For two successful terms, Barack Obama was President of the United States. Many consider this to be the most powerful position in the world. Because of this, though, it was also the most difficult job in the world. And countless things made it more difficult, including everything from unrest overseas to politicians sniping at each other here in America.
However, the surprising thing that made Obama’s life so difficult during his time in the White House was normally a source of joy: his eldest daughter Malia. She often presented as the perfect daughter, but towards the end of her father’s second term, Malia became something of a party girl. And this ended up causing Barack Obama major nightmares for several different reasons.
What was up with Malia’s party girl transformation, and why did it cause so many headaches for her father? Keep reading to find out!
Barack Obama describes how difficult fatherhood can be
In retrospect, Barack Obama clearly wasn’t ready for Malia to become a party girl, and he was even less ready for the world to find out about it at the same time he did. However, when the time came, he had ready access to someone with some very sage advice about raising a willful daughter. We’re talking about himself, of course, and what he said during his weekly address on June 18, 2011.
During this rather moving speech, he said, “above all, children need our unconditional love – whether they succeed or make mistakes; when life is easy and when life is tough.” It’s a great reminder that children need love no matter what they have done. Additionally, Obama noted in that same speech that being a father is “sometimes my hardest” job of all.
Unfortunately, he had no way of knowing just how hard Malia would make that job a few years later.
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Malia Obama’s most shocking moment
Back when Barack Obama was in the White House, his daughter Malia was a bit like America’s sweetheart. She wasn’t just his first daughter…she was the nation’s First Daughter, we more or less watched her grow up in real-time. And during those appearances, she was always the portrait of grace and manners…the kind of young woman that parents hope their own daughters can be like.
But in 2016, the unthinkable happened: cameras caught Malia Obama seemingly smoking weed at Lollapalooza. Not that long after this event, she was at a crazy house party in Martha’s Vineyard that got broken up by the police. Neither of these events was crazy on their face…weed was legal in Illinois and nobody was charged with anything after the cops showed up at the party. But these events forever transformed the idea of Malia as an innocent girl, and they would go on to haunt her father, personally and professionally.
How Barack Obama really felt about his daughter’s party girl reputation
Many fathers are scared that their children will use recreational drugs or go to raucous parties. Of course, the worst thing most dads deal with afterward is a few awkward phone calls with other parents. Barack Obama, though, was one of the most famous people in the entire world, so what would have been a minor incident for another father became a national scandal for the president.
Later, a source close to the president told RadarOnline “This is the president’s worst nightmare!” Clarifying their statement, the source continued: “The end of his term is in sight — and the carefully crafted image of a world-beating family is unraveling right before his eyes!”
And this was the issue in a nutshell: as part of his political journey to the White House, Obama had presented himself as the ultimate family man and, in turn, his family as an example of the American dream come true. Now, the scandal with Malia threatened to unravel all of that even as it threatened to taint Barack’s legacy (perhaps permanently) after he left office.
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An awkward father/daughter conversation
So, how did Barack Obama react to his nightmare situation unfolding? The world was finding out that Malia was a party girl right when her dad was getting ready to leave the White House. How, then, did this outgoing president handle the scandals being created by his daughter? After she was caught at that Martha’s Vineyard house party, witnesses saw Barack and Malia Obama taking a very long walk together.
Nobody knows exactly what the famous father said to his daughter. The aforementioned source close to the family speculated to told RadarOnline that “I’m sure he had some choice words for his daughter during that walk they took.” Whatever he said seemed to work, though: Malia no longer has the party girl reputation and has begun a new chapter in her life working on TV shows with leading figures like Donald Glover.
It’s a new life now for Malia. And, for her proud papa, the end of a nightmare he never expected to have!