the “‘I Love You Back’ and Point,” the “‘I Love You Back,’ Crazy Person,” and the “‘I Love You Back’ but Hush Up for a Minute, I’m Talking About Something Important” — the slideshow, “An In-Depth Analysis of President Obama Telling People That He Loves Them Back,” was an instant hit, garnering as many as 45 page views according to some estimates.

We bring this up now because, today, in a fund-raising pitch, Michelle Obama notes the same phenomenon:

I see this happen a lot:

Someone in a crowd yells at my husband, “We love you, Barack.”

That’s when he interrupts himself, smiles really big, and says, “I love you back.” And he does.

That’s why Barack’s dinners with supporters mean so much to him—because they give him a chance to show it and to say thanks.

I can say from experience you won’t want to miss out on the next dinner. I hope you’ll consider donating $3—or whatever you can to support the campaign—and be automatically entered today.

Thank you,

Michelle

So now we have a new category, the “‘I Love You Back’ If You Send Me Money.”

Obama Loves You Back