Outspoken and gutsy but sometimes sarcastic and condescending, Barack Obama's wife, Michelle, is playing a central role in his campaign as it builds toward a final showdown. Known as "The Closer" behind the scenes, the 44-year-old Harvard-educated lawyer puts steel into the campaign while Obama stays above the fray, reports the New York Times.
Athletic and almost six feet tall in heels, her presence is as commanding as her style. “I am trying to be as authentically me as I can be,” Michelle Obama says of her sometimes caustic turn of phrase on the campaign trail. “My statements are coming from my experiences and my observations and my frustrations.” (More Michelle Obama stories.)