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Leetal Karkay-Selea
English 104
Nadine Arndt
October 12, 2016

Remarks by the First Lady at Hillary for America Campaign Event: An Argumentative
Analysis

This political season is quite the collection of events. With all the commotion surrounding
this years presidential election, we have a duty, as citizens of the United States of America, to
carefully listen to and analyze every word, view, value, and plan each candidate has for our
country. The greatest country in the world needs to elect a leader that can continue to let this
nation thrive and be the strongest. The stakes for the election this year have never been higher,
and as seen these past few weeks, the game is not played nice. Both presidential candidates, as
well as their surrogates, have been touring the nation in effort to rally as many votes in their favor
as possible. Many things have been said, many people have spoken on their behalf and in their
favor. It is as close a race as ever, which is why all eligible citizens need to stay informed and
vote, come this election day November 8th. On September 28th, 2016, Michelle Obama attended
a Hillary for America campaign event at La Salle University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Obama being a huge Hillary Clinton supporter came to La Salle that day and spoke to encourage
anyone and everyone to vote in this election, while endorsing her candidate.

During her time as First Lady of The United States from 2008 to present day and until this
coming January, Michelle Obama has become a very influential woman who many people can

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relate to or aspire to be like. With all the uncertainty clouding the political air, Obamas words and
persuasions can be used as comfort to those who look up to her. Her speech at the Hillary for
America campaign event is very clearly directed to the younger generation. The ways she delivers
her words is very tactful, clear and present or relatable. During her introduction she appeals to the
younger generation by humorously making comparisons we can all relate to, whether we like her
or not. My husband has got to find a new job. I have to find a new job. (Laughter.) Weve got to
move to a new home, were going to need to pack. Weve got to pack up the old house, get it
cleaned up so we can get our security deposit back. (Laughter.) (Obama) While she is speaking,
there are a few different types of claims Mrs. Obama seems to be making while touching up on
the use of some very tactful logical fallacies. Because Michelle Obama knows how influential and
powerful she is over this generation, Obama can use her stature and persuade many undecided
citizens to join her on the campaign to elect Hillary Clinton.

Michelle Obama believes that electing Hillary Clinton to be the next President of the
United States is a morally sound decision. Using her appeal as an authority to connect with the
human pathos, Michelle Obama lets us know exactly what being president takes.
So, when it comes to the qualifications we should demand in a President, to start
with, we need someone who will take the job seriously. And we need someone with superb
judgment in their own right...And finally, we need someone who is compassionate.
Someone who will be a role model for our kids. Someone whos not just in this for
themselves but for the good of this entire country...So who in this election is truly ready for
that job? Well, for me...its very clear that...that person is our friend, Hillary Clinton...We
know that Hillarys the right person because we have seen her character and commitment
not just during this campaign but over the course of her entire life. Weve seen her

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dedication to public service - how after law school, she became an advocate for kids with
disabilities. She fought for childrens health care as First Lady and for quality childcare
as a Senator. (Obama)
Because Michelle Obama has been The First Lady for the past 8 years, she is seen as an
authoritative figure, more people are drawn to her words and what she has to say. There is no
doubt that the president should be serious, compassionate, and a role model which is why her
words are so appealing. Choosing to connect those qualities to children really appeals to the
human pathos. By bringing kids into the mix, the stakes are set even higher. It has been proven
that Hillary Clinton did indeed dedicate herself to public service. According to Politifact,
Although she has not always drawn a paycheck for her political work, it's clear from her resume
that public service, particularly involving the welfare of children, has been a major focus for her
career and outside activities. (Adair) Nobody wants children to suffer, its immoral. So, by
drawing upon Clintons extensive resume and nearly life-long commitment to helping children,
Obama used her appeal to pathos as a figure of authority, to encourage more people to think about
Hillary Clinton as the candidate to elect.

As Michelle Obama continues her speech, she lays out facts from the previous election to
show exactly how important voting is. By revisiting and breaking down the results from last
election, with specifics to Pennsylvania, Obama tries to make extremely clear just how important
one vote can be.
And for any of you who might be thinking that your one vote doesnt really
matter, or that one person cant really make a difference, consider this: Back in 2012,
Barack won Pennsylvania by about 300,000 votes -- which sounds like a lot. But see,
when you break that number down, the difference between winning and losing this state

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was only 17 votes per precinct. Take that in. Seventeen votes. Thats how presidential
elections are won and lost -- on five votes, 17 votes per precinct. (Obama)
Those statistics being true and correct, as Pennsylvania elected Barack Obama by a close margin
of 5.39%, can be taken in many ways. (Wiki) Michelle Obamas special pleading to get everyone
to vote is quite like a double edged sword in the sense that she only wants you to vote for the
candidate in question, Hillary, and if you are not using your vote for her, then essentially, what is
the point? She uses so many different logical fallacies in her speech that point her audience in
favor of voting Hillary Clinton. She goes through Ad Populum, mentioning that a vote for Hillary
is a vote for positive things to come in the future, and a vote for her opponent, or not at all, is a
vote for despair, which also happens to be an example of false dilemma.

Michelle Obama is a great speaker and has the skill associated with rallying an audience to
join her cause, whatever it may be. In every line she delivers, can be found the use of so many
different logical fallacies, and appeals to the populations as simplistic humans. She displays each
device clearly and with the circular argument that the false dilemma is the only option. Hillary, or
bust, a slippery slope from there if she does not get elected. In the conclusion of her speech, the
audience is clearly excited and her point has been made, asking the help of each citizen to ensure
Hillary Clinton takes the victory, appealing once again to the human emotion. Just based on her
conclusion, Michelle Obamas speech was effective. If it did not encourage everyone listening to
her to vote Clinton, it definitely turned some heads. By targeting those who are still undecided
and bringing them together with those who already support Clinton, Obama delivered a speech
that hits almost all logical fallacies and claims. A speaker that knows exactly what she is doing.

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Works Cited
Adair, Bill. "Many Years of Politics and Advocacy." Politifact. Politifact, 19 Feb. 2008. Web. 16
Oct. 2016.
<http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2008/feb/19/hillaryclinton/many-years-of-politics-and-advocacy/>
Obama, Michelle "Remarks by the First Lady at Hillary For America Campaign Event." The
White House. The White House, 28 Sept. 2016. Web. 12 Oct. 2016.
<https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2016/09/28/remarks-first-ladyhillary-america-campaign-event>
"United States Presidential Election, 2012." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Nov. 2012.
Web. 10 Oct. 2016.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election,_2012#Results
_by_state>