First Lady Pool Reports of September 14, 2022

FLOTUS pool report: Remarks at Italian American reception

Good evening. Sending along a pool note on the First Lady's remarks at the Italian American Democratic Leadership Council reception this evening. 

FLOTUS entered at 6.19pm wearing what a polka dot dress. 

She was introduced by Jim Rosapepe, Vice Chairman of the Italian American Democratic Leadership Council and former US ambassador to Romania. 

He noted that the First Lady is the first Italian American in the White House, prompting cheers from the roughly 50 people at the reception in the IBEW building in Washington DC.

FLOTUS told the audience it was "so nice to be here with family". She joked about not having a glass of red wine at the lectern, saying "what kind of good Italians are you?" to laughter from the audience. A glass was promptly brought over to her. 

Some quotes from FLOTUS' remarks:

"This community has been such good friends to Joe and me over the years and it's an honor to be back here with you this evening to celebrate our heritage together."

FLOTUS said the gathering brought back childhood memories of her grandparents' house, which she said taught her "to love my Italian roots".

"We can find a piece of our homeland in every corner of this country," she said. "And as Joe has said, the election ahead of us is about the soul of America."

"It's really about who we are and right now there's a group of extremists trying to divide this country. But America has always been strong, you know, strong enough to welcome our ancestors and embrace the values and gifts that they brought with them."

FLOTUS shared a litany of the administration's achievements, noting they were done "with just 50 votes in the senate". 

"So imagine what Joe could do" with more seats, she said, listing women's reproductive rights, extending Social Security and Medicare, banning assault weapons and preserving marriage equality.

FLOTUS ended her remarks at 6.33pm. 

She took a small sip of her wine before stepping away to mingle with the audience, at which point your pooler was hastily ushered out. 

This will be the only pool note of the evening, but sending along an Otter link for the full remarks: https://otter.ai/u/rwjZ2jw5RWwvyLUFxiS29XUdEtg