Free Michelle!

From TIME’s Sophia Yan:

Michelle Obama has been held by US Customs and Border Protection in the port of LA for the last two weeks — 10,000 Michelles, to be exact. The first shipment of the Michelle Obama action figure by Jailbreak Toys, designed in New York and manufactured in China, was on its way back to the States for its November 15 debut. But the First Lady — complete with toothy smile, toned plastic biceps and your choice of three different outfits — is currently trapped in container #00LU865121.

“We know this is a busy time for Customs officials,” says Jailbreak Toys owner Jason Feinberg. “What is most frustrating is that we haven’t been given any reason for the delay.”

On his blog, Feinberg is urging would-be purchasers of the action figure to “help us by sending a message to the bureaucrats in LA…to ‘Free Michelle Obama!’” (By “bureaucrats in LA,” he means the folks who field inquiries about the status of entry release and holds at the Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport’s Trade Interface Unit.)

Update: Feinberg may need to add a State Dinner Michelle figure to the collection. The First Lady is looking stunning this evening. And once again shaming the rest of us into hitting the gym a little more often.

Obama Stumbles? Why the President’s Right to Talk About Bain

The meme of the day in journo-world is that President Obama has stumbled at the outset of the general election campaign. The evidence for this? Well, uh, there isn’t very much, really–except that a few Democrats have criticized his campaign’s attacks on Mitt Romney’s record at Bain Capital and that Obama’s fundraising is merely humongous, instead of obscenely humongous. The two phenomena are linked, of course: Obama isn’t getting the usual haul from Wall Street because he has outrageously–outrageously!–tried to regulate the bankers who did so much to crash the economy in 2008. The handful of Democrats squawking are people who either (a) get money from private equity firms or (b) have retired and joined Mondo Casino. But there is another side to this story:

cfukara

O, Amy.
You know how to craft a headline.
spob

This is funny:
.
http://www.kaleidahealth.org/canada/
deconstructiva

Amy, you don’t need to hit the gym more often.
deconstructiva

Are you all sure those toys weren’t made in Kenya? Do they come with framed authenticated birth certificates?
.
Amy, even if you and Karen didn’t get on the official state dinner guest list, did you sneak in anyway for a free drink, appetizers, and pithy background info. for upcoming stories?
selfdeprecate

Now what am I going to use for stocking stuffers this year http://selfdeprecate.com
deconstructiva

I’ll bet the Lou Dobbs action figures made in Mexico made it across the border without any problem.
stuartzechman

Amy Sullivan:
.
Maybe I should head over to TMZ or Perez’ for more details.
Cliff

Nice!
apr2563

spob: I lived for a number of years on the American side of the American/Canadian border, both in Blaine and Oroville, Washington. When Canadian pubs were closed on Sundays, there were many taverns to accomodate their thirsty customers. When adult sex shops were restricted in Canada, the border towns in America became a source for those shops. If the monetary exchange makes it cheaper to shop in the US, Canadians flock to our stores. You will find large grocery stores on the American side that cater to Canadians, even in small towns along the border.
There never has been a rush to set up medical clinics on the American side. Mexico has many clinics on their side for Americans to receive cheaper treatment.
A good number of Americans I new went to Canada for cheaper perscriptions http://www.getcanadiandrugs.com/
and for cheaper dental care.
The greater majority of Canadians like their universal health care.
I belong to an HMO in the US. I must use designated doctors. If a specialist is needed, so is permission. I can wait up to 2 to 3 months to see a doctor for a basic physical. Permission must be given for specific treatment and medications. Any of them can be denied. Private insurers in this country ration care everyday.
I don’t know what you find so amusing. People in this country die everyday for lack of health care.
apr2563

By the way, spob, I forgot to mention, Michelle Obama looks stunning. That was the topic of Amy’s posting.
ibobchicago

Mr. Feinberg is making a fuss over nothing except being unprepared. The shipment in question is part of a consolidated container, currently at a CBP authorized exam facility called Price Transfer. The examination is routine for security (formally called AT-CET, for Anti-Terrorism/Contraband Enforcement Team.)

Public email to the Trade Interface Unit will not be acknowledged by CBP, and only hampers legitimate business and trade.

Finally, no Customs entry has been filed for this shipment, suggesting that Mr. Feinberg may not have contracted a Customs broker to handle this for him, or his broker is not acting in a timely fashion.

Please, let us not propogate whining.
doubleang

$5 says they are contaminated with Lead based paint anyway
boothv

HA! Awesome.

This story is picking up steam. I ran across a video that while obviously “tongue-in-cheek,” exposes this issue too.

Power to the People. Power to the Action Figures!

FREE MICHELLE!
britethorn

Thanks for posting the link to my film! FREE MICHELLE!
http://www.britethorn.com
cfukara

” .. When adult sex shops were restricted in Canada, the border towns in America became a source for those shops. ..”

I suggest that we put punitive taxation on porn peddlers – to pay for our single-payer public option.
[Worry not: There is billions of dollars in there and the smut-addicted creeps will pay. Just like the cigarette smokers ...]