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A video clip appearing to show Malia Obama blowing smoke rings went viral Friday, inspiring dozens of people to post on social media about how awesome the former first daughter is, bemoan her lack of privacy and compare her to the Trump brood.
A person resembling Obama, a 19-year-old in her freshman year at Harvard University, was filmed doing the smoke trick. The right-wing site the Daily Caller reported that the recording—captioned "'f------ get your camera right now'"—was posted and deleted by Barstool Sports, but a version of it was still making the rounds on YouTube and Twitter Friday morning. But despite being shared by conservatives who regularly slam Obama's dad, much of the reception to the video was positive.
Related: Does Smoking Run in Families?
Writer Ashley C. Ford joked that she was adding "another thing to the list of ways Malia Obama is more talented than me," while blogger Charles Clymer tweeted that "the only thing I find offensive about about Malia Obama blowing smoke rings is that it confirms she's so much cooler than I was at 19." "Let Malia live," activist DeRay Mckesson said.
Malia Obama, youâre doing great sweetie.
— Commander Slay (@natayiu) November 24, 2017
https://t.co/iPedtwepy8
I still can't blow smoke rings so good for Malia.
— Diamond Sharp (@diamonde) November 24, 2017
Malia is cooler than I can ever pretend to be pic.twitter.com/ajlU4lQ5rP
— jordan (@JordanUhl) November 24, 2017
Others contrasted the video purportedly of Obama with President Donald Trump's children, arguing that at least the teen wasn't a big game hunter like Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. or involved in an investigation into whether she colluded with Russian operatives to influence the 2016 election, as they are.
Saddened to wake up to the news that Malia Obama held secret meetings with Russians and subverted our democracy.
— David Dennis Jr. (@DavidDTSS) November 24, 2017
Some perspective pic.twitter.com/KUTXBnfOBW
— sarah schauer ð¦ (@SJSchauer) November 24, 2017
Can these right wing, whites and racists just leave Malia Obama alone? She is a college student. Worry about President Trump's children who hunt and kill animals in Africa, oh, and also do unethical dealings with Russia.
— Luke Waltham (@lukewaltham) November 24, 2017
Obama has been spotted smoking before. Last week, she was caught on camera with a cigarette and a boy before the Harvard-Yale football game. In August 2016, a festivalgoer at Lollapalooza in Chicago claimed to have seen Obama smoking marijuana.
It's not clear what was being smoked in Friday's viral video, but Massachusetts, where Harvard is located, recently legalized recreational marijuana. It's also not clear how Obama's dad, former President Barack Obama, feels about it.
He's no stranger to drug use. The senior Obama admitted in 2006 to using pot, telling journalists that "when I was a kid, I inhaled ... that was the point." There are at least two famous photos of him holding blunts. Back in 1995, he even wrote in his memoir Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance about smoke rings, saying:
"I had learned not to care. I blew a few smoke rings, remembering those years. Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it."
Then again, he had a lot more privacy than his daughter currently does.
About the writer
Julia Glum joined IBT Media in October 2014 as a breaking news reporter specializing in youth affairs.