[img_assist|nid=471573|title=|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=300|height=231]Right Wisconsin, which is owned by the same parent company, Journal Communications, that owns the Journal-Sentinel, has joined the legion of belly-scratching rednecks that refer to First Lady Michelle Obama as "Mooch."
"Mooch" is a shortening of "Mooch-elle," a term Rush Limbaugh coined for First Lady Michelle Obama as a criticism for having the same Secret Service protections other First Ladies have had when they travel abroad... except when Michelle Obama uses it, Limbaugh says she's being "uppity" and a "mooch":
“What is so hard to understand about this woman being booed?” he said, calling her “Mooch-elle.” “We don’t like paying millions of dollars for Mrs. Obama’s vacations,” he said, also complaining about her exhortations about nutrition and exercise. Nascar fans, he said, “understand it’s a little bit of a waste. They understand it’s a little bit of uppity-ism.”
"Uppity," of course, is an old racist term used by Whites for Blacks that don't know their place. And part of knowing your place is that you don't go on fancy vacations! Nevermind that the other First Ladies went on fancy vacations, when you do it, you're being "uppity"!
So, when you're calling her "mooch" or "mooch-elle" the context is that you're selectively criticizing her for something every other First Lady has done-- taken vacations with Secret Service protection. And "mooching off the system" is also somewhat of a dog whistle phrase intended in this context to conjure up images of the Black "welfare queen" stereotype.
Considering that Michelle Obama came into the White House as one of the most accomplished First Ladies in history, she's worked harder than most while in office, and has done nothing different travel-wise than other First Ladies, the "moocher" label is especially absurd.
In fact, Michelle Obama has done a lot less travel than her immediate predessor: Michelle Obama has gone to 25 countries and Laura Bush, at the same point in her tenure, had gone to 71. Can you imagine calling Laura Bush "Mooch-a" or "Leach-a" Bush?
The bottomline is that Michelle Obama is the first Black First Lady and a lot of people clearly have a problem with that and see everything she and her husband do through a completely different lens. And that, friends, is called racism.