FORMER US first lady Michelle Obama has attacked President Donald Trump in her new book, revealing her shock reaction on the night she learned he would replace her husband in the White House.
In her memoir, Becoming, Obama also denounces Trump’s “birther” campaign, which questioned her husband’s citizenship, calling it bigoted, dangerous and “deliberately meant to stir up the wingnuts and kooks”.
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The book, due to be published on Tuesday, tell of how Obama assumed Trump was “grandstanding” when he announced his presidential run in 2015 and expresses disbelief over American women choosing to vote for a “misogynist” over Democratic hopeful Hillary Clinton – “an exceptionally qualified female candidate”.
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She remembers how her body “buzzed with fury” after seeing the infamous Access Hollywood tape, in which Trump brags about sexually assaulting women.
Obama also accuses Trump of using body language to “stalk” Clinton during a presidential election debate. She writes about Trump following Clinton around the stage, standing nearby and “trying to diminish her presence”. Trump’s message, according to Obama, in words which appear in bold print: “I can hurt you and get away with it.”
Obama writes openly about everything from growing up in Chicago to confronting racism in public life to her amazement at becoming America’s first black first lady.
She also reflects on early struggles in her marriage to Barack Obama as he began his political career and was often away.
The former first lady writes that they met with a counsellor “a handful of times”, and she came to realise that she was more “in charge” of her happiness than she had realised. “This was my pivot point,” Obama explains. “My moment of self-arrest”.
Obama’s worldwide popularity has ensured the the book is keenly anticipated, with memoirs by former first ladies, including Clinton and Laura Bush, often becoming best-sellers.
The book’s promotional tour begins on Tuesday not at a book shop, but at Chicago’s United Centre. Tens of thousands of people have purchased tickets – with prices ranging from around $30 to thousands of dollars – to attend the event moderated by Oprah Winfrey.
Other stops on a tour scaled to rock star dimensions are planned at large arenas from New York City’s Barclays Centre to the Los Angeles Forum, with guests including Reese Witherspoon and Sarah Jessica Parker.
While some have criticised ticket prices, 10% of ticket sales at each event are being donated to local charities, schools and community groups.
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